VIVA EL GATO! El Gato Taqueria
As the defining centerpiece art, I wanted this to be one big, beautiful mash-up of the multi-faceted El Gato theme: A Luchador Hero's Mexican Fiesta, complete with Dancing Senorita, the Guitar-Smashing Godzilla, and a Rocket-Riding Space Surfer, all celebrating together in an energetic burst of riotous color and form. It had to vibrate with a controlled mayhem, cheer the heart, and exude good-will and hospitality. It also had to be accessible to the general public; graphically crisp, powerfully engaging, well-crafted, and fun.
It was important for me to set the bar high on this first large composition, as I knew it would force me to try to "out-do myself" on subsequent pieces. Getting a "Wow!-response" was also extremely motivating, and added to the excitement about the upcoming opening.
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I would be lying if I said it all came together smoothly... Quite the opposite, it was artistic boot-camp! For me, the first work in any series is usually a proto-type. I make and remake, working-out all the kinks, determining what elements will be common to the entire body of work. I look & think. Then look again. Shuffle stuff around, re-work, cut, start-over, look & think... again and again. Letting the piece reveal itself is the key. Anytime I try to force it, it always falls short. This intuitive process sometimes causes huge anxiety, especially when there's a deadline looming and it just won't work! It's really an exercise in faith & trust, and very humbling to realize that I'm just a channel... Eventually, things go from bad, to ugly, to worse, and then... YES! That's always a great big giddy, moment.
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Click each image for details.
Original sketch: Viva El Gato! Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
Original sketch. Getting my thoughts down. Copyright Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
Primed panels ready to begin... I painted a wall in my studio the same orange as the restaurant to better coordinate colors. Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
Panel shapes have been modified, and a quick sketch added to "just get something down." The first of many, many steps! Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
It's important for me to go ahead and just mess around on the actual piece, rather than doing hundreds of sketches - it allows me to shake-off any inhibitions about mistakes, and the potential for ruining the work. Also is very humbling to see just how much bad work I can make...lol! Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved.
Masked-off and glazed center panel. Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
Pulling the tape. Several coats of flat white paint were applied over the original glazed areas. Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
I looked at a lot of luchador-inspired art, as well as publications and videos. "Glory rays" are an integral part of expressing the heroic character of these masked wrestlers. Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
It's a start... Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
Official logo for El Gato Taqueria. One of the challenges was to represent the El Gato brand in my own style while keeping it similar enough to the official logo. Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
The search for the right luchador begins... Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
No... Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
The faces would either be too silly looking, too mean & scary, or just weird... Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
Eh, no... try again. Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
Getting closer. The green is the color of the stool seat I set him on momentarily... a happy accident. I used this version while working on the rest of the piece. Eventually it got shelved as well. Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
Original sketch for dancing girls. Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
Rockets ready for jigsaw. Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
I enlarged & transferred the sketch, making a template from freezer paper. This allows me to play around with the shapes before cutting them out of plywood. Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
My first thought was to create a frame around the luchador with the two dancing figures. Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
One of many configurations... Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohioi.
Another... One of the things I was very conscious of was how quickly the imagery could look dark or demonic; I absolutely didn't want that, and changed anything that remotely suggested it. Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
Sometimes I get hung-up on using a particular color that just won't work, no matter how much I fight it. This fight didn't last too long. Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
Cutting the craters of the cactus planet. Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
Drying the glitter glaze. Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
Detail: Surface of the cactus planet. Copyright Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
Cactus planet panel. I was working on several parts of this composition at the same time, as well as beginning the next one; these panels originally intended for Viva El Gato! ended up in Tacocat Siesta Fiesta. Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
Cut stencil of tiki-luchador surfboard. Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
In keeping with the luchador/sci-fi/surf theme, I was thinking about alien surfing iguanas... Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
Peeling the stencil. Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
Cowabunga, baby! Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
I liked it, but the whole alien-monster-thing had the potential to get away from me... needed to keep it reigned-in on this piece, which is the "centerpiece." Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
Now he's a monster cactus... Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
Detail of cactus monster. This would become part of Tacocat Siesta-Fiesta. Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
Not there yet. Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron Ohio.
Like it, but not for this project. Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
Skirt ruffles. Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria.
Workin' it out... Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
Back on the floor... in order to better see proportions, I moved this piece from table to floor & back continuously. Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria.
Playing around with incorporating cat imagery. Flowers were drawn with colored pencils. Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.
This senorita would soon be painted-over. I realized that the figures worked better when they were more generic forms, suggesting the energy of a Mexican dance. She's also too cartoony & stereotypical. Copyright 2015 Teresa Bosko. All Rights Reserved. El Gato Taqueria, Akron, Ohio.