Oscar Martinez "Journey" begins run in Aurora

AURORA. “Journey: A Solo Exhibition of Paintings by Oscar Martinez” has begun a two-mouth run at the Aurora Public Art Commission Gallery.

The Aurora Public Art Commission on Friday held an opening reception for its newest exhibit, which continues through March 20.

Martinez, of Oak Park was born in Maraguez, Puerto Rico.

Martinez is an accomplished artist who has had numerous group and solo exhibitions throughout the Caribbean, Mexico, and the South Eastern and Midwest regions of the U.S.

Many of his paintings are of the artist's boyhood home in Maraguez, Puerto Rico, a town surrounded by mountains and dense vegetation that eventually “gave way to a dam and is now underwater.”

Writing about the loss of his birthplace, Martinez said the “absence of home only enhances the images, the colors, the sounds.”
Rena Church, director/curator of the Aurora Public Art Commission, said that is reflected in the artist’s paintings.
“Martinez' Maraguez is a lush, magical place of vibrating colors, luxuriant flora and fauna, combined with human figures, some abstract, some recognizable,” Church said.

“Against this highly personal vocabulary to explore his memories, as well as his sense of the metaphysical aspects of life.”
Through the study of science and art at the University of Illinois at Champaign, in 1977, Martinez received a Bachelor of Science in Medical Art from the University of Illinois Medical Center.

Among his many credits, his work has been shown in the Museum of Bellas Artes and the National Historical Museum in Mexico, the Des Plaines Museum in Illinois, NIU Museum's Gallery in Chicago, the Field Museum of Chicago, the State of Illinois Museum in Springfield and its gallery in Chicago at the State of Illinois Building. Additionally, his work has been featured on various television shows and published in newspapers and magazines.

Martinez was actively involved in the Chicago mural movement and has painted numerous murals throughout out the city. Moreover, he was appointed by the Mayor of Chicago to judge the international Design/Build competition for the Chicago Public Library and the selection of the library’s art collection.

In addition, he was also appointed by the Governor of the State of Illinois to the Illinois Arts Council where he served as chair of Media Arts. Furthermore, he has served on various boards and commissions including as President of the Latino Institute of Chicago. He is also the founder of the Latin American Museum of Art.

He is currently artist in residence at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana as and is working on a mural project at the University of Illinois’ Latina/Latino Studies Program. His artwork can be seen at his web site at www.oscarmartinez.com.

Martinez was recently included along with singer Jennifer Lopez Ricky Martin and baseball player Roberto Clemente in the book Puerto Rican American by Nichol Bryan under the section "Role Models."