Title
Cholo Van with Popo and Izta
Creator
Website
Description
Color lithograph on paper, 52.5 in. x 39 in. In his print, Jiménez portrayed the Aztec legend of Popo and Izta in a “moving mural” decorating a van driven by a Chicano cholo. The lovers Popocatépetl and Iztaccíhuatl are symbolized in the twin volcanoes of Mexico. His imagery shows the synthesis of Mexican and Chicano cultural expression, contextualized within American popular culture. This work also represents the artist’s lifelong fascination with automobiles, which are a critical part of the U.S. economy, industry, and society. Proud of his Chicano roots, Luis Jiménez (1940 – 2006) was an El Paso, Texas native, best known for his large-scale, brightly colored sculptures immersed in the Chicano iconography of Texas and New Mexico. Jiménez studied art and architecture at The University of Texas in Austin and El Paso. He eventually traveled to Mexico to study the famous Mexican muralists Diego Rivera and José Clemente Orozco, and was also influenced by regionalists Thomas Hart Benton and Grant Wood. After completing school, he went to work for his father making neon signs and car decals. In 1966 Jiménez moved to New York and joined the Pop Art scene, making painted fiberglass figurative works inspired by the everyday lives of Latinos living in the Southwest. His work shows his concern for working-class people and those who have suffered from discrimination. Jimenez was and remains respected in Latino communities for his perspective and narrative of the culture of Mexico and the Southwest. His artwork emulates popular Cholo car culture, demonstrated in his use of fiberglass, spray paint, and imagery consisting of Aztec emperors, border crossing, and vaqueros riding wild broncos. His works are in the collections of the Albuquerque Museum, the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C., the El Paso Museum of Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, among others.
Subject
Date
Contributor
Access Rights
Mexic-Arte Museum has created and maintains websites and other digital properties to support its mission to enrich the community through education programs, exhibitions, and interpretations of the collection. These Websites include https://mexic-artemuseum.org/ and https://mexicartemuseum.pastperfectonline.com/. This does not mean that Mexic-Arte Museum owns each component of the compilation, some of which may be owned by others and used with their permission or used in accordance with applicable law (e.g., fair use). Mexic-Arte Museum is committed to protecting the intellectual property rights of visual and performing artists and others who hold copyright. Most items in the collection are protected by copyright and/or related rights. Private study, educational, and non-commercial use of digital images from our websites is permitted, with attribution to the Mexic-Arte Museum. Commercial use of any materials on the Mexic-Arte Museum website is expressly forbidden. Users who wish to obtain permission for publication, display, distribution, or other uses of these materials should contact the rights holder(s).