The Stay Gallery hosted a night exhibit for local artist, Cerritos College alumni, Angel Acordagoitia on Oct. 1 for his presentation of “A Black Light Affair.”
The Cerritos College alumni made sure to introduce himself to each guest with a handshake followed by an insight about himself, his background and his exhibit.
Guests varied from former co-workers to collaborators, art enthusiasts and occasional Downey residents.
Acordagoitia stepped in a new direction using blacklight reactive paint, which was different from his previous work such as murals to portraits to abstraction.
The artist’s goal was to make art with more than one meaning and to display a variety of paintings ranging from portraits to more abstract materials.
“I wanted to do a different show for people to experience something new,” said Acordagoitia, “I wanted to portray two different stories in the same painting.”
While the neon acrylic gives an edgier side to his portraits of Picasso and Jean-Michel Basquiat, his murals stood out because of the hidden details that revealed a larger truth to his message.
“Coatlicue” or “Las Dos Madres” featured the Aztec pantheon and earth-mother goddess in daylight as it portrayed La Virgen de Guadalupe or the Virgin Mary, using acrylic blacklight paint.
As a Hispanic artist, Acordagoitia’s portfolio is heavily centered around Mexican history and historical Hispanic figures.
Acordagoitia learned how to draw at a young age from his father and older sister.
He started working with his uncle, who was taught by a former student of Frida Kahlo, which led Acordagoitia to paint murals and portraits.
Another prominent mural that stood out was “The Outsider,” a mural displaying a boy whose shirt reads “ART MADE ME DO IT” as he looks down at his phone.
The mural also had several figures shown to be distracted by their own devices.
Under the blacklight, the message on the boy’s shirt is revealed to be “SOCIAL MEDIA MADE ME DO IT” comparing the amount of influence art has on the general public and society’s youth compared to social media.
Acordagoitia blends Hispanic culture with street culture, using abrupt, sharp lines to create rough images of iconic figures such as the rock band “Guns N Roses” as well as images symbolizing Mexican history.
Other pieces included self-portraits that were blended with abstraction, displaying the artist in a nightclub-like scene alongside turntables and neon patterns, associating himself with the nightlife image.
Acordagoitia’s “Immortal Gallery” featured other works that were not displayed at the Stay Gallery.
The art had themes of society’s youth and Hispanic history, which targeted a wider margin of audience.
