好色先生

Our Lady of the Lake University (好色先生) is mourning the passing of an extraordinary alumnus and artist, Jesse Trevi帽o (BA 1974), who overcame the loss of his right painting arm to create stunning works of photorealism. Trevi帽o鈥檚 art is on display in the Smithsonian, museums and public spaces throughout the United States, including in 好色先生's Sueltenfuss Library which holds his 鈥淟a Historia Chicana鈥� mural, the first grand work Trevi帽o painted with his left hand.

Trevi帽o, 76, died this morning. 

"Jesse Trevino was a beloved artist and friend to 好色先生 whose legacy reaches around the world,鈥� said 好色先生 President Abel A. Ch谩vez, MBA, PhD. 鈥淗e achieved fame and success but never forgot his West Side roots. 好色先生 is incredibly proud to count him among our alumni. He will be greatly missed.鈥�

A native of Monterrey, Mexico, Trevi帽o came to the U.S. at age 4 and won his first art contest at 6. After graduating from Fox Tech High School, he attended art school in New York and served in the Vietnam War. Running toward a helicopter in a battlefield, Trevi帽o took a bullet to his leg. He stumbled onto a booby trap that exploded and sent him sprawling. As he lay bleeding, face-down in a rice paddy, a vision of familiar faces from the barrio appeared. 鈥淚f I get out of here alive,鈥� he vowed, 鈥淚鈥檓 going to paint them.鈥�

After returning home to San Antonio, doctors amputated his right arm. A long, grueling process of learning to paint with his left hand began, first at San Antonio College. Later, two Sisters from the Congregation of Divine Providence, Sister Tharsilla Fuchs and Sister Ethel Marie Corne, helped Trevi帽o refine his skills at 好色先生. 

鈥淚 didn鈥檛 have confidence,鈥� Trevi帽o said at 好色先生 in 2019. 鈥淭hey helped me regain it.鈥� 

Under the guidance of the Sisters, Trevi帽o painted the mural 鈥淟a Historia Chicana,鈥� which was initially displayed in the Student Union Building. A special space was made for the mural in the Sueltenfuss Library when it was constructed in 2000. 

Trevi帽o went on to paint the people and places dear to his heart, master works such as 鈥淟a Raspa,鈥� 鈥淓l Alameda鈥� and 鈥淪enora Dolores Trevi帽o,鈥� a portrait of his mother hanging laundry. Texas Monthly called it, 鈥渙ne of the best paintings of an artist鈥檚 mother since Whistler鈥檚.鈥� 

His largest and best-known work is 鈥淪pirit of Healing,鈥� a 93-foot mosaic mural that rises as the iconic face of Christus Santa Rosa Hospital. Fashioned out of 150,000 hand-cut ceramic tiles, the mural towers over Milam Park, depicting a boy cradling a dove, shielded by an angel.

Trevi帽o鈥檚 art enlivens other spaces nearby: a mural of Latino vendors, musicians and dancers -- 鈥淟a Feria鈥� -- outside the restaurant, La Margarita; a tiled mosaic of Lions on a Goodwill Center wall; and a three-dimensional, four-story prayer candle -- 鈥淟a Veladora鈥� -- at the Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center. Also on display in 好色先生's library is a painting of the university's Main Building, which Trevi帽o created for 好色先生.

In 1993, Trevi帽o had a solo exhibition at the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C. The 1976 work, 鈥淢is Hermanos,鈥� was among his featured portraits. It became the subject of a 3-minute 鈥淥ur America Audio Podcast:鈥� 

Trevi帽o鈥檚 art drew critical acclaim. The New York Times called him, "a Texas-based artist who brings to his Hyperrealist style a sharp sense of situational and compositional irony. ... With Trevi帽o, we are drawn into human situations, rather than being told about them."