On September 24th, A.W.E. artists were honored to host Carlos Estevez, an international artist who presented a workshop on his work and the art of collage, reports first year Marquette University Student Alexandra Zurawski.
Born in Havana, Cuba in 1969, Estevez has not forgotten his native cultures and traditions: he has incorporated his Cuban roots into his artwork today. Estevez studied art at Instituto Superior de Arte in Havana, Cuba. After receiving his education, Estevez found a passion for travel. Some of his artistic inspirations came from his travels to Brazil, France, and Mexico. Estevez currently resides in Miami, Florida where he is continuing his work. This year, Estevez has four international exhibits in Zurich (Switzerland), Paris (France), New Orleans, and Milwaukee.
Although Estevez creates art in many different mediums such as sculptures, paintings, drawings and ceramics, he is most recognized by his remarkable collages. Through these different mediums, Estevez attempts to reveal the nature of the world, human thoughts and ideas.
The workshop on collage was held at Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design and was organized by Natanya Blanck and Latino Arts, Inc for A.W.E.’s Professional Development Session. At the beginning of the presentation, A.W.E. artists were given a background by Estevez on his life growing up in Cuba and the culture and traditions he was accustomed to. Estevez described where some of his inspirations came from, including the work of a Brazilian native who was not considered an “artist” because he was put into a mental hospital. Inspired by the Brazilian’s work, Estevez felt that “the concept of taking something from reality out of context was…simply amazing.”
Participants were captivated for the entire hour and a half presentation. Estevez was eager to give advice to participants, explaining that he regularly shops at flea markets and thrift stores to find certain “treasures” to incorporate in his collages. These items he collects are seen as fragments of people’s ideas. Throughout his slideshow, Estevez pinpointed the sheer beauty in simple things made wonderful by his distinct balance of artistic enthusiasm and the patience he puts into his pieces.
After presenting his show, Estevez led A.W.E. artists in creating collages of their own. Using magazines, markers, oil pastels, pencils, and the artists’ own supplies, A.W.E. artists worked using techniques similar to that of Estevez: a mixture of non-traditional and traditional elements. The artists had the opportunity to experience a taste of Estevez’s personal life and incorporate what they learned into their pieces, while being able to give them their own unique twist. Although the weather outside appeared gloomy, there was a lively buzz of excitement that hummed throughout the studio. Artists engaged in conversations with each other and a spirit of enthusiasm hung in the air. The workshop turned out to be a great success and Estevez was eager to speak to the artists individually and give his opinion on their pieces. A.W.E. participants felt very fortunate to have a significant artist like Carlos Estevez present such an interesting and informative workshop on his collages.
In addition to attending his wonderful lecture, Alexandra was able to catch up with Mr. Estevez after his lecture at Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design to ask him for a few questions. Click the ‘more’ link below to read the artist interview!
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A.W.E. is proud to announce that we have been invited as the recipient organization for the Nourishing Arts-Autumn Vibrations gala on Nov 5. Please join us if you can!
