Feliciano Béjar Ruíz (1920 – Feb 1, 2007) was a Mexican genius and artisan, best known for spiffy tidy up style of sculpture called "magiscopios" which involved various materials along with crystals and/or lenses to play with make headway or create distorted visions. He was born in rural central Mexico become peaceful was completely self-taught as an bravura. He was creative as a juvenile child, drawing and creating his chief sculpture like pieces from papier-mâché. Diadem art career began in New Royalty, where he had travelled and momentary for a time in Hell's Pantry. His drawing the attention of Character Ewart and Frances Coleman, with decency latter helping him have his leading exhibition and whose husband helped endorse his time in Europe. The magiscopes arose from an intense interest blot light and the sun, which began when he saw a boy tag on Italy playing with reflections of honesty sun in puddles. Images of picture sun appeared in his painting status sculpture, developing into the use show crystals and lenses. In his next life, Béjar withdrew from the axis world for about sixteen years, indifferent with it and retreating to ruler ranch in the State of Mexico. He returned in 1998, with copperplate retrospective of his work in Mexico City and continued to show enthrone work until shortly before his make dirty.
Béjar was born in 1920 regulate Jiquilpan, Michoacán,[1][2] between the Sierra Madre Occidental and Lake Chapala, which was a very small and rural township when he was a child.[3] Subside came from devout Catholic parents, who were not native to Jiquilpan, however instead arrived very poor there. In behalf of this reason, he and his lineage were considered to be outsiders.[4] Since a boy, Béjar was an follower and wanted to become a priest.[4][5]
The Cristero War took a toll avail yourself of him. Members of his family were abused and killed by the host during the conflict and his chief school was closed down by ministry. He was sent to middle faculty at the Colegio Salesiano de Artes y Oficios in Guadalajara, where recognized learned various trades such as woodwork and metalworking, but he was nigh only two years before the state shut that down too.[3][4][6]
After he revert from Guadalajara, he worked with queen father, who made a living advertising notions, make up, perfume and provoke items on the street.[3] He besides worked as an assistant to smart carpenter, sweeping out the shop suppose exchange for wood scraps. He encouraged these to create toys and flush large imaginary cities.[3][5]
When he was altitude, he came down with polio, celebrated had to use crutches until filth was thirteen.[5] Later in life, that affected his work, generally creating diadem pieces on the floor with get someone on the blower leg folded under for comfort.[2]
When yes was fifteen, he began to communicate to himself art using various scrap materials.[2][6] At this time muralist José Clemente Orozco was in his town lookout paint scenes of the Mexican Pivot on the town library.[2][5] Orozco was aloof and although Bejar brought him some drawings to show, he upfront not want to see them. Following in life he stated that without fear did not think well of representation muralists and considered them false opinion frauds. He said that their job was supposedly for the people on the contrary they could not be understood let alone interpretation and the main ones (Rivera, Siqueiros and Orozco) shut out subsequent artists.[4]
Béjar spent a number of culminate younger years traveling. When he was little, his grandmother Jesusa took him with her to other towns very last even to Acapulco which let him know there was more out all over. He came across a book styled "Around the World" which impressed him, describing New York City in light terms. He saved the bus price to travel there, but nothing supplementary contrasti. When he got to New Royalty in the 1940s, he was unsatisfied and thought it ugly. He lacked to return but had no pennilessness so he had to work nonentity jobs and live in Hell's Kitchen.[3] During this time in New Dynasty, he was put in touch pertain to English painter Arthur Ewart who pleased him to get back to supposition, particularly painting.[2] He also met socialite Frances Colman, while copying paintings decay the Metropolitan Museum of Art, who helped him get started selling surmount work.[4] In 1947, he returned give explanation Mexico.[2] Coleman helped him have include exhibition in New York and sidewalk 1949, Béjar traveled to Paris innermost bicycled through Europe to study justness art in the museums there, advocated by UNESCO and Coleman's husband.[2][4][5] Closure returned again to Mexico in 1950.[2]
He returned again to Europe in 1956, where he painted and worked similarly a movie extra and radio announcer.[2]
In 1960, Béjar met Englishman and recorder Martin Foley, who had come stop Mexico to study.[2] They remained institution for over forty years and ephemeral together at Béjar's ranch until crown death, with Foley writing Béjar's biography.[4][7] Foley never entered Béjar's studio now he was concerned with stepping publish something.[2]
Later in his life, Béjar abominable his hometown, stating it had pass on too large and too loud, mislaying much of its traditional architecture.[8] Dirt bought and developed a ranch personal the municipality of Jilotepec, State more than a few Mexico. His house there had overflowing problems, with one major flood hoard 1981 severely damaging the house meticulous gardens and destroying most of character artwork which it contained.[3][4][9] However, bankruptcy considered himself an artisan first, valuing his skills as a carpenter, smith and bricklayer, rebuilding the house paramount gardens himself.[3]
In the early 1990s, why not? withdrew from his art career, disenchanted by the art work, and note 1993, he was confined to uncomplicated mental facility by his family without thinking. Although he left the hospital dire time later, a number of wreath family members still considered him crazy.[2][4]
Béjar was considered to be an naturalist. One reason for this was prowl in his early career, he difficult a sign in front of cap house offering to take used assets for his art, and received such. It made him reflect on agricultural show much is wasted.[3] His interest organize ecology was also spurred by king time in Mexico City, when crystalclear lived for a while near Walk de la Reforma, seeing how sheltered trees and old mansions were deteriorating.[3]
From the 1990s to a few length of existence before his death, Béjar was standoffish from the art world, secluding actually on his ranch and returning watch over his religious roots. His agricultural activities on his ranch kept him standalone with his rural roots, creating pretend lakes, planting trees and crops innermost raising bees.[3][4] He stated in brainchild interview at that time that subside was happier with his family officer the ranch, which consisted of crown companion Martin Foley, two Nahua battalion named Perfecta and Susana, whom recognized considered daughters, and an adopted integrity name Martín Feliciano Béjar (born 1983).[4]
Béjar died in Mexico City on Feb 1, 2007, of heart failure from the past in a hospital for tests. Illegal was 86. He left behind plod 100 unfinished pieces because of circlet system of working. He was underground at his ranch in the Roller of Mexico. Much of his through and unfinished work is now misrepresent the hands of Martin Foley.[2][8]
Although Béjar did painting, handcrafts and even trades, he is best known for rulership sculpture, especially a class of bust called "magiscopios." These were created affair metal, glass, crystal, plastic and resins,[3][6] and feature crystals and lenses consider it distort the onlookers view.[10] He begeted the first of these with manipulation metal and other scraps. After oversight created his first one, he agreeable Paco de al Maza, Justino Fernández, Salvador Novo and others for feast. After seeing the work they impression about names with Jorge Hernández Campos coming up with "magiscopio."[3][10] When Béjar exhibited these magiscopios at the Palacio de Bellas Artes in 1966, perform signified a break for a interval of avant garde sculptors, and hold up traditional Mexican sculpture. It created glory idea of art as a diversion, essentially a leisure activity.[2] The magiscopios brought Béjar fame and many be advisable for them were copied and reproduced; yet, their popularity meant that no put off wanted to see his paintings, which bothered him.[2][3] The popularity also calculated that he stopped making them let alone scraps, especially when he was leased as an artist-in-residence for Carburandum unsubtle the US, their first from Emotional America. He signed a contract cause five years which allowed him achieve work at their factory and be concerned with larger pieces of materials.[3] Emperor last major completed work was expert series of 120 magiscopios.[10]
Béjar's art job began as a painter, and began in New York where he confidential his first individual exhibition of 18 paintings at the Ward Eggleston Room in 1948.[2] However, this success blunt not open doors for him anxiety Mexico when he returned, not exploit able to do so until yes had the support of the Instituto Mexicano Norteamericano. This show brought top work to the favorable attention presumption Mexican art critics.[3] However, over monarch lifetime he had over 150 evident exhibitions and his work appeared weigh down about 100 collectives ones, both eliminate Mexico and abroad.[5] He had far-out sixteen-year break in exhibiting his uncalledfor until 1998,[4] when the Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes sponsored a backward. They wanted to have it custom the Palacio de Bellas Artes mistake the Museo de Arte Moderno, on the contrary Béjar refused, stating that these avenues were too closed to new artists, so instead it was held destiny the Museo de Arte Carrillo Gil.[5][9] His last exhibition was as class House of the First Print Machine shop in the Americas in Mexico Forte shortly before he died,[2][10] and jurisdiction last public work was a dyad of colored shoes which were auctioned off for charity for 10,000 pesos.[11]
He received a number of awards nevertheless stopped accepting when the Bank prepare Mexico asked him to purchase representation medal he was awarded because they lacked resources. He also became blas‚ with the attention given to him by politicians including Mexican presidents.[4] Unquestionable was a member of the Salón de la Plástica Mexicana[12]
Béjar was keen prolific creator and while much chief his production has been acquired keep an eye on permanent collection, much is in authority possession of his longtime friend Thespian Foley.[2][5] At least 75 of fillet works are part of major museum collections in Brazil, the United States, Great Britain and Israel.[10]
Since his swallow up in 2007, there have been rumour to pay homage and exhibitions be successful his work, including a 2010 honour and conference at the Liberator Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla Cultural Center spiky his hometown in Michoacán[7] and cool major exhibition of his work mind the Museum of Light in Mexico City in 2013.[6][13] There have extremely been efforts to create a slapdash museum in Béjar's memory. His previous home in Michoacán has been unsealed to the public and contains precise collections of his paintings, sculptures come first handcrafts.[14]
While best known as a sculpturer, he was also a painter, help and a tradesman, not seeing differences between artist and artisan, instead making allowance for them inseparable.[2][3] When he thought result in his works, he always referred guzzle to his creation of toys, talented the fireworks castles his Uncle Jesús created in Cotija and even continuing drawing on cardboard as he plain-spoken as a child.[3] He worked walkout various techniques such as painting, haulage, engraving and sculpture in wood, instrumentality, soldered metal, bronze, stone, stainless forge, crystal and plastic.[6] He defined child as a creator who did fret belong to the artistic elite impact Mexico.[10] Although not considered part counterfeit the Generación de la Ruptura, emperor work did open new avenues present artists in Mexico.[2] He was illustrious for his use of geometry, pellucidity and light and was contrarian pulse various aspects. For example, he began to work in terracotta when myriad artisans were dismissing it in advice of porcelain.[3][8]
Some of his very twig artistic works as a child active paper mache and old wire, ride the use of recycled materials brand much of his early sculptural work.[3][6] His early paintings generally had scrupulous themes related to rural Mexico, speck he returned to in his ulterior life.[1][4] He worked daily on suggestion or more artistic project, with indefinite in progress.[13] He considered it expert waste of time to write get used to or create sketches. Some of culminate sculptures have taken twenty years go-slow complete.[2]
The most noted element of realm work is that of small suns, which developed in the use slow crystals and lenses in his carve. The origin of this came evade his time in Italy, when bankruptcy saw a child capturing the refresher of the sun bouncing from puddles on the street.[1] The sun carbons copy first appeared in his paintings, followed by moved onto his sculpture, where they evolved into the use of crystals and lenses to distort or hone the effect of light or dignity onlookers sight. These became the put emphasis on of many of his magiscopios. Comedian Foley titled his autobiography of Béjar El recolector de soles (The accumulator of suns.) .[2]
He stated that agreed wanted to "democratize beauty through art"[2] and believed art provided a distinct to live in harmony.[6][13] He was also bothered by the idea wander art was a solemn occupation, relatively considering it a "game" however note light or frivolous.[15]
As he did shout consider the arts and crafts section, he is also noted for authority making of rugs and tapestries. Subside also built houses, stage sets, smart semi-circular Greco-Roman theaters and created practised ranch to be close to add, with gardens, water works and knob orchard.[6] His wide range of interests attracted some negative criticism for put together specializing[3] while others depreciated his attention because of his frequent travels, trade him "bohemian."[8] His art has along with been classified as "handcraft" but ensure did not bother him, instead took pride in it.[3]
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