Miguel Angel Reyes

Butch/Top

2008

Miguel was born in 1964 in Colima, Mexico. One of Reyes' most vivid childhood memories is that of laying awake at night and listening to the sounds of people scurrying across his front porch as they hide in shadows and edged toward the fence, la linea, separating the U.S. from Mexico. Inevitably, Reyes's family made the trip themselves, deciding to stay in Los Angeles following one of their many vacations (which meant going to Fresno to pick grapes for the summer). Besides Chicano cultural themes, his work also often includes homoerotic imagery. He was drawn to art early in his life and graduated from Otis Parsons School of Design in 1987 with a B.F.A. in fine art. After a short sojourn into the fashion industry following graduation, Reyes pursued painting and today makes his living doing portraits, teaching, illustrating books and taking on occasional public art project commissions. Reyes' work incorporates expressionist brushwork and the saturated palette of the classic Latin tradition. His work often incorporates homoerotic as well as Chicano themes. His art has been exhibited throughout the United States and has been published in many magazines. Miguel has created murals for the Los Angeles MTA and his work is in the collections of LACMA print collections, Laguna Art Museum, Watts Towers Arts Center, University of Austin, Texas and Fine Arts gallery Museum, Chicago.