One can see his art all over the city. I’d first been wowed by the scale, symbolism, and style of his work early last year, when walking up Matamoros to meet a friend who was staying at Hotel Azucenas. At Calle Prof. M. Aranda, I was stopped dead in my tracks — the entire front of the building next to the hotel had been transformed. Using a roller, not brush or spray can, the artist known as Sanez turned it into a work of art.
In September 2012, Sanez again worked his magic on this tired old building — this time creating “El Canto del Agua” (The Song of Water). According to the article, Mesoamerican Peoples Express their Solidarity by Jonathan Treat, using “symbols of the Aztec god of rain, fertility and water—Tláloc, and corn, forests, animals, campesinos and campesinos and traditional Oaxaca fiestas… Sánez honors indigenous peoples struggling to defend their territories: [The mural is] ‘Dedicated to the peoples who organize to defend their commons and the common good—Mexico and Canada.’”
Another close encounter with the work of Sanez occurred last month when I ventured across Republica into Barrio de Jalatlaco. Besides its un-city-like tranquility and quaint tree-lined, but treacherous, cobblestone streets, this bucolic neighborhood always has great street art. However, I didn’t expect to find the restaurant, Fuego y Sazón, playing host to the unmistakeable style of Sanez. Wow!
And then… Just a few days before this current trip to California, I was at Gorilla Gallery (Crespo 213) talking to Jason Pfohl (glass artist and guiding spirit behind Gorilla Glass) when Sanez came in. He came to discuss plans for his live painting on glass event at the gallery. Alas, I was already in the US on May 31, when it occurred. However, if you are currently in Oaxaca, you can see the finished piece at the gallery on Thursdays between 2 and 8 PM. Besides the immense glass canvas, the gallery is featuring prints by Sanez — and I’m sure Jason would be happy to discuss the distinctive tattoo work of Sanez.
In addition, you might want to slow down when driving along Constituyentes behind Mercado de Abastos — that giant billboard mural towering above the weeds and refuse is another of Sanez’s masterpieces.
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