The artist communicates with his family and those who support him through his colorful and personal work.
Artist Héctor Muñoz-Guzmán is an artist at heart with a passion for creating colorful images that represent his culture.
Muñoz-Guzmán was not intergenerational: his grandparents grew up on a ranch in rural Mexico. But, according to him, not being born with everything in his hands, he strived for his achievements. His gratitude to those who helped him along the way was evident in our conversation.
“Ultimately, I do art to find peace of mind and connect with my family. It’s what keeps me grounded,” Muñoz-Guzmán told 48hills.
The artist is a third-generation South Berkeley resident whose family gradually moved from Tepatitlán, Jalisco, in search of better opportunities.
One of Muñoz-Guzmán’s greatest inspirations is his mother Briza. He called her a “superhero”.
“She is the epitome of resilience. She came to this country at 14 with no English at all and raised me and my older sister by herself without passing on her trauma to us. She modeled that where you come from doesn’t determine where you are.” Ultimately Where will it go,” he said.
Muñoz-Guzmán described how his mother worked in restaurants to keep them afloat and provide a safe space for her children to grow up. She is supportive of her son, although she does not fully understand what kind of career he wants as an artist.
“When I moved to New York at 17 to attend Parsons School of Design, I only had $40 in my account. I couldn’t have gotten through this new phase of my life without my mother’s support and comfort,” he says.
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His mother was not the only one to provide critical support. At an elementary school in Berkeley’s Cragmont neighborhood, Munoz-Guzmán had an art teacher named Joe, who recognized his talent and gave him special treatment and the best art materials.
“I am very grateful for this because my mother could not afford to buy me supplies,” the artist said.
Growing up in the East Bay introduced him to graffiti and street murals. At Berkeley High School, he produced a series of papers on research topics under the direction of Kimberly D’Adamo.
Muñoz-Guzmán eventually enrolled at the Parsons School of Design in New York and the Rhode Island School of Design.
After leaving his mother’s lair, he knew that he needed to find his own path and take charge in order to realize his dreams. Now he lives with his girlfriend and they create their own parenting space.
“It helped me flourish more. Your path as an artist is much easier when you have a supportive life partner who believes in you,” he says.
His time in the RISD painting program was productive and transformative. He hones his skills in oil, light, negative space, color theory and paints human figures through deep observation. His main focus is portraiture with a focus on Mexican culture.
This is the soul of his work. Mexican icons such as Emiliano Zapata, Corky Gonzalez and Dolores Huerta are its pulse and unwavering leaders determined to serve the people. Artists such as Diego Rivera, José Clemente Orozco and David Alfaro Siqueiros reminded Muñoz-Guzmán of the importance and unique voice of the Mexican revolutionary artist. He is aware of his powerful cultural history and feels responsible for presenting it.
“I like the full brightness of the color wheel. I like the colors coming straight from the tube. One of the biggest criticisms of RISD was that my drawings were too bright, but that’s what attracted me,” he says.
On a typical morning, Muñoz-Guzmán starts painting after he feeds his cat, Montezuma. He treats his full studio sessions as a full time job. He stretches and prepares his canvases with several coats of plaster, intermediate and wet sanding, and then adds off-white midtones or base colors. Muñoz-Guzmán refers to composition in his small collages and drawings as a guide to larger paintings, scribbled on canvas with blotches of chalk and spray paint. Once he starts painting with acrylic paint, he focuses on one color, painting over the areas he wants smoother with oil paint.
“Because I thought of all the small pieces, I treat the larger pieces as shapes, overlaying all the media to create the final image,” he says.
Peers were gifted in his development as creative. Before RISD met artist Sophia Yemisi-Adeyemo, there was a lot of violence in his work. But under her tutelage, he found himself perpetuating the negative stereotypes that had already developed in the mainstream world about people of color.
“Sofia pushed me to take a softer approach to the subject and introduced me to new color techniques,” he says.
His RISD roommate, Patricio “Pachi” Muruchu, also played a key role in his artistic upbringing, teaching Muñoz-Guzmán the importance of knowing one’s history and preserving one’s traditions. Since then, Mu Ruchu has become a lifelong friend.
“My goal is to put the people of Mexico on the highest pedestal and help change perceptions. We are more than our suffering,” Muñoz-Guzmán said.
Of course, there is more to this story than mentorship and talent. During his highly creative, energetic, and sensual period at RISD, he constantly found himself in a dream-like state. It was his first bout of bipolar disorder, which resulted in Muñoz-Guzmán being rushed to Butler Hospital. According to Muñoz-Guzmán, this situation was caused by huge economic and social pressures.
“I thought everyone was trying to kill me, I thought I was being watched, everyone was an actor. Sometimes I wanted to die, and sadness filled my heart, and I could not sleep for days on end,” he said.
He felt like a prisoner, but after a month and a half of suffering for three years, he was released with an official diagnosis of Bipolar 1. He went from feeling every emotion to being completely empty and unable to do any more art.
He no longer feels connected to his community, but realizes that he has kept his people’s stories a secret all his life. He began to read as many books as possible on Mexican history, social movements, and racial theory.
“Feeling so angry and disappointed knowing why my people are suffering was painful — I just wanted to cry at that moment,” he said.
He concluded that most of the courses at RISD ignored the importance of his personality in art history. Even though he got into one of the best art institutes in the world, he felt he had to speak for the whole race in every class.
“I’m climbing the ladder of social art, but at the same time I’m moving further and further away from my own community. I think it’s enough to drive people crazy,” he said.
At 21, his diagnosis and frustration brought him back to Tepatitlán. He abandoned himself and his art and became depressed. But, fortunately, a Mexican doctor introduced him to new drugs. He was able to slowly pull himself together and return to writing.
Muñoz-Guzmán began a new painting and studied with the Tepatitlán muralist Guadalupe Ríos, who assured him that she had captured the spirit of the work. In the end, he bought a plane ticket back to the Bay Area.
“Living in Mexico made me aware of the privileges that I live in America, especially freedom of speech. But I went to Mexico to find new treatments and got them. I lived as a worker and was really connected to Mother Earth. I’m embarrassed that an elite art school is digging a six-foot hole in an agave field,” he said.
Muñoz-Guzmán currently exhibits at Fall River MoCa in Massachusetts, Bureau Gallery on New York’s Lower East Side, and in collaboration with Amor Prohibido at Studio 101 in Los Angeles’ Garment District. He now focuses on exhibiting his paintings locally and building connections with the Great Bay Area artist community.
Muñoz Guzmán is in full swing in 2023 with two group exhibitions: “Pertenecer: Belonging” at the Movimiento de Arte y Cultura Latino Americana (MACLA) in San José, which will be open until March 19, and Pt.2 Galleries.
He is working on the piece as part of the Berkeley Civic Arts Individual Artist Grant program, which is expected to be completed in April. The work is a collection of seven 7 x 24 foot acrylic, pastel and oil paintings depicting Muñoz-Guzmán and various members of his extended family in honor of his hometown of South Berkeley.
To give credit to the community, he has taught at the Richmond Art Center and currently teaches at Creative Growth in Oakland, an artist who says his work brings him joy. He also has an upcoming book, Brown Eyes from Russell Street, to be published by Sming Sming Books, in which he chronicles his progress as an artist through photographs, interviews, and more.
Hector Muñoz-Guzmán wants people to remember where they come from. When he paints, he says, he channels this inner 6-year-old boy from Russell Street in Berkeley, who uses everything he can get his hands on. He encourages all people of color to actively seek out their history to help us love ourselves, love our communities, and ultimately become more defined individuals.
“We have a rich multicultural background with so many influences that make up our unique Mexican identity. We are descended from kings and queens, a rich culture, a strong spirituality, agriculture, astronomy and a strong connection to Mother Earth. This, and we should be proud and accept it,” he said.
He added that we should always remember that our dreams are not as far away as we think. This aggressive performance makes a big difference.
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Post time: Mar-10-2023