BY KAREN BOSSICK
Cheech Marin told how he hoped his collection of Chicano art would transform the word Chicano in the minds of viewers when he visited Sun Valley in 2008.
Now his collection of Chicano art will be the subject of a free Art Talk Friday at the Hailey Public Library.
Art educator Kathryn Zupsic will tell the story behind art collector Cheech Marin—part of the 1970s and ‘80s comedy duo Cheech & Chong--at 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 30, at Hailey Town Center West across from the library. Simultaneous translation into Spanish will be available.
The free talk is the final in a three-part Art Talk series about Hispanic icons of modern art.
Marin, who came to Sun Valley to discuss Chicano art on behalf of what was then the Sun Valley Center for the Arts in 2008, specializes in modern painting, sculpture and photography. This year he opened the 61,000-square foot Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art, Culture& Industry in Riverside, Calif., to showcase what is considered one of the world’s foremost collections of Chicano art.
Cheech Marin told reporter Karen Bossick in 2008 that he got the same feeling the first time he stood in front of a Chicano painting as he had when he first heard a tune by the Beatles.
It was a sense of experiencing something very familiar and yet very new, he said.
“I grew up Catholic and was always around statuary, stained glass windows and that kind of thing in the church. I used to go to the library to check out art books in the sixth grade,” he said. “I can’t draw a single line myself. But when I got to a position where I could buy art, I did, partly because I’ve always been intrigued by the power art can have on its viewers.”
He added that he hoped his artwork, which includes works by artists like Carlos Almaraz, Gronk, Wayne Healy, Adan Hernandez, Leo Limon Frank Romer, John Valadez, Patassi Valdez and Vincent Valdez, presents Chicanos in a new positive light for viewers since the word Chicano used to identify Mexican people in the United States was originally an insult.
“Chicano art conveys a theme of what it is to be Chicano, of what it’s like to be out of the mainstream. A lot takes place in the neighborhood, whether it’s the stuff of family life or drive-by shootings,” said Marin, who got a Bachelor of Arts in English at California State-Northridge and was the first celebrity Jeopardy champion.
Zupsic’s talk will focus on amazing contemporary Chicano artists working in Southern California and Texas, said organizer Kristin Fletcher, the library’s programs and engagement manager. “Kathryn really knows art history and has an eye for selecting the perfect images to tell a great story.”
Zupsic has been an art educator for over 25 years, working as a docent and lecturer for the Santa Barbara Museum of Art, the de Young Museum, and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. She specializes in modern art, from Frida Kahlo, to pop art, to the fine art of the tattoo.