Gilbert "Magu" Lujan was a great spirit and a founder of the Chicano Art movement. He never deterred from his initial goal of presenting the Chicano Experience as an integral component of American Society.

His concept of Chicano Art was not based on the idea that Chicano Art was alien to the American Experience, but an integral component of continuing contributions that Americans of Mexican descent have made to the creation of the United States of America, from Aztlan's initial "Donativo" contributions to the colonies that tipped the scales in the Revolutionary War to the contributions of Latino soldiers in the Civil War, WWI, WWII, Korea, Nam, etc. and now the battle to be recognized as an International Population that the USA has ignored (no thanks to Obama).

Yes, this is a POLITICAL statement. Don Magu will always be remembered by the thousands of people that he touched. But, most of all, his legacy of Aztlan and the dreams for the future of our children in Aztlan will be a guide for all of us to follow.

Con Safos

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ART: Nothing new has happened in the modern art scene since Klee, Pollock and Rothko. Everything I have seen, and been a part of, is repetitious in my minds eye. I wait for the moment that something new comes out of the status quo art market, but to date I ain't seen nothing of interest.

That's why my interest has been drawn to the world of the untouchables aka Outsiders, specifically the Chicano Artists that have managed to survive, and even flourish, for the past five decades. Indeed, Chicano art has spawned independently from the rest of the art world throughout the Southwestern USA (Aztlan).

Chicano art, though it has many vanes and avenues, is still a cohesive art movement akin to that of the 1900s Bohemian Art movement of Paris. Today's Chicano Artist maintain a close network of affiliation, collaboration and communication very similar to that of the Bohemians. Chicano artists have professors, leaders, innovators, mentors, students and prodigies that all strive to portray the Chicano Experience through some aesthetic form, albeit teatro, music, murals and all visual and performing arts.

What lies ahead is up to the artists themselves. We can only hope that the collaborations that the vanguard establised will be passed on to the next generation of Chicano Artist.

Magu was one of the coolest guys that I have ever met.
Great Artist. Very at ease with himself. He will be missed.