Jaime Hernandez: 30 Years of Locas | Minneapolis College of Art and Design

Jaime Hernandez: 30 Years of Locas

Main Gallery
Gallery Exhibition
Image
Jaime Hernandez: 30 Years of Locas
Jaime Hernandez

PDF version of the Press Release

The Minneapolis College of Art and Design is pleased to be presenting a solo exhibition featuring the work of renowned comic artist Jaime Hernandez. Although it has been more than three decades since Jaime and his brothers Gilbert and Mario published their first issue of Love and Rockets, the appeal of this revolutionary indie comic has not abated.

The black-and-white magazine instantly defined a new alternative comics scene beyond the superheroics that had “defined” the comics medium for decades. Building on the taboo-busting undergrounds of the 1960s, Los Bros Hernandez simply proved that comics finally could (and should) stand shoulder to shoulder with any other medium.

Over the years the brothers developed their own storylines and spinoffs; for over 3 decades, Jaime’s Locas: The Maggie and Hopey Stories, has presented the ongoing story of Southern California Mexican American ex-punk rocker Maggie Chascarillo, organically winding its way through her life and her world, navigating cultures (and subcultures) seldom explored in comics.

As a whole, LOCAS presents an astounding work of depth and humanity rarely seen in the comics medium. As the New York Times Book Review described Locas, “These stories have all the visual smarts of film and the narrative smarts of literature....Hernandez specializes in psychological detail; we see both text and subtext immediately ....What better than to open a book that shows there is more going on than we dream of in our workaday philosophies?”

The retrospective show in MCAD Gallery is curated by cartoonist Zak Sally, and features Hernandez’ work from 1977 to the present, including original art from Hernandez’ personal collection as well as posters, prints, publications, and historical production pieces from the archives of Love and Rockets’s publisher, Fantagraphics books.

PFC4: The International Comics Laboratory
August 16–September 8, 2013
Concourse Gallery and first floor Corridor Gallery 

Public participation day: Saturday, August 17, noon to 5:00 p.m., first and second floor galleries

Artist panel presentation: Saturday, August 17, 4:00 p.m., Auditorium 150

These exhibitions are being held in conjunction with PFC4, the fourth iteration of the international Pierre Feuille Ciseaux (Rock Paper Scissors) comic art residency program, and mark the first time it will be held in the United States. The residency involves bringing together a group of international cartoonists to collaborate and explore the limits of the medium, using the french-based “OuBaPo” principles as a catalyst for experimentation.

In addition to having well over a dozen national and internationally renowned comic artists on campus August 11-17, there will be a two-week class for students (titled "Rock Paper Scissors," running from August 5 to 16), exploring the same principles as well as interacting with the professional contingent. The week-long residency culminates with a gallery show of the weeks results, as well as programming and artist interaction/comic making with the public.

These studio intensives are sponsored in conjunction with Autoptic, a free one-day festival of independent culture on Sunday, August 18 at Aria (formerly The Jeune Lune) in downtown Minneapolis. Autoptic will feature comics, zines, prints, posters, music, and art, with a list of exhibitors that extends regionally, nationally, and internationally.

ABOUT THE MINNEAPOLIS COLLEGE OF ART AND DESIGN
mcad.edu
MCAD, 2501 Stevens Ave, Minneapolis, MN 55404
Recognized nationally and internationally for its innovative and interdisciplinary approaches to visual arts education, the Minneapolis College of Art and Design is home to more than 700 students and offers professional certificates, bachelor of fine arts and bachelor of science degrees, and graduate degrees.