@ Riverside Art Museum

EXHIBITION ON VIEW: September 5, 2024 – December 8, 2024

Location: Alcoves (First floor)

Comprising three wall murals painted on site, this powerful and evocative installation reflects the increasing volatility of our times. Through his work, Enrique Cortes delves into the widening socioeconomic gap, rising global temperatures, and the intensifying political tensions that define our current era.

Cortes came to America from Guadalajara, Mexico, in 1983, when he was three years old. He officially became a resident this year. Raised in San Bernardino, Cortes’s deep interest in drawing began when he was in kindergarten. He began having epileptic seizures at age 14, and has lived with epilepsy most of his life. Cortes was heavily influenced by his late Tio Moi, as well as Chicano and Lowrider Art. He discovered his first graffiti mural while walking around with his brother at San Bernardino High School, and soon became involved in street art culture. Cortes went on to study at San Bernardino Valley College where he learned to appreciate art history, began painting in acrylic, and practiced life drawing. He currently works full time for San Bernardino School District as a custodian.

Of his exhibition It’s Hot Out Here, Cortes says, “People are practically combusting around us. The gap between the rich and the poor keeps growing. Temperatures and tempers keep rising. Political discourse is out of control. People in Gaza are literally set on fire as a result of indiscriminate bombing. Things are volatile with no relief in sight. This installation is my way of illustrating that.”

Curated by Eric Martinez.

Image courtesy of Enrique Cortes.