September 11th, 2015 marked Mesa Arts Center's 10th anniversary and to celebrate they put on a wonderful Latin Street Festival to kick off the season, offering an incredible family-friendly evening for the entire community!

Amazing live music filled the air, a delicious array of food trucks and vendors were on hand, and custom low-rider cars and motorcycles on display for patrons to enjoy! Local street artists such as Lalo Cota and Champ Styles did live art demonstrations along the Shadow Walk as patrons enjoyed lessons in Latin social dance from renowned Ballet Hispanico. 

Also the Mesa Arts Center’s art studios were open to the public to tour with instructors doing demonstrations in addition to the new and highly anticipated exhibitions from the Cheech Marion private collection on view at the Mesa Contemporary Arts Museum (MCAM). The community came out in droves to support the arts resulting in a hugely successful evening put on by Mesa Arts Center that was concluded with an outdoor performance by famed Los Lonely Boys.

Now on view is the eclectic and extensive collection of Chicano art from entertainer and arts advocate, Cheech Marin. His comprehensive collection features an amazing array of artists and mediums with 42 works in oil, acrylic, watercolor and glass by 33 of the most significant Chicano artists on view in Take 10: The Past Decade of Collecting by Cheech Marin. Highlights of the exhibition include several dynamic works by Texas based artist Ricardo Ruiz, including a large oil painting titled “El Mas Loco” from the artist’s Grackle Series.

There is a wonderful portrait of a crowned Marin standing in front of the ocean flanked by seagulls by Eloy Torrez, Finally the mixed media glass sculpture by San Diego based duo Einar and Jamez De La Torre titled Oxymoderna (Aztec Calendar) was a show stealer utilizing the delicate medium of glass while incorporating intense and emotionally charged images!

Also on view in the South Gallery is the group exhibition, 10 Pick 10 highlighting ten key artists of Marin’s collection along with ten emerging artists, resulting in a captivating exhibition that presented such history and subject matter through a bold and colorful lens. Highlights of the exhibition included a striking painting by Margaret Garcia’s titled “Janine at 39” of a woman reclining in a chair flanked by succulents or the powerful painting titled “Convertible” depicting a dynamic car scene filled with energy and emotion created by John Valadez.

Do you want to learn more about these exhibitions or the Mesa Arts Center then visit them online at http://www.mesaartscenter.com. The Mesa Arts Center is located at One East Main Street in downtown Mesa. *Photos courtesy of Nicole Royse and the Mesa Arts Center.