Ricki Morse – Our Latin American Collection Gains a Contemporary Chicano Artist
Narsiso Martinez
Mexican, 1977- (active USA)
Self-Portrait En La Cherry (with Strawberry Fields Forever in the Background), 2020
ink, charcoal, gouache and acrylic matte gel on produce cardboard boxes
53 × 72 in.
SBMA, Museum purchase with funds provided by The Basil Alkazzi Acquisition Fund
2020.12.2a-j
Photo of Narsiso Martinez, Courtesy of Santa Barbara Museum of Art, 2023.
“When people see my work, I hope they see individuals who work in the fields. Real people who are really at the front lines of food production. People who are seen as human beings who have dreams and who have families.” - Narsiso Martinez
RESEARCH PAPER
Narsiso Martinez came to Los Angeles from Oaxaca, Mexico as a non-English speaking 19-year-old young man. Ten years later, in 2006, he earned his GED; all the while working to support himself in various jobs including joining his siblings as an agricultural farmworker. Continuing his education, his community college grades suggested a career in mathematics or biological sciences, but an art class renewed his interest and cultivated his talent for art.
After completing his first semester as an undergraduate art student at California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), Mr. Martinez did not have the money to continue his studies. He moved to Washington state, harvesting crops in the farm fields, while his farmworker siblings housed and fed him so the money Mr. Martinez earned could be used for his education.
He continued to put himself through school while building a portfolio of plein air drawings and paintings. After completing his bachelor’s degree at California State University at Long Beach, he was accepted into the school’s master’s program. As an undocumented student, the 2011 Dream Act allowed him to access financial aid graduating from CSULB in 2018 with a Master of Fine Arts degree.
Influenced by Vincent van Gogh’s colors, small brush strokes, landscapes, and peasant scenes, Mr. Martinez began painting landscapes emulating Van Gogh’s style. Also influenced by the 19th Century French painter Jean-Francois Millet’s focus on laborers and intrigued by the early 21st century Occupy Movement, Mr. Martinez began to incorporate farmworkers into his landscapes. Mr. Martinez endeavored to master his art technique.
Then, one day, he became inspired by an empty banana box at Costco.
Intrigued by the labeling on the empty box and accessing his own experience as an agricultural farmworker, his art emulates the concept of economic inequality in America. The once discarded cardboard box becomes the vehicle of expression reflecting the economic inequality that exists between the wealthy and working class. This becomes a central theme of Mr. Martinez’ work.
Using ink, charcoal, and gouache (pigment, water, and glue) Mr. Martinez creates collage, even building sculptures of art, on discarded agricultural boxes. This sense of bountifulness reflects the role of Latinos in the success of America’s orchards and farmlands. The cardboard as medium is not only symbolic, but provides depth and pattern bringing movement that connects the viewer to the subject matter.
“The Self-Portrait En La Cherry” (with Strawberry Fields Forever in the Background), illustrates Mr. Martinez working in the cherry orchards of Washington state. While creating this work, Mr. Martinez is inspired by the music video of Latina artist, La Santa Celia, whose remake of the Beatles song “Strawberry Fields Forever” follows the role of farmworkers as strawberries journey from the agricultural fields to the processing plant to their celebration and enjoyment in homes.
The well-proportioned piece relies on Mr. Martinez as the focal point: the field worker harvesting the fruit. Evoking the arduous work in the hot sun of the cherry orchard, the rustling of the cherry tree’s leaves, and the weight of all the cherries, Mr. Martinez is depicted graciously harvesting the delicate cherries in the hot sun.
The layering of paint, charcoal, and gouache in Self-Portrait En La Cherry (with Strawberry Fields Forever in the Background) requires painstaking patience as each layer dries. The result is a dramatic interplay of colors and depth.
The primary and secondary colors in the cardboard produce box labeled, California Farming Fresh, brings intensity to the piece. The hues of red cherries and blue-green leaves reflect the red, blue, and green labeling on the produce boxes. The intensity of color is offset by the whiteness of the sun’s rays as they dance on the mature leaves and sleeve of the farmworker’s hoodie.
The squared edges of the produce boxes frame the subject matter bringing emphasis to the farmworker harvesting the cherries. The boxes themselves are arranged in a staggered pattern that bring an interesting symmetry highlighting their function embracing the subject and creating rhythm to the piece.
Mr. Martinez wants to: honor the contributions of agricultural farm workers, illustrate the experiences of the agricultural farm workers, and highlight education as a vehicle for opportunity and improved working conditions for agricultural farm workers.
Prepared for the Santa Barbara Museum of Art Docent Council by Johanna Chase, 2024.
BIBILIOGRAPHY
Forbes, Chadd Scott December 14, 2023
https://www.forbes.com/sites/chaddscott/2023/12/14/narsiso-martinez-artwork-honors-undocumented-farm-workers/?sh=b3823bd958fc
Institute of Contemporary Art, San Diego 2023
https://icasandiego.org/art/narsiso-martinez-rethinking-essential/
New York Times: Jori Finkel November 10, 2022
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/10/arts/design/narsiso-martinez-farmworkers-artist-california.html
Santa Barbara Museum of Art: In Conversation with Narsiso Martinez, October 24, 2023
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D_NZB3mMY50
SOURCES
Region 18 (Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo) Migrant Education Programs
https://sites.google.com/slocoe.org/mepregion18/home
California Department of Education, Migrant Education Program
https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/me/mt/programs.asp
California Department of Housing and Community Development
https://www.hcd.ca.gov/policy-and-research/intersectional-policy-work/farmworker-housing
California EDD
https://edd.ca.gov/en/jobs_and_training/Migrant_and_Seasonal_Farm_Worker_Outreach_Program/
US Department of Education, Migrant Education Program
https://results.ed.gov/legislation#legisHead8
POSTSCRIPT
California is the largest producer of agricultural products in the United States with agriculture the largest industry in Santa Barbara County having a countywide 2022 gross revenue of $1.9 billion. Strawberries are the predominant crop in Santa Barbara County with a 2022 gross value of $810 million or 42% of the total value followed by cauliflower and wine grapes.
California relies upon migratory farm workers who live in temporary or transitional housing with at least 75% of farmworkers living in shared housing. Public resources exist to support educational, medical, and social service needs of migratory farm workers and their children.
Funded by the United States Department of Education entitlement funds and monitored by the California Department of Education; the Region 18 Migrant Education Program educates over 1,600 K-12 enrolled public school students in Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties who meet the eligibility criteria for Migrant Education Program services.
COMMENTS
With its layered application of paint, gouache, and charcoal, this drawing evokes the dappled light, fluttering leaves, and swinging branches of a cherry tree being harvested. The holes in the boxes read as openings to the sky, as if we were navigating through the cherry-laden branches. Clad in a thick hoodie, safety glasses, and passing time by listening to music, the artist shows himself gathers cherries into a shoulder bag. He wears heavy clothing to protect himself from the sun and chemicals. Cherry cultivation requires a significant amount of pesticides, and despite the heat, skin protection is a necessity.
When Martinez started using produce packaging as a medium, he also started to integrate his experience working in the fields. Martinez harvested cherries and other produce in Washington state during the summers to finance his education. He immigrated from Oaxaca and earned his BFA and MFA from Cal State Long Beach.
- Lauren Karazija, Curatorial Assistant of Contemporary Art, SBMA