Stories in Color: The Art of Oliverio Balcells

A reflection of different experiences reflected through the colorful art that tells stories.

Oliverio Balcells is a scholar of the ancient Mesoamerican cultures as well as as a photographer, painter and musician. He is a native of Guadalajara, Mexico and moved to Arizona in 1999.

He creates contemporary art. “I’m interested in social themes like history, culture, human potential development, symbolism and nature. I use self-expression to inspire people in the present moment through paintings, music, photos and films. My influences stem from ancient Mexican manifestations, Wixarika (Huichol) art, the Mexican master muralists and the golden age of Mexican cinema,” Balcells said.

In 2016, he was a selected artist for the In Flux Cycle 6 for the city of Tempe to paint a mural on Apache Boulevard. In 2012, he was selected by the city of Tempe Public Art Program to design and paint a utility box on Mill Avenue. The image was also made into a library card for the city of Tempe. In 2008, Oliverio was awarded first place at the Arte Latino en la Ciudad XII at the Phoenix Center for the Arts, and in 1999, he was awarded Best Artist in the seventh annual Plastic Arts Exhibit of Cancun.

His work has been featured as a cover for a book from the author Ruth Gomber-Munoz, "Labor and Legality: An Ethnography of a Mexican Immigrant Worker," published by the Oxford University Press, Inc. in New York City.

He has done several workshops for XicoInc’s cultural arts program for youth, CALA’s Diego Community Arts Program with Child's Play as an artist in residence in schools throughout Phoenix, created a community garden mural with Free Arts of Arizona and their Professional Artist Series at the Challenger Middle School. He has also been a teaching artist with Arizona Commission on the Arts, creating a portable mural with the students of Mercury Mine Elementary School in Paradise Valley, Arizona and recently participated in an interactive workshops called the “Eagle Sun in Motion” with the International Sonoran Desert Alliance, Vision Gallery and ASU West.

Oliverio Balcells received his bachelor’s degree in graphic design from the Univa University in Guadalajara, Mexico.

For more information, visit http://oliveriobalcells.com

Margaret Rodriguez

ASU Library

margaret.rodriguez@asu.edu

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Fletcher Library, third floor

West Valley campus