Art Intallation Celebrating Frida Kahlo Opens at The Blue House, 1/4-1/19

In conjunction with the launch of its 2013 national touring production Frida, un retablo, Milagro is also pleased to present The Blue House, an art installation created by Susana Espino that explores the life and work of Frida Kahlo. Situated in el Zócalo, a community space adjacent to Milagro's lobby, the walk-through exhibit will depict vignettes from Kahlos' home, the "Blue House" in Coyoacán, Mexico. Visitors will have the opportunity to read Frida's letters and poetry, try on clothing and make-up, and even try their own hand at drawing a self-portrait.

The installation will also include work by a variety of local artists, including handmade dolls by Lulu Moon and photography by Sylvia Malán-González and Russell J. Young. A second exhibit in the lobby of the Milagro Theatre features the work of Lizdaly Cancel, Lina García Seabold and Yolanda Valdez.

The art installation and lobby exhibit are free and open to the public one hour prior to each performance, as well as all afternoon, 1-8 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 19. The exhibit will have a special opening night during the Central Eastside Arts District's "First Friday" on Jan. 4 from 5 to 7 p.m. Tickets to the performance range from $12-$15 and can be purchased at www.milagro.org.

Susan Espino Rodriguez is originally from Morelia, Michoacán, México. She graduated as Fashion Designer from "Instituto Dicormo" (Dicormo's Institute) where she did a practicum, and trained at Escuela de Bellas Artes, in Morelia, Michoacán, Mexico. Susana Espino's work has been supported, and well recognized in the areas of Michoacán, in Mexico, as well as Oregon and Washington. In 2006, Espino was well recognized at Instituto Dicormo when she won presenting the fashion design at the Fashion International View, giving her recognition in the world of design internationally.

Portland, Oregon has been the cradle of her peculiar pieces of art. She has found inspiration for her sculptures in applying beautiful details using the skills of her career as a designer on her pieces. Her sculptures are born with a touch of her designs and imagination inspired in the melancholy of Día de los muertos (Day of the Dead). Espino's art has been shown in well-known galleries and venues such as Onda Gallery, Milagro Theatre, Cha-Cha-Cha and La Calaca Comelona restaurants and the Latino Adventure Blog (http://www.latinoartadventure.blogspot.com/).

Susana has explored beyond her limits in arts, this time debuting as an actress for a full-length film called "DUENDE SUIT OF LIGHTS" in which she plays the role of Ria, one of the three witches lurking and disturbing the peace of a dead matador. Espino's diligence and will to work for the community made her participated twice sharing workshops for Latino Artists Exchange/Intercambio de Artistas Latinos, which aims to create a network of artists in the Northwest to share ideas, expression and art. Espino is now exploring a new project based on sculptures of big dimensions; she also works as a Spanish teacher at Michael School, a Waldorf school.

Lulu Moonwood Murakami is a mixed media artist engaged in creating playful whimsy as well as personal psychological narratives.  Formerly an elementary school teacher in a dual language immersion program, she feels a strong connection to the Latino community she served for eleven years, and invites the rich cultural traditions she was privileged to experience to inform much of her artistic work.  Currently, through artistic self-expression, she seeks to bring joy and compassion to our understanding of the human condition. She has an insatiable appetite for color, pattern, and texture.  Some of her inspirations include traditional and contemporary folk art, autumn leaves trembling against steel blue skies, overgrown gardens, skeins of dyed yarn nested in baskets, and traditional ethnic costumes rich in pattern and adornments.  Through mixed media, she is able to bring many of these influences together.  Her art is frequently her voice for expressing thoughts and feelings that would otherwise go unspoken.  

Sylvia Malán–González is born and raised in Portland, Oregon.  She has worked in theatre, poetry, as a serving wench and recently photography.  She currently attends Portland Community College where she is working on an Associate of Art degree.  Much of her inspiration comes from her early childhood, developing characters through dress-up with her neighborhood friends.  She has a long history of concocting stories and using visual art and photography to visually express them.  Taking portraits is her way of taking one aspect of a subject and transforming them into a persona that highlights or magnifies an aspect of their personality.  Her series of photographs are portraits of local women artists from Portland, Oregon depicting paintings or photographs of Frida Kahlo. To depict her style she captures the subject with rich color and a dreamlike quality to bring you back into time to the world of Kahlo. Her current projects include El Quixote and upcoming projects a spring series of portraits portraying Patron Saints.

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