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Gary Leonard's Take My Picture gallery on Broadway is opening a new exhibit tonight of 51 paintings and drawings by Philip Stein, who was nicknamed Estaño by the Mexican muralist David Alfaro Siqueiros. Stein worked with Siqueiros from 1948 to 1958. This 60-year retrospective complements the recent unveiling of Siqueiros' restored 1932 mural, “America Tropical,” across downtown at El Pueblo.
The Saturday opening runs from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Take My Picture is at 860 South Broadway, in the same block as the Orpheum Theatre.
From the flackage:
The exhibition includes 51 paintings and drawings that emphasize art as a tool of social struggle. Stein's early interest in jazz is evident in many of the works, particularly the study for the back-wall mural Stein painted at the Village Vanguard and photos of his paintings of Bessie Smith and Jabbo Smith. A collection of ephemera includes a photo of General Lazaro Cardenas, Diego Rivera, and Siqueiros at Frida Kahlo's funeral in 1954; photos of Siqueiros and Stein; newspaper clippings and international exhibition announcements; and two of Stein's books: “The Mexican Murals” (1984) and Siqueiros' biography (1994), which Stein's long friendship with Siqueiros and his wife, Angelica Arenal Siqueiros, enabled him to write.
