inkfibre: artista del mes: hugo ortega

Hugo, F and I go way, way back, and as time has gone by, we've remained good friends. It is important to disclose this bit of information, because it may be easy to think there could be a lack of objectivity in my words. There is not.

The truth is we've always admired Hugo's work, mainly because he is the ultimate undaunted, restless artist. The images shown, represent only a snippet of his incredibly vast and diverse body of work. Every time we touch base with him, it seems he is onto something new, always testing the limits of his creative endeavours.

©Hugo Ortega, Mexican Colors #2, oil on panel, 48 x 72 in, 2013

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Born in Mexico City, Hugo Ortega’s commitment to the production of art and non-functional objects, is heavily influenced by an abstract mathematical perspective, developed during his undergraduate studies in Industrial Design at the Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, Azcapotzalco, in Mexico City. In 1993, as a Fulbright scholar, he pursued a Masters of Fine Arts, Fiber Arts, at the Savannah College of Art and Design. While at SCAD, his creative process mutated from detailed, time-consuming textile constructions (tapestry weaving), into an immediate expressive act of mixed-media acrylic paintings. After graduation he returned to Mexico City to continue his professional endeavours as a designer, educator and assemblage artist.

In 1999 he was awarded a second Fulbright fellowship (one of the few artist/academics in the world to be bestowed with this distinction) to pursue doctoral studies in Art and Art Education at Columbia University, in New York City. His doctoral investigations have been shaped by what happens in and through studio practice.

He has been exhibiting since 1985, participating with fiber art, paintings, drawings, digital art and videos in more than fifty group exhibitions in Mexico, Japan, Germany, India and the United States; and eight solo exhibitions in Mexico City and New York City. He also has a wide experience as a curator and gallery consultant in Mexico and the United States.

Currently, his studio practice emerges from the exploration and manipulation of limited material resources. The creative process is based on reiterative cycles of composition in an attempt to evolve artistic forms through a philosophy of proximity and implementation. The strategies of action remain the same across mediums and everyday events.

He lives in northern México where he owns and runs an open studio gallery.

IN HIS OWN WORDS: ON PAINTING

"Painting is instinctual, a way of doing things, an anxiety that lively plays by going back and forth between intriguing abstractions with intense color and the figurative silent reality stylistically graphic. The process defines the artwork; first, it incorporates strong sudden repetitive strokes that emerge sometimes from frustration or not knowing what will be painted, but define and determine where to go. Afterwards, as any idea becomes clear, the visual noise of the strokes is silenced by the brush's manners that softly difuse the composition."--Hugo Ortega

IN MY OWN WORDS: REGARDING HUGO ORTEGA'S RECENT OEUVRE

Succinctly said: Powerful, moving, engaging and incredibly prolific. The moment boldly captured in the charged eloquence and zealousness of each brushstroke.

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