Claudia & Sergio paint: the essence of the Mapuche. It's cosmology/cosmovision in our ART!

Claudia & Sergio paint: the essence of the Mapuche. It's cosmology/cosmovision in our ART!

oil on canvas: Retorno a la Semilla

We have launched our kickstarter project and hope that YOU will help us make this first chapter come to frutition by donating here!

With the help of Kickstarter and people like you, we'll be able to start working on our project "Retorno a la Semilla" (Return to the seed), in Chile this June!

Retorno a la Semilla will be an exhibit that is based on Claudia's painting about the essence of life: the seed of who we are: our spirituality, our history, legends and beliefs in the continent of America.
We hope to learn about and be influenced by the cosmology and iconography of indigenous cultures throughout the Americas.... we are starting in Claudia's Chile, then Sergio's Mexico...then here in the USA-our home...from there: Ecuador, Peru, Brazil.... and more! 

Your support means we can turn this exhibit into a reality!

           It has been less than 48 hours since clicking “launch” and we already have 7 generous backers!

Thank YOU!

Every little bit helps us and makes YOU a part of our project.

We really are hoping to exceed our goal....keeping in mind that a project will NOT be funded (we will not get a penny) if the goal is not met...we made our goal low.... but we know and have seen many, many projects on kickstarter get funded over 200% of their goal!! That would be FANTASTIC as we could begin right away planning our next step, approach more venues for exhibiting etc.

Please help us by donating, sharing with your friends, tweeple and Facebook

We can not do it without YOU!

Please visit/share THIS LINK and support us!

oil on canvas:
Mapuche woman in the Andes

Be a part of  this ARTventure! There are SO many ways you can help us demonstrate the power of art to unleash imagination, break down barriers, and connect people in this world where we too often find so much division and prejudice-
help us shine the light on the Mapuche people...!

Please help us by donating, spreading the word to your friends and family, tweet, blog, facebook.... (imagine if hundreds of people donated as little as $5.- or $10.-each!...we would more than meet our goal! and we hope to not only meet our goal but surpass it!)
We have ART "rewards" as a way of saying THANK YOU for all donations.... and of course: our LOVE and APPRECIATION and ((hugs)) everytime we see you!!

Thank you in advance for ALL your support

 

Claudia & Sergio

I am the poet of the body

    "...I am the poet of the body,

And I am the poet of the soul.

oil on canvas "Motherhood" by Claudia Olivos.

The pleasures of heaven are with me, and the pains of hell

are with me,

I am the poet of the woman the same as the man,

And I say it is as great to be a woman as to be a man,

And I say there is nothing greater than the mother of men"....

~Walt Whitman

Art Museum etiquette and children

Today we visited the National Gallery of Art with some of our young students.

When visiting a museum I like to teach our students respect for art and the experience of admiring and learning from artwork, so I teach them to have an attitude of attunement and sobriety similarly to when one may visit a religious site or library.

I teach them that the museums belong to them-our Nation's heritage and treasures....they are to be well regarded and cared for so that we may all share it with our children, grandchildren and generations to come.

I teach them not to touch or lean on the art or even the walls and glass; not to run or talk loudly, to hold their hands behind their back to lean in to a work of art to admire and understand the details and nuances utilized by the artist to produce whatever effect is drawing them in....etc.

And they listen.
Far better than my college students.
Far better than many of the adults I often see sitting on the pedestals of art or even leaning on sculptures to have their photos taken (are they there for the art or merely using it as another photo op for Facebook??--I digress......)

Today as we quietly walked into one of the galleries a guard told me to "keep your children quiet" because there was a 'delegation' admiring the work, I became instantly irritated at the elitism of the moment....I had noticed the group when we had come in and recognized them...VIPs of the museum's Board of Directors coming to get a private tour.
So...our group is looked as "lesser than.." these "VIPs" simply because they are children!?

I looked at the guard and glancing back at the group that was following me I said: "they are rather quiet don't you think? They will do just fine" .... and with what was probably a look of disdain on my part.... I walked into the gallery followed by all of the children.

There they stood quietly while I spoke to them about each of the works, the materials and technique etc... and do you know what? I could hardly hear myself TALK above the "VIP group".... the children...quiet as mice, raising their hands for tiny questions with big significance... Oh these wonderFULL children who will grow up to admire, understand and support the arts! ... and the VIP group cackling at whatever jokes they were sharing whilst looking at the art.

As we left the gallery I approached the guard and said to him "..your special group was SO loud I could not hear myself talk over them...I hope you noticed our group was well behaved and quiet"...

The guard looked at me and exclaimed "I am so sorry, please accept my apology..
I am SO sorry he repeated, adding I did not intend to..." -

I accepted his apology and then as we stepped into the sunny day....
and I thought it is too bad that adults in suits are given more respect than children just because they are well...:adults. in suits.

We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, 

yet we forget that he is someone today. 

 ~Stacia Tauscher

Ah...the now famous DC earthquake? Well, apparently we missed it by TWO minutes. Yep, that is all. We went underground and were riding the metro when it struck.

I think next week, when we go back to the museum, 

I will take the guard a nice handmade card drawn by the children and yours truly.

Mi papa....

Today marks the anniversary of my Father's death.
I miss him so very much... and think of him everyday.

 He and my mother were divorced when I was a young child, and I wasn't able to visit with him often because while we lived in Chile, he lived first in Mexico City and then in New York City as a diplomat for the UN. However, although he may not have been privy to the day to day of my life... he was never absent.

I spent many wonderful times vacationing with him at the beaches in Chile and Mexico.... to this day, a "real vacation" for me has to include the beach. Also, it is in the sounds, sights and tastes of Mexico that I think of him.... just as in the streets of New York City.
Mi papa.
He was also a painter, and a poet.

He took my sister and I to museums and galleries and the theater... as well as clam digging in upstate New York, shopping at the mercados in Mexico-strolling through Chinatown or Chichen Itza, browsing through the street wares of artists in the streets of Mexico and through the treasures found in the weekend street fairs of New York. Life with my dad was always interesting and fun.

My father, Luis Olivos Ruiz de Gamboa, had a huge influence in me, and in how I spend my days in my present life.

When he died, I felt the whole world had been pulled from under my feet. I was just graduating from high school, and had plans to move in with him and study up north. I was devasted. Lost and broken.

It has been many years since he died, still- I miss him.

I think of him often. And I believe it was he who brought Sergio to me- he knew the joy that Mexico brings to me and that it brings me close to him...so what better way to bring Mexico to me in DC than via a Mexican painter/partner? It is funny, yet I deeply believe that it was my Papa who orchestrated our meeting...

Papa, te amo y pienso en ti...siempre.

...it's all about beeswax now

We are having so much fun playing with wax.... a medium that is one of the world's most ancient and archival painting mediums, predating oil paint-the Fayum portraits from Grego-Roman Egypt, circa 100 B.C.to 200 A.D., have survived through the centuries.

However, painting with wax, better known as Encaustics was a lost art until Jasper Johns brought it back from obscurity in 1954, exposing it to a new generation of artists.

The fact that I am now as obsessed with encaustic paints as Sergio always has been has come at a complete surprise to me.

After all, I have been watching him work with wax in our studio for the last 5 years... but suddenly, I too am in love with this soft pile of molten beeswax and damar resin.

It is also appealing to be working with encaustics now that the weather is getting cooler.

We fire up the woodstove and melt our wax paints right on our stove.
Here are some images of pieces finished this past weekend, waiting for frames




It seems so right to be working with paints made of a natural medium (we just bought 25 lbs of beeswax from a beekeeper in the area) and to be using our studio's source of heat to help us paint. Sergio painting one of his large pieces (here he is using acrylic paints mixed with sand)


Additionally, the process is much more immediate than the usual oils I work with, the wax dries within seconds. It is also more



forgiving, if I am happy with my results, I take the blow torch and melt it into our coffee can of "brown in the making."
The process is very tactile, and sultry.The wax is soft and pliable...versatile beyond belief (though I am still very much at the starting line for understanding how to utilize it with my figurative pieces).



For now, I am having fun making small pieces while I play with texture, scraping into the wax,
embedding objects into it, embossing it with Chinese paper,drawing into it with oil sticks and pastels...it seems like there are endless possibilities for fun creations!



Our studio is now a much 'messier' place and my need to have everything in its place has to be ignored for at least a few hours. We are blessed with a large space, but when we are in there working it gets claustrophobic with all of the materials we pull out and get crazy having fun with!

Dia de los Muertos

Today is a day to remember our loved ones who have passed on.

Today we pray for and remember friends and family members who have died. Sergio and I remember:
My father: Luis Olivos Ruiz de Gamboa.
My grandmother: Georgina Quiroga Carrasco
His grandfather: Julian Sierra

In Chile, we simply visit graves of our loved ones much as it is done here in the USA for Memorial day, however, in Mexico it is more festive. Traditions connected with the holiday include building private altars honoring the deceased using sugar skulls, marigolds, and the favorite foods and beverages of the departed and visiting graves with these as gifts.
Because my father lived in Mexico for 8 years, and my grandmother loved my father ... I like to remember them by celebrating The Day of the Dead as the Mexicans do: a celebration!

I prepare the food my father or grandmother loved. and we toast with good wine...including leaving them each a cup at our altar whcih we light up with candles and incense in their memory.

In Mexico...death is not a time for mourning, rather rejoicing- as it is simply another stage of life.


Today we celebrat Día de los Muertos /Day of the Dead ).


From Wikipedia:
"Scholars trace the origins of the modern holiday to indigenous observances dating back thousands of years and to an Aztec festival dedicated to a goddess called Mictecacihuatl. In Spain, there are festivals and parades, and, at the end of the day, people gather at cemeteries and pray for their dead loved ones. Similar observances occur elsewhere in Europe, and similarly themed celebrations appear in many Asian and African cultures"

Exhibiting at the Biggs Museum of American Art

Sergio and I are exhibting at The Biggs Museum of American Art this month.
The name of the exhibit is Visions of Dignity
Dates are September 15 – October 15, 2010

From their website
Please join us at the Biggs Museum of American Art as we kick off Hispanic Heritage Month with the Visions of Dignity public reception on September 15, 2010. At the same time, Visions of Dignity artists create windows to see into their own cultural origins. Visions of Dignity invited artists to participate who identify as Latin American or U.S. Latino, including those artists from Spanish, Portuguese, French and English speaking countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, living or working in the State of Delaware and the Mid-Atlantic Region.
This rare opportunity brings together the Museum’s audiences with noted Hispanic artists from throughout the Mid-Atlantic region."

Delaware Art Exhibit, Claudia Olivos and Sergio OlivosM

A few days ago, Sergio and I received an invitation to exhibit our work in a Museum in Delaware.

Sergio will be exhibiting three of his wonderful encaustics , and I will be exhibiting two of my colorful abstracted pieces including one of Sergio's favorite's A Demon in my Beautiful life.




Also, as many of you know...this year we will be in process of many things for our future.

A year ago we decided to greatly scale back from our studio classes to focus more on our work... this year, we continue with that aim.

We are looking to both New Mexico and New York as places that would be ideal for our art. We are at this time simply trusting that the universe will conspire with us as we pursue our dreams..thank you so much for sharing in the journey!

And last but not least... as we feel the tugging of Autumn at the feet of summer...we begin to think of our big Open Studio in december...yes, we know it is early: but please make a note in your calendar and come and visit us for an ART-FULL evening of fun and cheeer on December 4-we love to see all our friends here for our anual pARTy!

The art of teaching!

July and August are busy teaching months for us.
In the studio, we are busy with a very small group of very talented young artists.
Each Monday we visit a local museum, and the rest of the week they set to task creating their own masterpiece.


This week, we visited the NGA to see Impressionist pieces from the Chester Dale collection.
In the studio our students work with pencils, chalk pastels, oil pastels and finally acrylic on canvas.

Our youngest student is 6 years old.


At the end of the week, we transform our studio into a mini gallery for our participants, they and their parents are always so proud...it is a great feeling to know we made an impact on the life of a young artist!


Teaching is not a lost art, but the regard for it is a lost tradition. ~Jacques Barzun

The story: my "disappeared" paintings in Mexico

La Ilusion

Five Years ago I was invited to exhibit my work in a prestigeous art museum in Queretaro, Mexico: Museo Regional de Queretaro. I was thrilled to be exhibiting not only in a museum for the first time, but in Mexico-a country I have always loved since I was little and took many vacations there with my father.
I was ecstatic!

I felt honored and thought of this land I have grown so very fond of, especially after my father's death: he LOVED Mexico too!

The exhibit was organized by SOMAAP Queretaro, and organization similar to the USA's NEA. The exhibit was also auspiced by the University of Queretaro, where I (along with four other Washington DC based artists) were scheduled to lecture about our work, and about our experience working as a Latin American visual artists in the USA.

this is the one piece I miss the most....it is about the first time that my son left for an overnight visit with 'the ex'

I shipped my 7 pieces to Queretaro on February 22, 2005, and I was notified that my paintings arrived in Toluca on March 1st. I dearly love all my work...but artists always have favorites...and these were some of mine. I was glad to know they had "landed" where they were intended to go.

However, as soon as I arrived in Mexico a few days later, I was informed by the SOMAAP organizer in charge of the exhibit that customs was refusing to release my work to the Museum for reasons which I was not privy to. I was not able to get in touch with customs.

I felt so helpless.

The organizers advised me that they would handle the case and help me retrieve my work- I was warned that getting involved with the authorities as a foreigner was not a good idea... though I felt compelled to "do something"....
I knew not what, and the organizers, SOMAAP asked me for the "factura" (Fed Ex receipt), which I handed over; I was assured they would take care of the "problem".

La mentira
Soon there after, I was informed that Customs was demanding money which it should not be asking for as the pieces were intended for a museum rather than a gallery exhibit (for a museum exhibit they would not be for sale, in a gallery setting they would-so it makes a difference tax-wise).
The only 'real' infraction they were reporting was that I had misrepresented my shipment by labeling it '5 pieces' instead of 7 (my mistake: as one is a triptych). I was told to stay calm, that the situation would be resolved in time for the Museum's opening night.
I was a bit nervous, but I had faith.

La mordida. 

Customs never allowed the pieces to be released for the exhibit. At opening night reception..in this most beautiful museum--my paintings were projected on the wall (via my website) and I stood there and spoke about them with longing. Everyone applauded as they heard about their "imprisonment" in Toluca. I felt encouraged that they may be released before the exhibit ended-I had so much support from both the Museum, University, and SOMAAP.

Time was running out, and SOMAAP and its representatives (including a "customs agency" hired by SOMAAP to 'take care of the problem': Prida Bravo)- advised that the pieces be shipped back to the USA as customs was not releasing them in Mexico.

This was a difficult thing to know: they would never see the light in Mexico..but I was ready to have them home.

Problem: Customs officials informed us that if I wanted the work to be shipped back to the USA- they were going to fine me and charge me 'storage fees' in the excess of $1,000.-

Unbelievable! They did not allow the work to be released, held it while we tried to find a solution, then when we ask it be sent back..they decide to fine me! It made no sense to me..and as an idealist, I was saddened yet believed that things would/could work out!

La locura
I was never given an explanation as to why my pieces had been detained in the first place .... at first, I refused to pay. I was indignant at the injustice; however, after a few days I relented and inquired about how much I owed exactly so that I could pay ("storage fees" were increasing by the minute I had been informed).

They responded (via Prida Bravo-the private 'customs go between')that a credit card would not be acceptable. They wanted my checking account number, including routing number...then and only after I gave them the information, they would give me the total amount due and they would withdraw the money from my account at their convenience (!).

Basta!
Instead, the following weekend I flew to Mexico to meet with members of SOMAAP who agreed to help me only if I joined the organization as a member: I had to swear to never share this fiasco with anyone. I remember walking out of their office and feeling like this was all a mysterious "mafia' like setting. I was in their office, they took photos, they were stern and serious and had lawyers present. I remember the relief I felt when stepping out of the building and encountering the typical stand of 'fresh mangoes' in a bag stand. I ate heartily and vowed to not allow this to break my love for Mexico. Things, were 'moving along' in a very strange way.

In the meeting with SOMAAP, I was told that I should be prepared to fly back to Mexico to pay at any moment. Since I was not free to travel (I was a single mom at the time), I wrote a blank check to my Mexican friend (now my husband), and left it with him.
Prida Bravo (the customs agency) soon stopped responding to my e-mails, and SOMAAP had an attorney contact me who soon withdrew when he realized SOMAAP themselves were responsible for the loss of my art.
Bcak in the USA.. I continued to try to resolve the matter without involving the USA...I wanted to be a 'good guest' to this country I love so much. Thus, I contacted the Mexican consulate here in Washington DC, and after a few phone calls, I was invited to the Cultural Institute for a meeting with the conusl. I was then told that I would put SOMAAP's financial support in jeopardy if they were to get involved; they would not be party to it.

I understood then: I was on my own.

SOMAAP informally contacted me to advise me to 'drop my efforts' to locate my work. And, in July, a SOMAAP representative informed me that my pieces had been declared as abandoned on May 10th.
I was devastated.

I was told, that my paintings were going to be destroyed, or auctioned of.

The destruction of artwork in and of itself, goes against Mexican law, which protects artwork -- nobody is allowed to destroy artwork: there are laws "Rights of Patrimony", and the "Ley de Seguimiento' (where the artist has a right to know where the piece is, who has it, etc) but none of that seemed to matter in my case.

Desesperada
Although I began my effort to rescue my work in Mexico and with Mexican authorities as I never wanted to seem like the 'bad gringa' (bringing in the USA to help)... once I heard they had been declared "abandoned", I began to move stateside.

I believe the media ar a huge power in our society, so... I contacted The Washington Post. They were interested in the story *but* they suggested I fly down to Mexico and confront customs in person. I was not able to acquiesce to the request, as I would be unable to leave for an extended period of time due to my duties as a mommy...and my work.
A year had passed. I contacted the State Department. It was amazing how quickly (within hours) I had a response from them. Soon, the State Department had enlisted the help of the American Embassy in Mexico city.
I was relieved. It felt as though finally, my paintings would arrive at my door again.

Alas, I was wrong. The Mexican government-customs in Toluca-claimed they had never seen, heard, nor had my paintings. Aaargh! I could not believe it! I was helpless. It was hopeless.

I was told there was nothing more to be done. I cried.And cried.
I have missed my paintings all of these years, there were some very sentimental pieces included in the lot. Some that I never meant to sell, this is why I sent them to a museum rather than a gallery exhibit.
I often tried to envision the huge wooden box leaning on our front deck...paintings intact.


El principio del Final: Revelation
Five days ago, I received an email.
It said:

"Claudia Olivos,
I wanted to inform you that I purchased your 7 paintings which were sold at a government auction-customs in Toluca".

Yes. The government lied.
They probably wanted a big "mordida"...then different people and organizations and who knows who and why others got involved who did not want to get involved....and finally-time passed, they decided to sell them.

I was shocked when I read the email. I am sad that a couple of those pieces-which I never meant to sell...I will never have again. (of course: I cried).
I am sad that people lie.

But, I am SO happy that the pieces are in good hands. For that, my tears are of joy.
I am so thankful that they are in the hands of someone who was nice enough to contact me and let me know of their new home.
He has even let me know he plans to have them exhibited at local museums in Mexico.

These paintings have a history, and they have stories to tell....
 so this is just the beginning for the rest of their lives.

Day of the Dead, Dia de los Muertos (altar)

Today is Dia de los Muertos...in much of South America, though it is celebrated tomorrow in Mexico.

Feliz dia to all our dearly departed!!


Here are photos of the altar we made for my papa, Luis Olivos,
Sergio's abuelo: Julian.
My abuelita: Gerogina.

Magnolia (Motherhood)

Magnolia (Motherhood)
Originally uploaded by olivosartstudio

Magnolia (Motherhood)

"If I had a single flower for every time I think about you, I could walk forever in my garden."

~Attributed to Claudia Gandhi

A mother's love is unconditional.  It is a gift that allows us to experience the very foundation of love.

Without it, we are lost and searching for love's meaning.

Love, when learned via the unconditional love of a parent- is pure and free- and sets us up to share it with others in our lives... for those of us who have had abusive mothers, it is often very, very difficult.... yet, when we ourselves become mothers.... we can give what we never received....

As the daughter of a Narcissistic Mother, I have grieved the lack of unconditional love my whole life, but I am grateful to have had the blessing of being a mother myself so that I *can* know what unconditional love really is.

As a mother, I know I love my son unconditionally.
Forever.
This unconditional love means that I cannot always predict my reaction or guarantee my strength, but I can guarantee that I am committed to his happiness, his growth. I will always accept him just as he is. I will always love him, deeply.

My favorite book to read to him since he was a toddler has been “I love you Forever" I can still not read it without getting teary eyed. I mean every word of it!

My poem: Curious Comet.Lost love

Last week, we had the Chilean poet Sergio Badilla in our home. We spent several evenings discussing various issues relating to life, art, and the written word.
It led me to think of my own poetry. I have have written several poems, most of them in Spanish.
My poetry is usually full of visual metaphors(no big surprise there!).
The short poem below, was written about 5 years ago. It speaks of the excitement of new love... and the frailty of it. "Lost" love

I feel my poetry reads better in Spanish. Funny, because I have more sophisticated language in English, but because Spanish is my native tongue- the language of my childhood... it lends itself better for my soulful verbal expression.

Cometa Metete

Le conte un secreto a la sombra que levita sobre el techo
en la penumbra sobresalida de una luna gelatinosa y melancolica
le conte un secreto (fue sobre ti)
.....unas cuantas palabras tiradas hacia el mensajero silencioso
mi unico testigo fue una estrella transparente y un cometa metete
le conte (que te quiero)
y la sombra lo escondio a la orilla del rio
....pero ahora que a pasado mucho tiempo, no lo puedo encontrar

Curious Comet

I whispered a secret to the shadow that hovers over the roof
in the penumbra of a gelatinous and melancholic moon
I told it a secret (it was about you)
…a few words tossed up to the silent messenger
My only witness was a transparent star and a prying and curious comet
I told them (that I love you)
and the shadow hid my secret at the edge of the river
…but now that much time has gone by, I can not find it.


Penumbra=the partially shadowed region which surrounds the full shadow.

Interview about Living my Bliss on BlissChick website

BlissChick is a blog that speaks to my heart. I was asked to write a post for the blog by answering a few questions I was emailed.

 As I wrote the answers.... things spilled out which are quite candid about my life, yet definitely give reason to why my own blog so often takes the direction it takes.

Take a minute to read the post
"SharedBliss: The Awakening of Artist Claudia Olivos"

Here is an excerpt:

One day as I questioned God about my life—it all seemed so unfair, my marriage was putrid in the inside yet on the outside looked so ’perfect’ – I felt like such a victim until God opened my eyes. It was a revelation… I was living to please everyone else when truly I should only care about pleasing God; and if God is all-knowing then who was I trying to kid? God revealed to me She already new my heart. I was going through the motions to please my husband, friends and family. God showed me that if I was trying to please Him/Her - she already knew my truth- and I owed it to myself and my creator to live it.

and another excerpt:

I could not continue to live under the guise of Bliss- when I was so far from it. I gave it all up—all the money, the dinners at Embassy row etc...to experience Bliss with my son in a little tiny house (where we still live). I took on a roommate to help ends meet, and worked two jobs to help pay for my graduate degree (MFA). I believe strongly in creating our own Bliss by the choices we make the things we choose to live with, and those we choose to give up.

and the last (please go and read the entire BlissChick bolg post)
Do not do anything you are half hearted about. There are so many choices in life- pick exactly what your heart desires. Your heart will lead you to you. And remember: there is only one “you”..the least you can do …the easiest thing to do: is just to be “YOU.”
When I internalized that, truly and deeply realized that -- I found my Bliss!/strong>em>

wax and theater

We have located Sergio's family in Villahermosa, and they are well! Thank you to all who have written to ask about them! We will keep you posted as the situation is not yet assured.
On a different note: today, we spent 6 wonderful hours with four visiting artists from Fredericksburg. They were in our studio to learn encaustics from Sergio. What a great time sharing our studio space with such talented and creative people!


This evening, we were visited in the studio by Mario Marcel (Teatro de La Luna) who shared a bottle of wine with us as we discussed theater and the economy (!). He has asked our help to paint another backdrop for a play- this time it will be utilized by a troupe visiting from Argentina for the annual Festival Internacional de Teatro Hispano. Earlier this year we painted large canvases 'ala' Frida Khalo and Diego Rivera for the play Frida-- the most attended production at the Teatro to date!

Claudia deciding to burn into an otherwise bad canvas-- in the hope of rescuing it with fire!

Teatro de La Luna, painting scenery for theater

A few years ago I painted the scenery for Teatro de la Luna's Hansel & Gretel, now, Sergio is adding to the sets (a Gigantic "book") by painting in some text.

Though I painted the set before I met him... we are still collaborating on it!

Where was he when I worked fastidiously from dusk 'til dawn to paint the sign for Guajillo (great Mexican restaurant in Arlington)???

Sergio and I also recently painted Diego Rivera and Frida Khalo's paintings for Teatro de La Luna's play Frida and our paint brushes and paint tubes (and our empty tequila bottles...) were used in the set as well.
The media seemed to appreciate our work, as it was mentioned in several papers,including The Washington Post. Not that we will switch careers to set designers.....

Sergio is good at painting text... it is indeed, how he created a whole series of "logos" - small 12x12 encaustic paintings while getting his undergrad.
A spoof on major USA brands like Hershey's, Ford, Barbie...all done in pigmented beeswax! It is that same patience which allowed him to sew my homemade veil when we got married!

To all of you who reside in the DC area.... the International Festival at Teatro de La Luna begins October 7! Great theater to be seen!