Jesus Guerrero Galvan - Nino con Caracol

Guerrero Galvan was born in Tonala, Jalisco, in 1910. From 1925 and until 1927 he studied at the San Antonio Art School, in Texas, and in 1928 he went to the Escuela de Pintura Libre in Guadalajara. Upon returning to Guadalajara, he joined the Banderas de Provincia group, composed of artists and intellectuals concerned with the issues facing rural regions in Mexico. This experience led him to meet influential figures such as Raúl Anguiano, José Guadalupe Zuno, and Agustín Yañéz. It was in this same city where he made his first mural. During the 1930’s he moved to Mexico City. He was, in his first years what one might call an artist of the old ways, that critics called "Italianized" painter, whose compositions brought to mind the Renaissance and the study of sketches of the great masters like Leonardo da Vinci. His theme always went around the boundaries of Mexican spirit with an italianized tonic, creating extraordinary pieces of art such as "Mujer con rebozo blanco" ("Woman with white shawl"), "Mujer de pie" ("Woman standing up") , "Niña en rosa" ("Girl in pink") and "La Nanita" ("The little Nurse"). One of his pictorial characteristics was the feminine presence with their halo of mystery and magic. Despite his financial struggles, Guerrero Galván completed his studies at the Escuela Libre de Pintura (Free School of Painting) and later moved to Mexico City, where he focused on painting murals as part of the nationalist movement, which viewed art through a revolutionary lens. After an early foray as a muralist in his home province of Jalisco, Guerrero Galván had academic schooling in the workshop of the forgotten nineteenth century master José Vizcarra. With him he developed his draftmanship skills, which he maintained as the constructive base for his pictorial work, for which, in effect, the pictures produced between 1935 and 1942 are characterized by an excellent craft technique. The influence of the classics on his work also comes from his study of and admiration for Picasso, especially the massive figures of his neoclassic period. He was part of what was called the Movimiento de Creacion Plastica, which was contemporary to the Mexican Muralist Movement. Besides mural painting, Galvan worked in oil paintings, lithographs, and illustrations. In 1947, he illustrated a book about Quetzacoatl, written by Ermilo Abreu Gomez. He is also considered to be one of the best portrait artists in Mexican history. Guerrero Galván had an intense political activity. He was co founder, along with other artists, of the "Alianza de Trabajadores de Artes Plásticas" (Plastic Arts Workers Alliance) in 1934 , and in 1959 co founder with Raul Anguiano, Orozco Romero and Juan O'Gorman of the "Unión de Pintores y Grabadores de México" (Mexican Painters and Engravers Union). In 1952 he became deputy for "Partido Popular" (Popular Party) and in 1960 he traveled through the Soviet Union, invited by several local artists. He spent his last years of life in Cuernavaca, Morelos, and died in 1973. Later in his career, he became a resident teacher at the University of New Mexico, where he created the fresco mural The Union of the Americas Associated for Freedom in 1943. His work is known for its frequent portrayal of women and children, exceptional drawing skill, and the vibrant use of color, often highlighted by light tones.
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