REVOLTOSO: Selected works by Xico González
PRESS RELEASE
CHICANO ARTIST AND HIS CONTROVERSIAL, EMPOWERING ART COME TO SALT LAKE, UNIVERSITY OF UTAH< /p>
SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH - Mestizo Gallery and U of U Center for Ethnic Student Affairs are proud to host Xico Gonzalez and his most recent work of political art in "REVOLTOSO: Selected works by Xico González" through the end of September.
González, a lecturer in Chican@ Studies at the University of California, Davis, will speak to the public about his work and activism at the University of Utah's Union Theater Thursday, September 17th, 3-5 PM. Admission is free. González will be present for the Gallery Stroll reception in Mestizo Gallery Friday the 18th from 6-9 PM to read his poems and discuss his work.
Brash, evocative, and never shy, González's "Revoltoso" features silkscreen posters created in support of numerous political causes, but mainly the fight for immigrants' rights in Sacramento, CA. True to the roots of his exhibit's name, González's art "over-turns" conventional thought and popular images to make his audience react in visceral ways. In his own words, González "seeks to empower people uniting in common cause against a common oppressor disguised in different mascaras [masks]." This has made him not only an artist, but an activist/organizer who puts his artistic skills to the benefit of his community.
Xico's work contributes to the long dialogue of art, activism and the legacy of the Chicano Art Movement. González's lecture at the University of Utah and poetry reading during the Mestizo Gallery Stroll reception promise to be an intellectually and emotionally provocative experience, showcasing the way art and civil-rights activism merge to move a people.
"Revoltoso: Selected works by Xico González" will display in the Mestizo Institute of Culture and Arts Gallery on 631 West, North Temple, #700, Salt Lake City. M.I.C.A. is a non-profit arts institute that seeks to provide space and support for artists who use art as a tool for social change, engage community in their work, are from underrepresented communities, and/or challenge perceptions of "other", allowing them the opportunity to represent themselves without judgement.
About Xico
Xico Gonzalez is an artist, poet, and a political and cultural activista based in Sacramento, CA.
Throughout his undergraduate academic career, Gonzalez actively participated in MEChA (Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan). He established and was the first President to MEChA de Penn State (1996-1997) and the Co-Chair of MEChA de CSU, Sacramento (199-2000). While at CSUS, Gonzalez encountered the veteranos of the Royal Chicano Air Force (RCAF) also known as the Rebel Chicano Art Front and became a member in early 2000. The RCAF is a coalition of Chicano artists established in 1969 at CSU, Sacramento. Gonzalez graduated from CSU, Sacramento with a BA in Spanish and a minor in Art in May of 2002, and a Masters of Art in Spanish in May 2004. In 2003, Gonzalez was presented with the Dolores Huerta Activist Award by the famous Chicana activist and co-founder (along with Cesar Chavez) of the United Farm Workers Union.
Xico currently teaches Chicana/o Studies at the University of California, Davis and Art Studio of Sacramento State.
To read more about Xico, visit his website www.xicogonzalez.com
