|
"El Paso
History, Lower Valley Pride" by María Almeida Natividad |
| |
|
|
 |
María Almeida Natividad |
A native of
El Paso, Texas, María Almeida Natividad
grew up surrounded by the rich culture
and heritage of her Hispanic background.
She feels that El Paso and the
surrounding desert regions possess an
abundance of rich tradition and
interesting history. It is an
appreciation of this culture and history
that she wishes to convey and encourage
in her artwork and art related
activities.
As a visual artist, María is best
known for her watercolor painting and
mixed media work. Her poster,
"Celebrate El Paso's Heritage" has been
a popular image in the region and is
displayed throughout the city.
|
|
She is also an
installation artist and muralist. Most
recently much of her artistic energy has been in
the production of the Lower Valley Library mural
and on a bilingual book for children dealing
with the history of El Paso.
Throughout her artistic career María has
held positions as an art gallery owner, art
gallery director, art specialist and art
consultant, She served as both organizer
and presenter in numerous art workshops and
conferences both locally and nationally.
As artist and educator, she is a passionate
advocate of inclusion and integration of the
fine arts in the regular classroom curriculum.
María studied at Modesto Junior College,
the University of Arizona and the University of
Texas at El Paso where she received both a BA
and an MA in Art Education. She also holds
elementary, secondary, and AP teaching
certificates
and has been an educator in the
public schools for over 20 years. Her
award winning work has been exhibited in juried
and non-juried exhibitions throughout the
Southwest and is included in public and private
collections across the United States.
Maria presently teaches art with the Ysleta
School District and at El Paso Community College
and is the Artist in Residence for UTEP's
Chicano Studies Program. Her biography and
art can be viewed on the Hispanic Resource
Center at the Arizona State University website:
http://www.latinoartcommunity.org/community/ChicArt/
ArtistDir/MarNat.html
María's
artwork has been featured in two art books
published by the Bilingual Press, a PBS series
on Chicano Art, and in a literary anthology "Hecho
en Tejas", a book featuring Texas writers and
artists published by New Mexico University
Press.
To contact the artist: 915-203-2309 or
manatividad@hotmail.com
|
|
The
Mural was unveiled and dedicated on December 8,
2006 at the Lower Valley Library |
|
|
María with one of her
inspirational models,
Adriana de Leon |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
