June 5, 2009, Art Opening, Magenta, re-invented, By Patricia Miller

Rebecca Peterson, Rosa Torres and two other artists founded Magenta Gallery as a cooperative in 2005, and as an alternative to the commercial galleries in San Miguel.

Their philosophy is to nurture creativity and goodwill among the members and have each member assume personal work and financial responsibility for the benefit of the gallery.

Now a re-invented Magenta Gallery opens at Hidalgo 29. Seven talented artists from San Miguel and Querétaro are combining their art, making Magenta a new creative center in San Miguel. Peterson and Torres, along with Luc Bédard, Patricia Bogert Miller, Juan Carlos Cázares, Mario Mizrahi and Carmen Moreno exhibit their paintings, ceramics, sculpture, jewelry, nichos, photography and collages.

Luc Bédard received his BA from the University of Ottawa. Four years ago, Bédard enrolled in Bellas Artes in San Miguel and turned his artistic attention to painting and sculpture. His paintings are in acrylic and he incorporates mixed media to enhance his work. His eclectic collection of sculptures is fashioned with modeling clay, a medium allowing flexibility expression. He also has been a photographer for 20 years, selling his work to newspapers and magazines. Bédard describes his artistic philosophy as an intuitive and spontaneous excavation of the subconscious.

Patricia Bogert Miller is a silversmith and jewelry designer who uses native Mexican opals in much of her work—opals mined in Querétaro by independent lapidary artists. The rich, varied colors and shapes of these and other stones in her jewelry are an inspiration for her designs. Miller and her husband have had studios in San Miguel since 1989, and moved here full-time in 2005.

Juan Carlos Cázares is self-taught and he paints in a Mexican surrealistic mode. Describing himself as independent and impulsive, Cázares has dedicated himself to his art for the past 12 years. He has taught drawing classes in the Museo de Arte in his home town of Querétaro and has directed projects promoting the arts in that city. He has been selected for the prestigious Bienales (Biannual Competitions) and for official government competitions in painting. After painting award-winning, large-scale oils from 1999–2003, Cázares today is creating works in smaller format. For the last year, his work has been invaded by pigs. Some are critical pigs—appearing in the center of the crucifixion of Christ or on the table of the Last Supper, or in the middle of a street with political propaganda. Others are vain pigs, or burning and broken pigs. The painter swears the burning pig painting was done before the swine flu outbreak.

Mario Mizrahi’s high-energy, colorful paintings reflect a vision as original as it is winning—a mirror of the playful soul and personality within. His rich, hotly colored palette is a joy to behold. Born in Mexico City, Mizrahi has studied various art forms since he was 14. He previously lived in Cozumel and the rich colors of the Yucatán have influenced his palette since his recent move to San Miguel. However, he is reflecting the vibrant colors of San Miguel in his current works. He has exhibited in Normandy, Zurich, Madrid, New York, Valencia and Oaxaca.

Carmen C. Moreno, a Querétaro resident, has painted for 17 years and has produced over 400 works in oils, pastel, watercolor and mixed media. She currently is featured along with 26 women artists from Querétaro in an art book, Instantes, published last December.

The theme of many of her paintings is the daily struggle of women for self-esteem and trying to overcome adversities in their lives. Her titles reflect her theme: “Fragmented Woman,” “Incomplete Woman” and “Transparent Figures.” Her paintings have evolved toward abstraction, always inspired by women. She has studied at La Casa de la Cultural del Faldón in Querétaro and Bellas Artes in San Miguel.

Rebecca Peterson designs nichos and conducts nicho-making workshops out of her home in San Miguel. She has taken the traditional Mexican nicho, a book-sized tin box which normally houses a religious icon behind a shadow-box glass door, and transformed it into an art form. Her new series is about trees: drawings of trees, bits of trees, bark, branches, pine needles and pods are all included in her nichos. Peterson moved to San Miguel in 1996 and studied painting and drawing at Bellas Artes for three years. She has an MA in psychology and works as an art therapist.

Rosa Torres is a ceramic artist who studied at Bellas Artes, beginning in 1998. Her functional pieces are colorful with a great sense of humor, and recently she has been experimenting with a more abstract line of ceramics. Both functional and abstract pieces will be shown in the gallery. Torres has studied graphic design and photography and has worked in editorial design. She lived in Toronto for nine years, where she exhibited and sold her unique and colorful papier-mâché.

The Magenta Gallery is open daily 10:30am–5pm, Sundays 10am–3pm and closed on Tuesdays. Gallery phone number is 154-9498.