Fatima Ronquillo~ “Recollected: Portraits of Enchantment”
The Millicent Rogers Museum and Meyer Gallery, as exhibition partners, are pleased to present Fatima Ronquillo Recollected: Portraits of Enchantment, on view from June 30 through September 24, 2023 at the Millicent Rogers Museum in Taos, New Mexico.
Fatima Ronquillo Recollected: Portraits of Enchantment features Ronquillo’s recent and new paintings and lithographs that exude global influences of allegorical portraiture depicting heroes and heroines immersed in the flora and fauna of places near and far. In this exhibition, more than 18 of these lively images are juxtaposed alongside selections from the museum’s collections of santos (devotional carvings or paintings on wood) and Millicent Rogers’ jewelry. The result is a dynamic variation of “recollections” that offers new connections across mediums, cultures, places, and epochs to create a kaleidoscope of imaginative realities.
The museum exhibition at the Millicent Rogers Museum will be in correlation with Ronquillo's solo exhibition at Meyer Gallery in Santa Fe, which opens on June 16, where six new works will be presented for sale to the public. The new works will then travel to Taos, to be accompanied by earlier pieces from the artist’s career.
A local to Santa Fe, New Mexico, Fatima Ronquillo (b. 1976, Philippines) relishes the traces of enchantment found near her home. To her, there are many ways that the santos and cathedrals are reminiscent of Filipino traditions. For Ronquillo, who is represented by Meyer Gallery, the lens of magical realism allows her to merge the fantastical with the everyday in the worlds of her paintings.
She explains, “Where else but in art can the improbable and marvelous become real and commonplace? Children (and some very fortunate adults) live in this inner world of enchantment. They are the rulers of their very own peaceable kingdoms inhabited by strange and marvelous beasts. To a child, a short hike in the hills can be like reaching the mountaintop with spirit animals as trail guides.”
Emerging from this premise, Fatima Ronquillo Recollected: Portraits of Enchantment reconfigures the connections between personal identity, landscape, and folklore, all through the twists and turns of fantasy and reality that create her unique version of magical realism, and ultimately, a globalized enchantment.
A Q&A Zoom program with Fatima Ronquillo will take place on Thursday, July 13, 2023, from 6-7pm. This is free and open to the public on zoom. The date for an Opening Reception will be determined with the release of the Catalog that is in production.
Meyer Gallery (founded in 1965) has evolved into a leading force in Santa Fe for contemporary representational art. As owner and gallery director, John Manzari honors Meyers’ legacy through compelling curations of art by local, national, and international talent. The gallery’s artists offer an exciting perspective on traditional genres such as landscape, figurative, still life paintings, and bronze sculptures. Meyer Gallery’s commitment to exhibiting museum-quality artwork has earned it a reputation as a leading source for art lovers and collectors.
July 13, 2023, 6pm-7pm, An Online Conversation with Fatima Ronquillo "Recollected: Portraits of Enchantment"
A free virtual event hosted by the Millicent Rogers Museum, online only Pre-register at Zoom link here: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Yx_ai3uOTFOf4ddj_CWXmA
Preview of works by Fatima Ronquillo
Fatima Ronquillo, The Wanderers, oil on canvas, 64 x 56 inches framed, Image & Loan Courtesy of Steve and Cathy Dienst.
Fatima Ronquillo, The Artist's Eye and Hand with Jasmines and Sweetpeas, oil on linen on aluminum panel, 13 x 11 inches framed, Image & Loan Courtesy of Steve and Cathy Dienst.
Fatima Ronquillo, Crowned Nun with Marmoset, oil on canvas, 38x32 in. framed, Image & Loan Courtesy of Helen Shumway.
Fatima Ronquillo, Hand with Snake and Weeping Eye, oil on panel, 14 x 12 inches framed, Image & Loan Courtesy of Helen Shumway.
Fatima Ronquillo, Psyche with Blindfold and Tulip, oil on panel, 16x14 framed, Image & Loan Courtesy of Helen Shumway.
Fatima Ronquillo, Masked Apollo, oil on panel, 18 x 17 inches framed, Image & Loan Johnny Manzari and Timm Gonzales.