Artist of the Month

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August: Raúl Ortiz

Pattern Play

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All images © 2020, Raúl Ortiz

Artist Statement:
Raúl Ortiz’s current paintings reflect his extensive background in printmaking. The artist uses techniques of layering, obliterating and gradually focusing on, or refining, a final image. Ortiz photographs hundreds of isolated compositions on his walks around town and these images inform, and often times unravel, the shapes that spring from his canvas as he adds to and peels away layers of paint. Ortiz’s rich, vibrant work has always reflected the artist’s penchant for color and contrast.

Ortiz was born in Ocampo, GTO, Mexico. He immigrated to the United States with his family when he was 5 years old, and grew up in Chicago’s Little Village. He received his BFA in Painting, Sculpture and Printmaking from the University of Illinois at Chicago. He has exhibited in venues such as the University Club of Chicago, the Evanston Art Center, National Museum of Mexican Art, the Old Town Art Center, the Noyes Cultural Arts Center, the Rockford Art Museum, and the Wright Museum of Art in Beloit, Wisconsin. Recently, he was selected to take part in group shows in New York City and Tyler, Texas. Additionally, Ortiz was the 2005 artist-in-residence at The Cliff Dwellers, Chicago. His art is held in many private and public collections in Chicago and throughout the United States. Ortiz currently lives and works in Chicago.

View more of Raúl Ortiz work.