President Felipe Calderón Inaugurates First Exhibition by José Luis Cuevas at Bellas Artes
 Presidencia de la República
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| | President hails artist’s work and describes him as cultural leader. | | |
Mexico City - President Felipe Calderón hailed the artistic work and career of José Luis Cuevas, regarded as one of the greatest artists in the 20th and 21st century, "a completely Mexican, yet at the same time universal artist."
During the inauguration of the José Luis Cuevas’ exhibition in the Palace of Fine Arts, the President said that the artist's contributions to the people of Mexico are being celebrated by an exhibition enabling his work to be appreciated through 259 pieces.
“This exhibition follows those such as Isis and the Plumed Serpent, Persia, Fragments of Paradise and Buda Guanyin, in addition to those on Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera, Gabriel Figueroa and Rufino Tamayo here, all of which have expanded art treasures and national and international culture," declared the President.
The President declared that José Luis Cuevas has always been characterized by an ideal of artistic freedom. That is why Juan García Ponce, the critic of this generation, felt that the work of José Luis Cuevas separated truth from appearances through his undeniable freedom.
Felipe Calderón said that he discovered the artist’s free spirit when he read the manifesto, “La Cortina del Nopal” (The Prickly Pear Curtain).
“This attitude of questioning, of rebelliousness, of intellectual and artistic openness, this genuine astonishment at contemporary and universal art, this search to understand it, to appropriate it and incorporate it into Mexican art was the enormous task of this generation and I believe that it would not have been possible or flourished in the way it did if it had not been for the impetus or rather the challenging, creative genius of José Luis Cuevas.
José Luis Cuevas admitted that up to now, he had only visited the Palace of Fine Arts to go to the theater, concerts, the opera or the Manuel M. Ponce hall to give lectures, present a book or receive the Fine Arts Golden Medal.
“But I used to give the exhibition halls a wide berth, I didn’t want to look, perhaps out of a sense of bitterness or resentment. I thought my work would never be displayed on these walls, I am almost a senior citizen, I'm not that far from death and I thought that Bellas Artes wasn't meant for me," he said excitedly during his address.
During his inauguration of the exhibition which will end on August 3, José Luis Cuevas said that since his works do not fit in Bellas Artes, a space will be opened up in his own museum, located in the Historic Center, very near the Metropolitan Cathedral. |
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