Actor Cheech Marin said he chose the words very carefully when selecting a title for the exhibition of his private collection of Chicano Art.
"Chicano Visions: American Painters on the Verge" is also a book featuring Marin's compilation of prominent Chicano artists.
"They are on the verge of greater recognition," he said. "They're emotionally, politically and spiritually on the verge of breakthroughs within themselves and breakthroughs within the larger population. And they're a little bit out of control and about to explode. I wanted the title to convey a sense of movement."
The National Hispanic Cultural Center is the third stop on the 15-city tour that Marin said will give exposure and notoriety to four generations of Chicano art.
Marin began collecting Chicano art about 17 years ago when he started visiting contemporary galleries with his wife, Patti, who is an artist.
"Almost immediately I noticed this is something I recognized," Marin said. "Both thematically and on a world art level because I had studied art."
Get content from The Daily Lobo delivered to your inbox
He said the art he saw resonated within him as both a Chicano and an art fan.
What Marin said is central to the art in his collection is that the artists share a common cultural tie -- no matter what part of the country they are from or whether they are from the new school or old school of Chicano art.
"What binds it together as a school is the experience of being a Chicano," Marin said. "The experience of being part of the culture and not part of the culture -- both of the American culture and the Mexican culture. They were denigrated by the Mexicans because they were no longer true Mexicanos and in the United States they were alienated by the general population because they were considered Mexicans. No matter how much affinity they had for either side there was still some form of alienation happening."
Marin said that the merging of these two distinct cultures is what the definition of Chicano is and what the artists are trying to portray in their work.
He added that although the artists form a definite "school," they are almost all are university or art-school trained and draw from the work of other well-known artists.
"These artists use 'code switching' by using world art terms and world influences whether they be VanGogh, Matisse or any of their influences," Marin said. "This conveys their sophistication in the art world. Their technical proficiency comes from knowing world art trends."
Marin also said the exhibit will break stereotypes about Chicanos simply by being there for the public to see.
"It's exposure," he said. "You can't love or hate Chicano art unless you see it. And then when you see a lot of it, you see the variety and sophistication of the art. The only thing that separates these artists from their more well-known contemporaries is that they were publicized and these guys weren't. I'm in the unique position to afford them publicity through my celebrity."
Artists featured in the exhibit are Carlos Almaraz, Chaz Bojorquez, Diane Gamboa, Margaret Garcia, Rupert Garcia, Gronk, Carmen Lomas Garza, Frank Romero, Patssi Valdez, John Valdez, David Ortega, George Yepes, Leo Lim¢n, Eloy Torrez, Gaspar Enriquez and Adan Hernandez.
Hernandez, a self-taught artist from San Antonio, Texas, said that the traveling exhibit helps give the artists long overdue exposure.
"Somebody finally gives a damn about our artÇ," Hernandez said. "To see it in a venue like this is even more exhilarating to me. It's been a long time coming."
The exhibit "Chicano Visions: American Painters on the Verge," and the interactive exhibit "Chicano Now: American Expressions" opened Friday and will be on display until May 18 at the National Hispanic Cultural Center at 1701 4th St.
