Ricardo Martínez centenary commemoration of his birth
Ricardo Martínez centenary commemoration of his birth
Ricardo Martínez centenary commemoration of his birth
Ricardo Martínez centenary commemoration of his birth
Ricardo Martinez Foundation
Objective
Ricardo Martínez was a sociable man and a reserved artist. He always let his works speak for themselves and avoided any publicity other than what his art could transmit.
On the occasion of his 90th birthday, the fame of the artist had become larger than the individual and Ricardo Martinez became the subject of official recognition: he received the Gold Medal of the National Institute of Fine Arts and was nominated “Distinguished Citizen” by the Government of the City of Mexico.
Upon his death in 2009, Ricardo Martinez left a legacy which entails an enormous challenge:
pproximately 70 years in the life of a highly disciplined artist, absolutely devoted to art in all its aspects. This amounts to a substantial heritage.
The Ricardo Martinez Foundation was created to face the challenge and, one year into its life, it has already sytematised, classified, registered and documented the material under its care. Its main objective is to preserve and promote the heritage, which involves, as well as the tasks already mentioned, the compilation of a catalogue that will allow both collectors and experts to trace the origin and evolution of each work.
Ricardo Martinez lived to create and painted until the end of his life. His recent work displays simpler lines and different, more cheerful and daring colours, untypical of the Ricardo Martinez of other periods. His subjects are as before: couples, children with parents, children with dogs, yet on a different scale, closer to the spectator and revealing a new tenderness, perhaps portraying a new period in the life of the artist and the man.
For Ricardo Martinez the most important thing in life was his work. It is the task of the Foundation bearing his name to preserve it and allow it
to communicate its eloquent and moving message.
Zarina Martinez
