Edward Gonzales’ New Mexico roots run beyond deep. His mother’s family arrived in the United States from Mexico around 1908 and settled in the southern part of the state. His father’s family, of Spanish descent, came to Nuevo México in 1598, where they put down stakes in the Llano Estacado, a region that lies on the southern end of the Great Plains. Relatives still live in that remote area of New Mexico.
Las Hijas Del Pueblo, acrylic on canvas, 36 x 48 in.
It is the people of this place that Gonzales often paints, and his depictions of Hispanic families are a unique signature of the artist. “I was trying to create a new iconography in Western art representing families that had been part of the Western landscape for generations, but doing it with a contemporary thrust of the colors and a relative flatness of plane,” says Gonzales.
In Song of the Plains, a family in turn-of-the-century dress gather close in a grassy, sagebrush-studded expanse, mesas in the distance under threatening purple skies. A boy plays the fiddle, and a dog sits loyally by his clan’s side while sheep graze nearby.
“I wanted to express the lonely feeling that one feels surrounded by the Great Plains and massive skies of the Southwest,” Gonzales says. “Here is a tightknit family huddled together for protection because the Great Plains can be dangerous, [whether it’s] bad weather or stampedes or rattlesnakes, so families take care of each other in these small villages. There’s a lot of symbolism in my paintings: you see a lamb, reflecting the terror and concern about kinship, and the dog, which is a mainstay in the American family…”
Song of the Plains, acrylic on canvas, 48 x 36 in.
Painting with an equal sense of belonging, are the wild horses that gallop across the canvas in The Bachelor Band. “Wild horses are a part of our landscape,” he says. “It’s a celebration of their lives as free bands of horses running around the countryside.” A slice of light streaks across the horizon under a choppy greenish-blue sky. “I was trying to make it exude energy, the sky, the horses running…that’s me playing with color.”
Out of the Blue, acrylic on canvas, 36 x 30 in.
He attributes the heartfelt connection people often feel with his work to his choice of subject matter and use of color. “I try to express the beauty and vitality of the people and the lands of the Southwest,” he says. “I think [people] sense a universality in my art, in the subject matter itself, the color connections, and the expressive techniques I use. The way I approach my art is intuitive and I let it take me where it wants to go. It’s like a blank page and I just allow the whole process to fill the painting.”
Like the early impressionists who continue to inspire him, still lifes also have a place in Gonzales’ repertoire, alongside figurative works and landscapes. For the vibrant 36-by-30-inch Out of the Blue, Gonzales gathered a bunch of flowers, arranged them in one of the vases he collects, and placed them on a saffron-colored textile, and painted them from life.
At nearly 78, Gonzales, whose legacy and impact extends far beyond his canvases, has painting for more than 50 years and shows no signs of slowing.
The Bachelor Band, acrylic on canvas, 24 x 18 in.
“I feel like I’m at my creative peak at this point so I’m going to continue doing art as long as I can,” he says. “I’m enjoying it so much it’s hard to stop. It’s what I do. My art expresses the human spirit and celebrates the beauty of nature, and that’s my goal. I also want my work to look effortless, like it was done with one stroke of the brush, spontaneously, without tedium…and I think I’m getting there. But, like Goya said in his old age, ‘I’m still learning.’”
“New Mexico – Color and Light, featuring a selection of brand new and older works by Gonzales, is on view at Acosta Strong Fine Art from July 21 through August 4, with an opening artist reception on July 25 from 5 to 7 p.m. —
Acosta Strong Fine Art 200 Canyon Road » Santa Fe, NM 87501 » (505) 453-1825 » www.acostastrong.com
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