Between worlds

I had already visited the adorable downtown gallery known as Henri & Odette back in October to cover a solo exhibit by Daniel Samaniego. But when I observed what was going up on the walls next, I had to break my rule of avoiding back-to-back reviews of the same space to let readers know about Santos Shelton. His new gathering of work is called Behind the Curtain, and, sure, it's a little on the political side. The politics, however, are not as interesting as the unique style Shelton deploys in these mixed-media efforts -- a style that fuses Mexican mural-making, Japanese manga, collage work and many other cross-cultural influences.

"Experimentation is what has brought me to this point as an artist," says Shelton during a recent phone interview. "The style you currently see is the result of trial and error on past projects. Sometimes when I make a goof on a painting, I find something new that I like."

With Behind the Curtain, you can sense Shelton experimenting and moving away from cartoonish pop imagery and instead embracing art influences from both his African and Mexican heritage. He admits he's drawn to abstract designs and symbols from ancient Mayan and Aztec culture, incorporating them into his paintings. Shelton used to represent himself as an individual in society via robots, but he has since graduated to painting more realistic faces so as to better capture some of the primal emotions (fear, grief, confusion) he has experienced -- or seeks to express.

The titles of individual pieces say it all, really: "Modern Slavery," "Fighting for Freedom," "Sheep in Wolves Clothing," "The Real Power Behind Change," "Habitual Indifference," "Pedagogy Tested" and "Disposable Green." But it's only when you gaze directly into these attractive yet ferocious works that you realize how carefully Shelton arranges and blends different techniques in order to create something new. As far as murals go, Shelton says he's actually painted a few in San Jose, Calif., and his overarching plan is to become a muralist while continuing to show his work in galleries.

"Murals are one of the most powerful ways for an artist to affect his or her community," Shelton says. "I enjoy the human connection murals allow for in communities, and obviously the art form is also closely associated with my own Chicano heritage. More than anything, murals are really art for the people."

For Shelton, growing up biracial was always confusing. If you're of mixed ancestry, then you're labeled as "other" -- and therefore an automatic outcast.

"Over the years I have learned that I am black and I am Mexican," says the artist. "But I am also something else, because my experience encompasses both cultures."

Being caught between cultures isn't all that usual anymore -- consider our new president-elect, for instance. But don't expect Shelton to abandon his suspicion of all politicians just because someone like Barack Obama is gearing up for four years in the White House. Shelton says he hopes Obama will be a great president, and that anyone is better than Bush. But a politician is still a politician, and Behind the Curtain seems to suggest whoever is president needs to be watched very closely by the people.

Indeed, a few of the works in Shelton's new show emerge straight from a sketchbook he carries around. Right after the election, he began sketching Obama's face. As he was doing this, he began to ponder all of the miserable things going on in America right now such as war, inflation and unemployment. So many people are looking to Obama to change these issues, which is why he appears so prominently in Shelton's larger body of work.

Often, Shelton's process is triggered by political meditations. A painting might begin with some basic designs, and layer by layer, Shelton begins to fashion images that serve as shorthand for issues -- a tank for war or a torn corner of a five-dollar bill symbolizing inflation. Also, words come to mind like "hope." After all, the main reason Obama was elected was because voters were fed up with the last eight years.

"The real power lies with us," insists Shelton. "Obama is just a symbol of that power."

So what else, other than Obama's victory, inspired his show at Henri & Odette? In Shelton's view, the U.S. is going through so much turmoil (with the war and economic crisis in particular) that he felt overwhelmed by countless stories on TV and in newspapers about how everyday people are being affected.

"What I began to wonder is, why it has taken us so long as a nation to start doing something about it and how many of us seem to just go about our daily lives without really thinking or acting to change these issues?" he asks. "I know we're all aware of these issues, but it seems like we're so distracted with less important things, which explains the title of my painting 'Habitual Indifference.' I feel that most Americans are too numb to worry about major issues affecting the world, and there's no necessity for them to act. Hopefully that will change."