The Old Orange County Courthouse is hosting “The Chicano Collection,” or “La Colección Chicana,” a free art exhibit showcasing Chicano artists and cities from 1969 to 2001. The display will be up until the end of the year in the courthouse’s rotating exhibit gallery.
The artwork comes from actor and comedian Cheech Marin’s private collection, and consists of reproductions, or giclées, of 26 Chicano artist’s pieces, the announcement said. September is National Hispanic Heritage Month.
According to the exhibit information, three people worked to create the prints, Marin, the late Richard S. Duardo of Modern Multiples Fine Art Editions, and Melissa Richardson Banks of CauseConnect. The exhibit also features a 25-minute documentary about the subject and portraits of each artist from fellow Latino creative Artemio Rodrigez.
“Preserving the cultural heritage within our diverse and historic communities is so important, including depictions of the story and struggle of Mexican Americans and Latinos in the Southwest,” Second District Supervisor Vincente Sarmiento said in a statement praising the exhibit.
The Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art & Culture opened in 2022; the actor and comedian’s collection serves as the foundation for the museum that is hosted in a former Riverside library building.
“I wanted to help bring this exhibit here, since many of our residents do not have the opportunity to visit the museum in Riverside and because Orange County has played a vital role in the Chicano movement,” Sarmiento said. “I am very proud to have this incredible art experience available for residents and visitors at the historic Old Orange County Courthouse.”
The 26 artists represented in the exhibit include Rupert García, Adán Hernández, Carlos Almaraz, and Marta Sánchez. All of them have significant connections to the Chicano community. García, for instance, painted a famous portrait of Che Guevarea and received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Hispanic Academy of Media Arts and Sciences. Almaraz was a member of “Los Four”, one of the first respected Latino art groups, and painted the “No Compre Vino Gallo” or “Boycott Gallo” mural in Boyle Heights.
The exhibit contains many pieces relating to Chicano culture. Almaraz for instance, contributes the painting “Sunset Crash,” likening a modern-day car crash to Meso-American sacrifice. Meanwhile, Hernández contributes “The Falling Star,” which contains themes of salvation and gang violence, according to the museum’s description.
The Old Orange County Courthouse’s gallery is free to visit and open 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays. The courthouse building, 211 W. Santa Ana Blvd. in Santa Ana, is managed by OC Parks.
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