Enrique Guzmán’s technical virtuosity seeks to dispel the black legend that surrounds him

40 years after his early death, the work of Enrique Guzmán (1952-1986) from Jalisco breaks a silence of more than two decades to vindicate his technical mastery and his place in Mexican art.

The exhibition The technical virtuosity of Enrique Guzmán, inaugurated last Saturday at the Estanquillo Museum, it not only pays tribute to the creator, but also begins the celebrations for the 20th anniversary of that venue.

Alejandro Brito, director of the museum, explained the relevance of the exhibition. “Criticism is unanimous: he is one of the most important artists in the history of Mexican art, especially in the contemporary stage of the second half of the 20th century.”

This opinion is supported by Uriel Vides, author of the introductory text of the exhibition, who highlighted that this is an invitation to reread the work of that creator.

“He is an artist who has received very little attention. Despite his important contributions, he remains relegated, marginalized, somewhat forgotten; this exhibition, in addition to being commemorative, seeks to correct those aspects.”

The art historian highlighted that one of the main objectives of this proposal is to overcome “the psychologizing view” that has permeated the reading of this author’s work, focused on his biography and his tragic suicide, at the age of 33.

The researcher delved into the figure of Guzmán, a prolific artist who is difficult to classify. Born in Guadalajara and raised in Aguascalientes, he arrived in Mexico City in 1969, where he started his career, he explained.

“From a very young age he began to win awards and critics celebrated him as a premature talent,” he said. However, his career, which he compared to “a bottle of champagne that is opened, gives off its foam and suddenly dilutes,” faded from the art scene before his death.

Vides highlighted that, despite the black legend that questioned the creator’s supposed lack of academic training – by not completing his studies at La Esmeralda – the sample demonstrates his technical mastery.

The guiding axis of the exhibition are 14 autobiographical pencil drawings made in 1976. Far from being mere academic exercises, the specialist described them as self-representative drawings.

In them, he indicated, only his left hand appears holding different objects – a knife, a marble, a piece of paper, a coin – that lend themselves to interpretations, an ambiguity that the artist himself never clarified.

He commented that Guzmán had a reserved personality and did not usually make statements about his proposal. For this reason, little is known about this series from the artist or critics.

What is known, he explained, is that “they are self-referential drawings that can be interpreted as self-portraits, but not in the conventional sense of the term, as they break with that Western tradition of wanting to show the face.”

Vides highlighted that one of Guzmán’s main contributions was the conceptual background in his drawings, which anticipate trends in contemporary Mexican art.

“It’s not the representation itself, but rather the idea of ​​the representation behind it,” he said. “Here are exercises of self-representation in which he holds objects that evoke many things in us, including his everyday life.”

The exhibition also includes two oil paintings that contrast the evolution of his style, from the dreamlike to the most aesthetic and, in the case of the titled Bye –a sky with clouds without any other object–, even premonitory, perhaps anticipating his death.

Armando Colina, director of the Arvil gallery and owner of the work, expressed the honor of participating in this 20th anniversary of the Estanquillo Museum, created by his dear friend Carlos Monsiváis.

He reiterated the quality of Guzmán’s drawings, which had not been exhibited for two decades, when they were presented at the Carrillo Gil Art Museum. “It is an exquisite work, of wonderfully fine quality.”

The specialists addressed Guzmán’s influences and obsessions. They noted that the 1976 series was inspired by a 19th century French manual, Fun Science: One Hundred New Experiments.

They also talked about their “fetish objects,” such as razors, which were loaded with symbolism, perhaps as a constant threat of death or happiness.

When addressing the artist’s influence on later generations, Vides maintained that one of his main contributions was the subversion of nationalist and religious symbols, as well as his tendency towards self-representation.

These are traits that inspired key figures of neo-Mexicanism, such as Julio Galán or Nahúm B. Zenil. “He is an artist who has no parallel,” stated Brito, and cited the writer Carlos Monsiváis, who defined him as “a disciple of himself.”

The technical virtuosity of Enrique Guzmán It will remain in the Museo del Estanquillo (Isabel La Católica 26, Centro Historico) until June, and marks the beginning of the celebrations for the 20th anniversary of the venue, which museum staff announced to The Daywill have their summit part in November, with In another order of appearance, sample that evokes the title of the exhibition with which that space was inaugurated in 2006, and will occupy the three floors of the building.