Life, Liberty & The Pursuit of Happiness......AVAM

Pedro Martin DeClet has come a very long way since his stint as head of the Latin Kings gang in the CT prison system. His works are now on display in the American Visionary Art Museum's newest show, Life, Liberty & The Pursuit of Happiness, curated by Roger Manley. Declet's Portrait de Genocide honors past martyrs in both the American Indian and Hispanic culture and is a powerful work with it's bleeding pictograph placed center stage. In another room is a hand-made book filled with paintings and paperwork which reflect his disavowal of the infamous gang, along with an altered book, a cross sculpture and a canvas carrying bag sporting a self-portrait. There is also a construction called El Philosopher which is made up of a time clock together with time cards hand painted by the artist. Pedro Martin DeClet is a man who does not look back, but rather reflects on a positive future. I thank Roger Manley for having an open mind and including these important works in his stellar show. It will run for close to a year and is worth the visit to the Inner Harbor of Baltimore, where the AVAM sits like a dazzling crowning jewel.
Photos courtesy of Roger Manley, curator

American Visionary Art Museum, 2009

I would like to thank Roger Manley for the unparalleled job he did in curating the newest show at the AVAM in Baltimore. He went out of his way to include artists not always seen, to make this show fresh and very alive. From my gallery he choose five works by Pedro Martin DeClet, former head of the Latin Kings gang in the CT prison system, whose works deal with freedom on a very primal level. He also picked a lovely painting of a Jazz Funeral by Gerald Thornton, who was able to attend the opening with four generations of his family.

Roger included many works created by Dr. Ala Bashir, who is represented by Corvus Art Gallery, (Lesley Roy). Dr. Bashir was Saddam Hussein's personal physician and a world known plastic surgeon, who also is a world class painter and sculptor. His goal in life has always been to heal both body and spirit and his works are superb. Thank you Roger, for thinking out of the box and bringing all of this important work to a new audience. The art is hung beautifully and shown to it's best advantage. I hope you all have an opportunity to see this brilliant show.
Images included are two extraordinary paintings by Dr. Ala Bashir.

Pedro Martin DeClet, homage to heros

The collage "Portrait de Genocide", a powerful statement by Pedro Martin DeClet, is typical of his works which often examine his personal struggles and those of society. He first started exploring art while incarcerated, and a liberal prison system encouraged his efforts and allowed him to leave the premisses to attend his first show, beyond prison walls. This monumental work honors fallen heros, Latino as well as American Indian. The red pictograph of the human spirit bleeds for them and their sacrifices. Much of Pedro's work is in diary form, and he excels at painting, collage, sculpture, as well as assemblages.
His prison years and his involvement with the Latin Kings are far behind him, only occasionally resurfacing as fodder for his art. Pedro is exquisitely aware of the art world, and the poetry and prose of the most renowned authors and wordsmiths; however, his work is not at all derivative. It is purely his own vision, his own pain. Although completely self-taught, his frequent use of both Latin and Spanish text within his work gives it a unique sophistication. His self-portraits reveal him as he is, sweet, moody, confrontational, scarred, and hopeful. Pedro has had several museum shows and his work is held in many private collections.