August 16, 2013 — Well-known entertainer Cheech Marin, who has gained
additional acclaim as a collector of Chicano art, is scheduled to visit the
University of Wyoming campus and present two public programs on Sept. 6-7.
Marin will speak about “Chicano Art: Cultivating the
Chicano Future” at 4 p.m. Friday, Sept. 6, in the Wyoming Union Ballroom,
followed by a book signing. On Saturday, Sept. 7, at 10:30 a.m., he will give
an informal gallery walk-through at the UW Art Museum. Both programs are free
and open to the public.
An opening reception to celebrate the exhibition is
planned Friday, Sept. 6, from 6-8 p.m. at the UW Art Museum. This event also is
free and open to the public.
While on campus, Marin also will meet with faculty
members and students from the Chicano Studies, American Studies, Art and History departments.
Marin, who is best known for his work in movies,
television and improvisational comedy, has been acquiring art for more than 25
years and has amassed arguably the most renowned collection of Chicano art in
private hands.
“Cheech Marin’s efforts as a collector of and
advocate for Chicano art have made this important art genre visible and
accessible to main street America,” says the UW Art Museum’s director and chief
curator, Susan Moldenhauer. “His public lecture will illuminate the importance
of this art and explore its connections to the broader genre of American art.”
A selection of paintings from Marin’s private
collection will be on view at the UW Art Museum Sept. 7-Nov. 23. “Chicanitas:
Small Paintings from the Cheech Marin Collection” features paintings all under
16 by 16 inches, and showcases 26 established and emerging Chicano artists. The
painting styles include photo-realism, abstraction, portraits and landscapes.
“’Chicanitas’ is drawn from Marin’s most recent
interest in collecting works that explore the personal lives and daily routines
of the Chicano experience,” Moldenhauer says. “Smaller in scale than the large
canvases that Chicano artists have used to convey the political and social
realm of their experience, the paintings in the exhibition offer more personal
yet powerful perspective of their lives.”
The exhibition and Marin’s visit are made possible
in part by the Wyoming Humanities Council, Wyoming Cultural Trust Fund, Wyoming
Arts Council through the Wyoming State Legislature and the National Endowment
for the Arts, UW Chicano Studies, UW Multicultural Affairs, UW Student
Activities Council, UW Art Department, Wyoming Institute for Humanities
Research, ASUW, MEChA, UW National Advisory Board Endowment, and UW Art Museum
Gala funds.
