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La Voz Nueva
Mercado district welcomes new sculptures
Emma Lynch
It is not everyday a piece of culture and heritage gets recognized and preserved as it should. The Denver Office of Cultural Affairs’ Public Art Program however, did just this. Un Corrido Para La Gente (A Ballad For The People) by Denver artist Carlos Fresquez was donated Friday, Nov. 13. In attendance were Fresquez, City Councilman Paul Lopez, the Denver Office of Cultural Affairs and commissioners as well as the larger community. The sculptures are located at Morrison Rd. and Sheridan Blvd.
Fresquez’ Un Corrido Para La Gente pays homage to the surrounding neighborhood or Mercado district. It is compiled of sculptural forms inspired by what one might find in the neighboring shops of the area. It consists of a giant guitar with an eagle painted on it, a wheel and crown all connected to a sculpture of a shovel by papel picado. Papel picado is the Mexican art of cutting tissue paper into elaborate designs and streaming them together. Morrison and Sheridan will not be looked at the same with this unique and colorful addition.
Comments from City Councilman Lopez from the Denver Office of Economic Development noted, “We have been collaborating with our partners to transform and highlight the unique identity of Morrison Road and create greater economic viability.” The statement continued, “In the heart of Denver’s Latino community, Morrison Road is becoming Denver’s “Linear Mercado” serving the local area with authentic Mexican restaurants, bakeries and boutiques. It is Councilman López’ vision to capture this unique identity to reinforce current family-owned small businesses to revitalize the district with development that serves the needs of the surrounding community.”
Fresquez was born and raised in Denver. He holds a B.A. from Metropolitan State College of Denver and an M.F.A. from the University of Colorado, Boulder. An art veteran, Fresquez has exhibited his drawings, prints, paintings and installations in at least 25 U.S. states and in eight different countries. Currently an assistant professor at Metro, Fresquez has had the opportunity to also share his knowledge and work with universities and galleries. Some include Las Bellas Artes in Mexico City, The Albuquerque Museum and The National Museum of American Art. Fresquez’ work has been included in numerous touring exhibitions, including; The Chicano Codices; Encountering Art of the Americas, which toured the North American southwest, Rasquachismo; Chicano aesthetics, which toured the State of Arizona, and Chicano Art: Resistance and Affirmation, which traveled nationally. His exhibitions have been housed in impressive venues like the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, The National Museum of American Art, The Smithsonian Institution, and The Academia San Carlos in Mexico City. Fresquez has received countless awards for his artistry. He is married with two children.
As no stranger to creating work in public places, Fresquez is a talented muralist and has both created and taught students to make art on public venues as tribute to our history and how it is spread, both in the past and in the future. A closet musician, Fresquez is a talented percussionist who just happened to pick up a paint brush in the similar fashion as he uses a drumstick. He toured with a funk-jazz-Latin band with his uncles in the 1970s. It is artwork like Fresquez’ that helps to capture this unique and diverse identity that Denver is famous for.
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