Galleria Dante Presents Israel Zzepda and Javier & David Zepeda Gena Guarniere - Galleria Dante
March 5, 2015

As part of the Southside Shuffle in Old Town Vallarta, Galleria Dante invites you to the cocktail opening exhibition of Israel Zzepda and Javier & David Zepeda on Friday, March 6 from 6:00 until 10:00 pm.

Israel Zzepda
 
At only 44, Israel Zzepda has already been a professional artist for more than half his life. He has been painting and drawing for more than 36 years, but also sculpts. Israel’s body of work is remarkably large given his age, but when you consider he became an apprentice at the age of 15 and a full-time art teacher at the age of 19, it isn’t so surprising.

He taught both art and fashion illustration for more than 13 years, and, as a teacher, he has influenced many young artists, including several members of his own family. There is a sensitivity, innocence and refined discipline about Israel.

His work explores religious, spiritual, sexual and existential realms, reflecting truths and questioning established thinking, and he is not afraid to express himself. "The artist is a reflection of daily life. I want to be a chronicle of my time," says Zzepda, who seeks to reflect his own unique style and honesty in all of his work.

In his approach of the human figure, texture plays an extremely important role. Instead of painting photo-realistic portraits, he sacrifices the perfection of the human figure in hopes of revealing part of the shared human experience that resides within him. "We are all good and bad, we construct and we destroy, we are of light and somewhat dark, journeying daily through the streets of the planet."

Israel’s imaginative capacity is, perhaps, the most dominant striking feature of his work. The viewer cannot help but be drawn in and intrigued by the thematic contents of his paintings. Some of his works appear to be recreating ambiguous and mysterious worlds often made up of strange, desolate environments while others display serene, sometimes humorous, eroticism. He also embraces notoriously religious topics, as well as ontological and metaphysical subjects.

Israel has also painted more than 1000 meters of murals, both public and private, in Cancun, Uruapan, Michoacán and Jalisco. In addition, he completed 7 murals in Sardinia, Italy, in 2011. He also participated in a collective show in Turin, Italy, on March 15th, 2014. He is also working on a new conceptual art project that delves into human and social justice in the setting of globalized power and its effects on ecological consciousness and human rights.

Every 6 months the gallery receives new works that over reach our wildest expectations. His latest work, represents a new cycle of creative production and personal growth for Israel, and we are all very anxious to see where it leads. Every 6 months we are wowed by Israel's newest changes in style and mediums.

This fall presented a new concept: “Using macosel, sheets of durable plastic material, it occurred to me to make a fusion between the drawing, the texture in bas relief and the oils. This time, seeking novelty and change, I decided to paint with oil on apples reliefs cast in aluminium. If the figure of the apple as a symbolic support is already receiving element within the context of the image.” Visual ideas have a common conceptual aspect, the geometry, like a chess board, as a symbol of the duality in the claroscuro of the human soul.  Wisdom and instinct in spiritual cohabitation that does not explain the progress and human growth without such duality.  The universe, known and unknown, is the vital  space where we discover ourselves through suffering, happiness, loss and gain. There can be no certainty without uncertainty or light without the comparison of darkness.  We are in this daily cycle of self-destruction and self-reinvention. All ideas had the challenge of constructing themselves in the experience of memory without using a single model.”

Francisco Xavier Zepeda

Born in Garita, Jalisco in 1969 is a self-taught artist. Although he developed a passion for creating and artistic endeavors at a young age, it has only been in the last ten years that he has truly dedicated himself to his sculptural creations.

Francisco is somewhat of an inventor, always experimenting and trying to solve a problem. His desire to create unique works of art has driven him to dabble in many different mediums: wood, metal, clay, found objects, car parts, bronze and paper mache before settling on cast aluminum and Alaba Stone, a manmade stone which is a combination of crushed alabaster and polymers, heated to petrify it then filed, sanded and shaped.

Francisco is driven by the idea of transforming common objects into something that dazzles the public, filling them with curiosity and reflection.

His new body of work consists of forms that are both metamorphic and semi-organic and, through the combination of the sculptures’ curves, textures and light, are able to capture both the natural and abstract while exposing the observer to the corporeal nature of the third dimension.

Francisco and his brothers, constant companions and all artists, constantly challenge each other to grow and make a lasting mark.

“I am in love with life. Every day is an opportunity to crystallize my emotions and feelings by creating new projects. Even though time never seems to be enough, I appreciate every minute, every second I spend creating what I want and desire. I am in constant motion.” 

David Moreno Zepeda

Born in Guadalajara in August 1979, developed his passion for drawing at the young age of five. He tried to emulate the heroes of his childhood as well as his older brother who was already passionate about drawing as a form of expression.

For years, David was influenced, motivated and supported by his brother, but it wasn’t until 1995, however, that David began his formal studies in drawing and painting under the direction of Israel Zzepda. Plagued by health issues throughout his youth, his mentor helped him overcome his frustrations by channeling his ability and potential as a painter. He was also able to find balance in his life through tae kwon do, which has given him both physical and mental clarity while also complementing and contributing to his artistic pursuits. David has been exhibiting in individual and group shows since 2002.

David also has a love of the romance languages, especially Italian, a beautiful language that enriches him artistically and influences, both directly and indirectly, his work.

“I love painting and its many diverse manifestations as well as the other fine arts – sculpture, film, theater, poetry, literature and music – and I try to stay in constant contact with all of them. I love art in all of its forms. All I know is that I paint out of necessity. I try to express and project all of myself through my work: my thoughts, feelings, introversion and extroversions.”  
 
Galleria Dante is located in Old Town Vallarta at Basilio Badillo 269. While there, visit the upstairs wine bar, Di Vino Dante, now open from 2:00-11:00 pm, Monday-Saturday.

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