Martha Orozco
A Painter and her Family

by Jennifer Hebblethwaite

Martha Orozco works in her home studio, surrounded by her late husband's pre-Hispanic pottery collection and cherished books, classical music fills the room and soft-colored walls reflect the light that streams in from the bay windows.

When we think of Mexico, a few of the images that may come to mind are its rich tradition of extended family, vibrant colors, exotic landscapes, and bustling cities that embrace the country's diverse customs. This portrait painter who renders children playing, the love of mother and child, or a little girl with her beloved pet, not only embraces her homeland's family conventions, she infuses her work with "the bright colors of a wall, flower, or tree that are a hidden and silent mystery which I cannot describe."

Mixed into this world of family, history, and tradition is discipline. Except Wednesday and Sunday, Orozco paints every day of the week from 10 AM until 6 PM. Wednesday is set aside as family time where Orozco's one son, six daughters, spouses, grandchildren and the family dog (usually twenty altogether) congregate at their mother's home.

Orozco's son is an architect and five of her six daughters paint. The children were born surrounded by an artistic environment so it was no surprise to Orozco when the girls started to paint by their mother's side. From Martha, the eldest daughter, who prefers to paint Mexican objects such as pinqatas and Indian markets, to Monica who illustrates children's books, and Patricia who is a graphic designer, each daughter has developed her own style of artistic expression.

Orozco's voice resounds with pride when she speaks of gathering with her daughters to discuss art matters, comment on each other's work, and sometimes paint together. "We all help each other and my family has always been an inspiration for my painting." This inspiration is indeed evident in numerous Orozco paintings such as the portrait of her grandchildren, "Pepito and Lucy," which won first place at the 1995 Portrait Arts Festival, or "My Granddaughters."

"My Granddaughters" and another piece entitled "The Lizard" are two large works painted for the University Contemporary Museum Show that is now traveling in several countries.

Like her own daughters, Orozco was also inspired by her mother. "The first painting I recall was done when I was in kindergarten. The teacher gave us a homework assignment to draw a fairy tale illustration. I asked my mother to help me by drawing a little lamb for me to copy. When I finished copying it, my mother exclaimed, 'your little lamb is much better than mine. You are an artist!' " Orozco painted her first portrait shortly thereafter when one of her teachers required students to draw a posthumous portrait of a classmate who passed away.

For this portrait painter, "Being an artist was as natural as having brown hair or any other attribute I was born with." When she was ten years old, Orozco took private drawing and painting classes with Matilda Oreana who was a classmate of the famous Mexican muralist Diego Rivera. "She taught me a very academic way of art expression." Later, at sixteen, Orozco moved to a school that followed the steps of Spanish Impressionism. After six years of studying different mediums such as charcoal, watercolor, pastel and oil, Orozco had her first solo show. Every painting was sold!

During the following years, Orozco focused on deepening her skills in subjects such as color and composition, "I don't recall feeling as a new artist but. . .I have always fought to improve my technique, searching for the appropriate medium to express myself in accordance with a subject I have chosen."

In Mexico, where the portrait artist is not sponsored by the government or galleries, the relationship between artist and client is virtually sacred. Orozco speaks of the importance of immediately establishing a strong rapport: "Without it, the portrait will be a failure. The artist and subject must be in harmonious accord ... if I as a painter offer in my work balance, beauty, joy and dignity I will not be able to paint a subject who is looking for ugliness, protest, depression, shock or misery.

"Then, to assure the success of a portrait painting, both the subject and painter must be sure they have an echo in their values." Orozco believes in taking a profound interest in the subject to be painted, "studying his or her preferences, way of living, pets and hobbies," to ensure a well-made match. Furthermore, she never discusses payment conditions with her client. Orozco's family again takes a significant role as, "One of my daughters takes care of this matter to avoid any prejudices I could have against a haggling client."

Color is a very important element in Martha Orozco's painting. When it is time to begin the portrait, she prefers to paint on sunny days, "full of highlights and colored shadows," or perhaps she will select "the seashores where the light is so vibrant. Living in Mexico City, I miss the deep blue skies I saw in my youth, which pollution has destroyed." Orozco works with pastels or watercolors. She has won several awards in both, but this artist prefers the versatility of oil. Using a Rembrandt palette, "the color treatment of my paintings is searching always for a combination of subtle and delicate colors with a contrasting bright one."

Orozco also relies on photography when working with a client. "Although I painted for years only from the natural and I never wanted to use photography as an aid, our actual complicated life, especially in Mexico, the largest city in the world, makes the subject too busy to have time for posing. This has forced me to mix natural posing with photographs taken by myself, and I have discovered, gladly, that they capture moments and passing gestures, or a brief highlight given by the sun, or a subtle smile – expressions that cannot be maintained for long terms and that give the portrait something more."

Orozco is quick to stress that it is essential to master painting natural poses and then grow into mixing the natural with photography in order to achieve the aesthetic values required to create a good painting. She also emphasizes that the combination of mediums does not affect her brushwork. "Brushstrokes are the same as handwriting. It is something so innate to one's self that when you master them, it gives each one its own signature."

Of course the techniques that Orozco uses to express the personality of her clients are the proper use of the pictorial elements: lines, contrast, color and texture. "The adequate use of them will give the right psychological personality of the subject." For Orozco, "a straight, vertical line will give a sense of security and dignity, a curved line will express movement, joy, family, as vibrant colors express youth, joy and playfulness."

The artist also pays tribute to her homeland for the compelling details found in her figures, "Mexico has to be my main roots, along with Spain and the indigenous cultures. Regarding Spain, we can trace its heritage back to Rome and Greece. These give my painting its love for purity with presentation of the human form."

As to the future trends of portrait artistry in Mexico, Orozco speaks of imagining "a future of robots, computers and interspacial trips. But even then the family will be in the home with a dog, kids, etc., and commissioning a portrait. My own experience tells me that despite the ups and downs of the Mexican economy, I have always had a portrait to paint. The future portrait might change in style and medium, but the human figure does not change. It will remain the principal subject with all the physical and psychological expression of endless richness: Man created in the image and resemblance of God."

Return to publications index ____________________________________________________________________ Jennifer Hebblethwaite is the Literary Associate for the Alabama Shakespeare Festival where she heads the Southern Writers' Project and the Young Playwrights' Program. Hebblethwaite also serves as an adjunct faculty member with Auburn University Montgomery and Huntingdon College.