Yesterday, in the midst of Guelaguetza festivities, Oaxaca learned of the death of one of her beloved artists. A sculpture and painter, Alejandro Santiago was only 49 years old when he succumbed to a massive hear attack.
Image of Alejandro Santiago projected on the screen at today’s Homage
Perhaps his most important work resulted from a return to the Zapotec village of his birth, San Pedro Teococuilco, after many years away. He was moved by the large numbers of men and women who had left, leaving it almost deserted. Inspired and feeling the need to make a statement about what had happened to his pueblo, and countless others in Mexico, he created a massive exhibition of 2501 sculptures, an homage to those who had left, plus one — those who are yet to make the journey northward.
One of his 2501 Migrants from a 2012 exhibit along Macedonio Alcalá,
There was an Homage to Maestro Alejandro Santiago this morning at the Teatro Macedonio Alcalá.
Casket of Alejandro Santiago on the stage of Teatro Macedonio Alcalá
And, according to Think Mexican, there will be a memorial “in the coming days at La Calera.”
For more photos from the 2501 Migrants exhibit, see my blog post The path of the migrant.
Update: Valerie J. Nelson has written a lengthy tribute to Alejandro Santiago for the Los Angeles Times.
RIP, Maestro.
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