Alejandra Montano: Arte y Anima

Arte Y Anima, new paintings by Tucson-based artist Alejandra Montano, highlights the artist’s personal connection to the Southwest– from the adobe walls of Barrio Viejo around her home in Tucson to the ancient landscapes of her ancestral home in Mexico. The exhibition opens July 25 at Faust Galleries in Santa Fe with a special reception with the artist present from 5 to 7 pm.

“My work is a love letter to the sun-drenched landscapes of Mexico and the Southwest,” says Montano. “Every brushstroke is infused with the spirit of the desert, the rhythm of tradition and the unapologetic power of color. From vibrant mercados, sacred mountains and sun-bleached pueblos, I paint what I feel– heat, history and heritage.”

Being of the Southwest and deeply rooted in the Hispanic culture of the area, Montano is not afraid to incorporate bold and expressive colors in her paintings.

“My brushstrokes are bold because our stories deserve to be seen,” says Montano. “Our culture isn’t quiet–it’s color, rhythm and resilience. THis body of work is a celebration of cultural resilience and beauty. Each piece is rooted in memory and myth, alive with the color and complexity of the borderlands.”

Montano is an expressionist when it comes to form and color but her work maintains elements of realism when it comes to figures and the land. However, she does not paint what she sees but rather the emotions that come through each particular scene.