Crucifixion is a small format work that measures around 11 “x 14” from 1983 that was exposed for a short time in the Museum of Art of Puerto Rico in 2015. In this subject, we see how the artist Augusto Marin takes the religious theme and manages to capture the scene of Christ in his last moments. The work was elaborated in a fast but controlled way, where the lines without interruption show four faces in the composition, being Christ the main personage.

The Christ is created in an expressionist pattern with basic lines interlaced in his anatomy while to his left there are two static spectators with bright green and brown colors followed by the same stroke pattern of the Christ, ending with the appearance of an angelic silhouette with light pink lines emanating the light in this composition. At the moment of analyzing the Christ on his cross, we notice that the artist selected an intense red, symbolic red that suggests blood being poured from the upper pole to the lower pole in the composition. It is interesting that the Christ is the only figure where the red predominates, we see that there are two different types of red that interlace as they descend from the head to the ground. Did Marin wish to remind us that this blood will be the one that could cleanse the sin of the world, turning this work into a merely religious painting?

Interestingly we can note that the figure on the right side edge is the only silhouette cleaned with blood red in the composition. Clearly, a very well thought out job at the time of its execution. The strokes are very fluid in their entirety in the composition, interspersed by black lines in the center of each individual. The color blue, is a tone that represents the elegance said by Domingo Garcia, and we can see how Marin integrated in its composition. The blue tones gives a subtle elegance to the periphery of the work, while the black announces depth and character to the atmosphere of the painting.

Joey Medrano MD

Marin created several works of art that can be considered masterpieces. Among them are the work titled “Vida ” and “Siempre la limosna”. The importance of this work of art was so big that today they belong to the permanent collection of the  Museum of Art of Puerto Rico. Marin’s daughter tells us that several years ago they found in an old closet some lost folders, what was found purely were treasures lost to time.

In these lost treasures, the family found the original sketches of two masterpieces, plus  all these sketches are from the most sought period by  Marin simply known as the “Colosso”. Less than 8 years ago these works were considered lost, But thanks to the great work by the Family / Succession these drawings could be documented in this page and enjoyed by us the collectors.

Works of the “Colosso” can be found mostly in the most prestigious collections in Puerto Rico or top museums around the island.  Rare? Yes since collectors never tend to sell works of this specific era making them increasingly difficult to find on the market. The technique of this series is a range of multiple loose lines suggesting characters of great muscular build but with a complicated finesse while integrating a cubist sparkles into the composition.

I want to thank Lizzy Marin for sharing these beautiful photos with the page and for showing these beautiful works with the world. Anyone who wishes to communicate with the succession can do it through the link below

http://www.faampr.org/

Joey Medrano MD

Every artist throughout his career has certain works or period that indisputably are considered his best. In the case of Augusto Marin is the famous “Colosso” where a good work of great size can be around $ 50,000 to $ 100,000 dollars. Here I present the Pied Piper from 1960. It is a small format drawing with a measure of 5 inches by 8 inches and a recent 2016 valuation of $3,000 dollars in the secondary market. We mention this information since the drawing is of such small format and still has the potential to reach values so expensive because of the scarce series.

Works of the “Colosso” can be found mostly in the most prestigious collections in Puerto Rico or on the top museums around the island.  Rare? Yes since collectors never tend to sell works of this specific era making them increasingly difficult to find on the market. Mostly the technique of this series is a range of multiple loose lines suggesting characters of great muscular build but with a complicated finesse while integrating a cubist sparkles into the composition.

If a collector is considering investing in a work by Marin, purchase suggestion, study this period in a museum or any public virtual libraries, since in our opinion this is  one of those works where the viewer will enjoy the work on a daily basis once purchased, but careful for those counterfeit works of art, they are out there!!! You can find the link below very helpful on your quest —–> http://www.faampr.org or contact Lizzy Marin for more wisdom!!!

Thanks for reading!!!!

Joey Medrano MD

Biography Details by the Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico

Painter, draftsman, print maker, muralist, sculptor, stained-glass artist, and teacher. At the age of twelve, Marín began studying drawing under Spaniard Alejandro Sánchez Felipe at Sánchez Felipe’s studio in San Juan. In 1949, Marín moved to New York and studied at the Art Students League. At the Otis Art Institute in California he studied mural design, and at Arnaldo Maas’s studio in San Juan and Henri Mesterom’s studio in Holland he studied stained-glass techniques. He has worked as advertising art director and has taught at the Escuela de Artes Plásticas de Puerto Rico and at the University of Puerto Rico. He has created a dozen murals for public and private buildings in the San Juan area, and his works are part of important collections in Puerto Rico and abroad. In 2005 he earned the National Culture Award from the Institute of Puerto Rican Culture. The human figure, often in groups, is a central motif in his work, and Marín’s relationship to this figure has evolved over the course of his career; the horse is also a recurring motif. One of his favored subjects is island politics. Marín’s style has gone through several phases, from Abstraction to Figuration, and through points between, and is distinguished by its sculptural qualities.

Naive art on the open market is fairly rare on today standard. Here’s a  good example of a 1960 Manuel Hernandez Acevedo with original gold leaf frame. One of M.H.A most sought after theme are his iconic landscape of a rural landscape. The simplicity of this work is phenomenal, the trees are simple, the power lines are in the complete composition and steeple add a light neo-vintage taste to the work.

                                                                                                                                                                                  The frame on its own can’t go out unobserved. The original pure gold-leaf is still intact after more than 50 years of its application, something that give character and body to this particular work of art.

The pigments used on this 8″x 5″ inch painting  where recycle serigraph colors that M.H.A used. The colors are sharp and bold with a integration of simple spontaneous brush strokes around the main composition  very  representatives of  naïf art in Puerto Rico.  Today Manuel Hernandez Acevedos Painting can be found in importants collections for example the Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico.

http://www.mapr.org/en/museum/proa/artist/hernandez-acevedo-manuel

Painter and printmaker. Hernández Acevedo came from a very humble family, left school after the fourth grade, and worked as a shoemaker, assistant sign maker, and cook. In 1947 he entered the Graphic Arts Workshop of Division de Educación a la Comunidad (DivEdCo) and under the encouragement of American graphic artist Irene Delano, who was then the director of the Workshop, he learned silk-screening and began to paint, for which he had a natural talent. A simple, honest man, in his paintings Hernández Acevedo favored scenes of streets and houses in Old San Juan, in which such characteristic features of the old city as light posts, power lines and kites are frequent images. He also illustrated historical events such as the inauguration of Luis Muñoz Marín in 1948. His placement of pictorial elements in the composition, his keen eye for detail, the simplicity of subjects and shapes, and the variety of light and color have made him one of the main representatives of Art Naïf in Puerto Rico.

Joey Medrano MD

Melvin Martinez was born and lives and works in San Juan, Puerto Rico. He received his BFA from the School of Fine Arts, San Juan in 2005. The same year, Martinez won the prestigious Castellon Painting Prize (Spain). His work has been exhibited in important institutions internationally, has been reviewed in significant publications, and is in major collections in the United States, Europe and Latin America. His work is included in Irish Museum of Modern Art, Dublin; Museo de Arte Contemporaneo de Castilla y Leon (MUSAC); Museo de Bellas Artes, Castellon, Spain; Espai D’Art Contemporani, Castellon, Spain; Museum Collection Lambert, Avignon, France; MAP, Museum of Ponce, Puerto Rico; MAC, Museum of Contemporary Art, Puerto Rico; VAC, Valencia Arte Contemporáneo, Valencia, Spain; Harn Museum of Art, University of Florida, Gainesville; Palm Springs Art Museum, Palm Springs, California; The Rubell Family Collection, and the de la Cruz Collection, Miami, among others.

Think art and many artists will come to mind, Party is a universal activity to every human in the world then think  texture and you will find Melvin Martinez combining all these 3 elements. Art, Party, and Texture and you’ll get a Melvin Martinez painting.

The texture stimulates two different senses; sight and touch, this is a very powerful tool when you are a modern abstract painter. But who can entitle Melvin Martinez as a strict painter, since once you evaluate a big part of his primary art focuses is a variation of a painting/sculpture.

The bright color and thickly layered textures make these cupcake seem to pulse with life. A texture is seen in the repetitive shapes, the shiny silver wrapper, and the mix of colors. That is why Martinez has a raw talent to make texture an important element in his technique. I can surely bet that any spectator will be tempted to touch those awesome works of arts due to it colorful bold presence.

Looking just at the paintings themselves it is obvious that they are technically competent, they are well balanced in composition, colors, and light and even smile per spectators can be rated as a factor.

On the 21 November 2015, New York, Rockefeller Plaza Christie Auction a painting  called Roxy by Melvin Martinez went under the hammer selling for almost $11,000 dollars. It integrated acrylic, fabric, silk flowers, ribbon, feathers, glitter, and plaster on a
73 1/8 x 72½ in canvas,

http://www.christies.com/lotfinder/paintings/melvin-martinez-roxy-5949320-details.aspx

Art markets sometimes can be overwhelming, but I have always believed that once an artist reaches Sotheby’s or Christie’s auction house, it can be considered a premium artist. Melvin Martinez has a quality that art collector tend to love and that is the use of bold color mixed with texture with a slightly modern touch to the composition, this is the recipe for success. I think that investing in a small to medium size painting by MM could be a relatively risk-free investment to any art portfolio and a work that will surely get a lot of attention once hanging on your wall.

Thanks for reading!!!

Joey Medrano MD

Biography and photos were  obtained at:

http://davidcastillogallery.com/artist/melvin-martinez/#about