Homenaje a Eugenio Abrego: La Calavera Norteña by Emmanuel C. Montoya

Homenaje a Eugenio Abrego: La Calavera Norteña by Emmanuel C. Montoya

Homenaje a Eugenio Abrego: La Calavera Norteña

Emmanuel C. Montoya

Title

Homenaje a Eugenio Abrego: La Calavera Norteña

 
Artist

Emmanuel C. Montoya

  1952 - PRESENT (biography)
Year
1989  
Technique
blockprint 
Image Size
18 x 30" image size 
Signature
pencil, lower right 
Edition Size
artist's proof, edition not stated 
Annotations
pencil titled in lower left, dated 
Reference
 
Paper
fibrous wove paper 
State
published 
Publisher
artist 
Inventory ID
13691 
Price
SOLD
Description

Eugenio Abrego was a Mexican "Norteno" musician from Nuevo Leon, in the region of General Teran, Mexico, born May 22, 1922. He and fellow musician Tomas Ortiz (born June 2, 1924) met in the early 1940s and formed the duet Abrego-Ortiz.

They quickly rose in popularity, changing their name to Los Alegres de Teran, and were eventually discovered by Columbia de Mexico recording company. Los Alegres de Teran toured internationally, including in Japan, Iraq, Spain, and Africa, introducing the sounds of Nortena music to the world. Abrego died in 1988 and Ortiz in 2007.

Montoya has depicted the musicians as 'calaveras' (skulls) which have been part of the Latin American culture since the 15th century but in the 19th century became associated with living beings in part to remind them of their mortality, especially in the work of the great Mexican printmaker José Guadalupe Posada. The images depicted as skeletons exhibiting recognizable traits, making them easily identifiable as individuals or behaviors.