We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Luis Sanchez a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Luis thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?
I’ve had many meaningful projects but two stand out for me in my twenty five year career so far. In 2016 after moving to San Pedro, CA, I was awarded the commission by the DCA (Department of Cultural Affairs) to paint a 125’ x 25’ mural as part of the renovated Art Deco Warner Grand Theater in the newly rejuvenated Lilyian Fierman walkway off 6th Street. This was a great honor and a major introduction of my work to my new artist community in San Pedro. I hired my new neighbor and good friend Regina Argentin to assist me in this grand project. This is the largest and most complex mural I have worked on to date. It depicts the Art Deco style of the theater with a focus on jazz, tango, and dance.
This year I am celebrating twenty-five years as a working artist, and for the past year I have been writing, compiling photos, and designing the layout for my 25th anniversary coffee table art book to be released in Fall, 2024. The hardcover 266 page book will chronicle my childhood, life in Mexico City, Seattle, and Los Angeles, with art featured from 1993 to present. I am thrilled to have this meaningful project finally completed and cannot wait to share it with the world.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your background and context?
My father was an incredible artist and muralist, and I am grateful to have inherited his talent. At seven years old my family recognized my artistic abilities and interest, and enrolled me in the prestigious art school Museo de Bellas Artes in Mexico City. The school was not far from where I was born and raised until our family migrated to the US in 1979.
I’ve always known I was going to be an artist. As a child I sculpted all my toys and carried a round cookie tin with plastiline, an oil based non-drying clay. I would prefer to go sit and watch my dad paint in his studio rather than play with friends. I did not pick up a brush until I was fifteen years old, but somehow watching my dad endlessly I absorbed all his skills and the basic fundamentals and methods of painting. He also showed me how to stretch my own canvases and prep them, something I still do to this day.
I attended Cornish College of the arts in Seattle, WA after graduating from high school. Unfortunately I was diagnosed with stage 4 kidney failure due to a childhood illness. I was forced to drop out and go on dialysis in 1989 until I received my first kidney transplant in 1993. It was always my intention to return to college, but that transplant experience was beyond my health returning. It was as if I was given all the tools to know exactly what to do, and I dove right into the art world.
In 1995 I developed a series of hand-painted botanical fresco plaques, which I sold in many of the art and interior design boutiques in Seattle and the surrounding cities. In 1996 two art reps approached me to carry the line in both west and eat coat and be part of the national trade shows. I created LS Design, and in the five years it was in business, I was selling my products to over 120 stores across the US and Canada. This experience taught me the business aspect of art, how to hire and train employees, and the discipline needed to run this business.These skills served me well and were later applied to my fine art career.
In 2001 I sold LS Design and moved to Los Angeles to pursue my fine art career full time. I had a great opportunity to exhibit at Glass Garage Gallery in West Hollywood. . It was my favorite gallery at the time, and the owner Evan Lurie launched my art career both in LA and nationally. It opened up a lot of doors, including being published worldwide with Winn Devon/Canadian Art Group , being part of Art Basel in Miami, and other national art fairs in NY, Chicago, Atlanta, and LA.
This year I am celebrating twenty-five years as a full-time working artist, which is a huge accomplishment considering my health issues. At this point in my life, I feel I have reached success as an artist. Despite many medical obstacles and two kidney transplants in 1993 and in 2011, it has not stopped me. Art is my therapy, how I cope, deal with and overcome many of my serious health issues. It gives me more energy and a will to live and give it my all, because I could easily not be here. I take nothing for granted. Every single day is a gift and I make the best of it.
I feel my work stands out because of my life-changing experiences and having to be so in tune with my body that my creativity flows in several directions. I am quite prolific in many different mediums. I have had a line of ceramic tile clocks and coasters, t-shirts, hand painted clothing, costumes, baseball caps, resin and bronze sculpture and assemblage. I have worked in commercials, set design, costume design, and I also create public, commercial, and residential murals and wall treatments. My work comes from within, and my professionalism and dedication to my clients and collectors is very important to me. I continue to grow, evolve, and move forward, always trying to evoke and tell a story with my work. We live in uncertain times, and it is most important that artists stand up as the historians of our time, to be part of the change and dialogue for a better world.
I have also through the years worked with many charitable organizations that are important to me. I have donated art for DIFFA (Design Industry Fighting For AIDS) and to CASA of LA, which I have been a part of for the past seven years. I also worked with Power of Hope as a youth arts counselor. It is important for me to give back to my community.
How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?
I think the first and most important thing is providing affordable housing and studio spaces for artists to thrive. I have lived in several cities and states, and it always seems to be the same story. The artists come into a rough, possibly neglected neighborhood, we gentrify it and make it cool, the masses discover it, and then city officials raise the prices of rent so the artists are forced out. I have had this happen to me and many peers. This seems to happen everywhere, as few understand the importance of artists and the beauty they bring to the world. Art is vital in creating social change and bringing to light the problems in society and the world. Art can raise awareness of issues surrounding climate change and endangered species, such as an exhibition I was just featured in called Enchanted Earth at The Loft at Liz’s. I am an environmentalist and it is very important to me that artists, the community at large and civic leaders embrace art and work together to support artists thriving and producing. I am currently finding ways to recycle found materials and utilize discarded items, plastic bottles, cardboard boxes, styrofoam, etc. to not just make art but use it as an inspiration and to build awareness of the massive trash issues around the world. Now more than ever the arts need to stay alive. Allowing more public art in spaces is also important, as art should be available to everyone, not just the museum members.
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
Yes, my goal and mission is to make a difference in the world – utilize my artistic voice to create dialogue addressing the many issues our world is currently facing. I see kids and future generations becoming irritated and feeling hopeless. Our world is quite heavy and uncertain, so it is even more important to inspire and give these kids direction and hope. Art can create movements, radical change, and literally change history. I feel I have a responsibility to share what I have lived and learned, and pass it on, whether it be through working with youth directly, or via the narrative behind my art.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://www.luissanchezfineart.com/index.html
- Instagram: @luissanchezfineart
- Facebook: Luis Sanchez Fine Art
Image Credits
Photos: Arturo Garcia-Ayala