Una Tardeada – La Vida, Obra y Legado de José Francisco Treviño / An Afternoon on The Life, Work and Legacy of José Francisco Treviño

Join us for a Presentation & Panel Discussion!

Special Thanks to the José Treviño Family

This project is sponsored in part by the City of Austin Elevate Grant from the Cultural Arts Division, Economic Development Department.

José Francisco Treviño (1941- 2022) was one of Austin’s most important artists and a contributor to the development of Chicano art. A public presentation focusing on Treviño’s work and contributions titled Una Tardeada – an afternoon program and presentation of the life and artwork of Jose Trevino, will take place on Sunday, August 11, 2024, at Mexic-Arte Museum.

The presentation will include a panel discussion with the art historians, Santa Barraza – Visual Artist and Scholar; Maria Herrera-Sobek – Professor Emerita, Chicano/a Studies Department, University of California, Santa Barbara ; Cary Rote – PhD in Art History; Professor, Texas A&M University, Corpus Christi; Luis Guerra – Artist; Mary Jane Garza – Artist and Writer. Several of Treviño’s artwork will be on view, as well as a photo presentation. Admission is free and a reception will follow. This program is sponsored by the City of Austin Economic Development Department Cultural Arts Division and made possible through the dedication of Modesta and Marisol Trevino. Mexic-Arte Museum is honored to assist in the presentation of this event.

Un Tardeada – La Vida y Obra de/ An Afternoon on the Life and Work of Jose Francisco Treviño is an important project for Austin that will also have long-term benefits. The video and documentation will be archived and serve as material for research for art students, historians and art historians. There is a lack of high quality visual art materials of Chicano, Latino art for schools and university classes. This program will be a model project to document Chicano Latino art on the local level that would be accessible for research.

One of Austin’s most gifted and productive artists, José Treviño was also an art educator, teacher and mentor to many of Austin’s talented artists. Throughout his life, he produced hundreds of paintings, drawings, prints and sculptures. It is important for Austin and visitors to know his artwork, contributions and legacy, in addition to developing materials for art history.

An Austin native of mixed heritage, Mexican and Italian, José Treviño graduated from William B. Travis High School in Austin. He demonstrated his talent at a very young age, and by the time he attended high school, he was selling his artwork at the Country Store Gallery on Guadalupe Street. After high school graduation, his art teacher introduced him to Texas Education Agency where he was hired as an illustrator, a position he also held with Southwest Educational Laboratory in the 1970s, providing masterful illustrations for textbooks and other curriculum materials. His drawings and paintings were published and distributed through the Dissemination Center for Bilingual Education in Austin. Primarily a self-taught artist, he developed a personal style influenced by many different art movements throughout history. For several years he taught art at Austin Community College where he also painted a mural that no longer exists. He had his first solo exhibit at Lucha, League of United Chicano Artists, a Chicano cultural center in Austin. In 1979, his artwork, Uno de de los Quemados was used in the poster to promote the Conferencia Plastica Chicana at The University of Texas at Austin. José Treviño was a hardworking and prolific artist, exhibiting widely, and featured extensively in art publications.

Treviño’s work exemplifies the experience of the people living a dual cultural existence: Mexican and U.S. American, Chicano and Mexicano – life on the border where for many, there is no frontera. His work addresses past, present, and future struggles. In his work, searching, learning, and teaching are expressed through beautiful colors and ideas reflecting his spirit while grounded in his Chicano Mexicano roots, dissolving all borders and speaking to all of us about our humanity. Treviño’s contributions to the art world continue.

In 1999, Mexic-Arte Museum presented José Francisco Treviño – Raices Sin Fronteras – A Retrospective of his life works over forty years. The following are excerpts from the catalog. “As an artist, José Treviño has played a major role in the development of Chicano art in Austin and Texas. The artist writes, ‘As a practicing artist for forty years, I have witnessed the major contributions that both Latino and African American artists have made in this community. I feel that we, as people of color, have bridged some gaps and begun to express our rich and diversified cultures. I am proud and grateful to have been one of the ‘Raza’ founders of this creative force.’

In Sept. 2013 An Awakening/One Man Show was held at the Emma S. Barrientos Mexican American Cultural Center Main Gallery, and demonstrated not only a massive body of work, but his talent for producing in diverse media.

José F. Treviño worked in a variety of mediums including oil, watercolor, acrylic, wood, clay, and stone. Treviño created artwork about various subjects including representations of Chicano movement resistance, surrealistic portraits, and candid and intimate moments between people. José’s artwork has on many occasions focused on the daily life of Mexican American people. Uno de los Quemados is a self portrait of José F. Treviño. In the colorful and dynamic painting Treviño wears patches that say “H.A. Guerrero Carpet Cleaners” and “Treviño”. Treviño stares at the viewer while being engulfed in flames. The title of the painting, Uno de los Quemados literally translated means one of the burned, but symbolically may make reference to his burning passion for art and life. It also refers to the art collective, Los Quemados that Treviño formed with other Mexican American artists who felt excluded from exhibition spaces. The patches on Treviño’s shirt, valorizes and highlights his experience as a manual laborer, and gives access to viewers who may have connections to work like this.