Art Waves Laguna News Post
Latin-American born Carla Tesak, the vivacious new owner of SaltFineArt Gallery will open its doors in Laguna Beach for this First Thursday Art Walk and a Grand Opening on Saturday night, October 3, from 6 to 9 p.m. These premier events preview the art and artist to be shown in the coming year. Passionately, Tesak exclaims: “The Grand Opening will be with a bang louder than any stick hitting a piñata.”
SaltFineArt’s features today’s most prominent artists from South of the Border. All have made names for themselves, and exhibit internationally in prestigious museums around the world. Four of them have work in the collection of the Museum of Latin American Art (MOLAA) in nearby Long Beach. Colorful images of fruit vendors, tropical flowers, marketplace rhythms and lush landscapes typically found in warm climates are prominent. Portraits of young children; life in small villages, and heartwarming depictions of Central and South America are sure to please.
But there is also jarring art that deals with the current and continuous effects of razor sharp modern life. Some El Salvadoran artists deal with the aftermath war of between the government and rebels that ended in 1992 but still exist. Expect also to find chilling images of young boys becoming men too soon as struggling Latin countries deal with the USA imported street gangs that menace their societies. Or, there is the difficult subject of child abuse found throughout the world. Certainly, Latin artists, just as many of today’s global artists, confront timely subject matter expressed in a figurative to a conceptual mode.
The most famous artist in the gallery is Ana Mercedes Hoyos from Colombia. She is world renowned and considered a master artist in a variety of media. Her work is the Museum of Modern Art in Tokyo, in art books, and she is the winner of numerous awards. Among Hoyos’ most noted paintings are her depictions of African-origin fruit vendors. But it is her signature style, the way she paints, draws, and sculpts that is captivating. Hoyos’ art welcomes viewers into a magical paradise of radiant hues and opulent shapes.
Panamanian Octavio Arosemena started painting late in life. He is a dental surgeon who is also obsessed with classical music. His paintings have gotten the attention of art critics as his work was selected for several Central American Biannual exhibitions. Arosemena’s paintings are musical in nature, looking much like a visual translation of sounds. The abstract shapes gyrate beautifully and integrate spiral notations from his country’s indigenous history.
Luis Conejo adds a twist to society’s frenzy over the fashion model and how women emulate them as icons of ultimate beauty. To shatter the image and allure, Conejo subtly gives them an animal feature -- rabbit’s ears, a mouse tail, mouse ears, or markings. At first these are not apparent, but then shock sinks in and smashes the glamorous image.
By now, dear reader, you might be wondering about the gallery name. Tesak considers that art, like salt, globally flows freely across borders, between countries and peoples. Salt and art are not just enhancements, but are essential elements of who we are. They both bring out the essence and flavor of each situation. Salt affects our palate and physical well-being as art affects our soul. Hence, the gallery name. SaltFineArt offers viewers a range of subject matter and types of art to suite individual tastes from the benign and rosy to the stark and surreal. Certainly, SaltFineArt has mined a rich quarry of original art and promises to bring lively exhibitions and new collectors to our community.
Visit SaltFineArt Gallery at 1492 SCH, Unit #3, 917-97-3387. Or visit the website at: www.saltfineart.com. Attend the Grand Opening, Saturday, October 3, from 6 to 9 p.m. Contact the writer at: roberta.carasso@gmail.com