The Mark Santarelli and Linda Arreola Collection of Magú Materials consists of items related to the short film documenting the art and activism of Gilbert "Magú" Luján. Materials date roughly from 1999 to 2004. This collection includes audiovisual materials, electronic formats, and production papers.

Gilbert Luján popularly known by the moniker Magú, was an influential Los Angeles painter and sculptor, best known for bringing Chicano art to widespread public attention both through his own work and the founding of Chicano art collective Los Four. Magú’s paintings, murals and sculptures were grounded in the textures and objects of daily Chicano life and pop-culture, most recognizably lowriders, often with bright paint jobs and driven by Aztec warriors. A self-proclaimed “ethnic artist” and cultural nationalist, Magú elevated folk art to fine art in an attempt to address, firstly, all fellow Chicanos with art that articulated Chicano identity and individuality and was relevant to the common folk and, secondly, the mainstream art audience by proclaiming the cultural legitimacy of Chicanismo and a uniquely Chicano worldview.Gilbert Luján (b. 10/16/1940; d. 07/24/2011), popularly known by the moniker Magú, was an influential Los Angeles painter and sculptor, best known for bringing Chicano art to widespread public attention both through his own work and the founding of Chicano art collective Los Four. Magú’s paintings, murals and sculptures were grounded in the textures and objects of daily Chicano life and pop-culture, most recognizably lowriders, often with bright paint jobs and driven by Aztec warriors. A self-proclaimed “ethnic artist” and cultural nationalist, Magú elevated folk art to fine art in an attempt to address, firstly, all fellow Chicanos with art that articulated Chicano identity and individuality and was relevant to the common folk and, secondly, the mainstream art audience by proclaiming the cultural legitimacy of Chicanismo and a uniquely Chicano worldview.Los Four was an influential Chicano art collective, seen as having been at the forefront of the Chicano movement for over a decade. They gained widespread recognition for Chicano culture and paved the way for future artists. Los Four was founded by Magú in 1973, consisting originally of himself and artists Frank Romero, Carlos Almaraz, Roberto ‘Beto’ de la Rocha and, later, Judithe Hernández. The members were all college-educated and their art reflected an intellectual engagement with the Chicano movement and the need to assert Chicano identity and culture through art, both to a mainstream audience and to their own community. The group’s breakthrough came with an exhibition at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in 1974, widely seen as the first-time Chicano art was legitimized as the first ever exhibition of Chicano art at a major gallery. Apart from their extensive exhibitions over the next decade and a half, they are also well-known for murals painted across Los Angeles, including the Los Angeles Metro stations designed by Luján, Romero and Hernandez.Mark Santarelli has lived in the predominately Latino neighborhood of El Sereno in Los Angeles since 1997. Raised in Texas, Santarelli went to college at Texas Tech in Lubbock and graduated in 1980. He then lived in New Mexico at a co-ed Benedictine community where he studied CG Jung. In Santa Fe, he apprenticed to a documentary filmmaker and worked on a film about New Mexican Chili. Santarelli later studied film at San Francisco State. He moved to Los Angeles in 1986 and worked on low budget movies as an assistant cameraman and an assistant editor. Santarelli met Linda Arreola in 1995 and she introduced him to her mentor, the artist Gilbert Luján, better known as Magú. Arreola inspired and collaborated with Santarelli to make “Magú: Portrait of an Artist.” After receiving his licensing in psychotherapy in 2000 and graduating as a psychoanalyst in 2012, Santarelli now has a private practice in South Pasadena, CA.

1.0 linear feet (1 box)

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OPEN FOR RESEARCH. Audiovisual materials may not be immediately available due to formatting issues. Portions of this collection are born digital. All requests to access these materials must be made in advance. Access with permission of CSRC librarian.