Editing Leopoldo Flores

{{Infobox person
| name        = Leopoldo Flores
| image       = Some of the magnificent stained glass inside the Cosmovitral, Toluca, Mexico..jpg
| alt         = 
| caption     = ''Hombre Sol'' (Sun Man) inside the Cosmovitral in Toluca
| birth_name  = 
| birth_date  = 1934
| birth_place = [[Tenancingo, Mexico State|Tenancingo]], [[Estado de México]]
| death_date  = {{death date and age|2016|4|3|1934|mf=y}}
| death_place = 
| other_names = 
| known_for   = 
| occupation  = Artist
}}

'''Leopoldo Flores''' (1934 – April 3, 2016) was a Mexican [[List of Mexican artists|artist]] mostly known for his murals and other monumental works which are concentrated in the city of [[Toluca]], [[State of Mexico]]. He was born into a poor family in rural State of Mexico, but his artistic ability was evident early and he was able to attend the [[Escuela Nacional de Pintura, Escultura y Grabado "La Esmeralda"]] and receive a scholarship to study in Paris. His best known works are the ''[[Cosmovitral]]'' a large work in stained glass and the ''[[Aratmósfera]]'', a “[[land art]]” piece both located in Toluca. The first is used as a symbol for the State of Mexico and the latter dominates the main stadium and the hill behind it at the main campus of the [[Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México]] (UAEM). He received a number of recognitions of his work from the State of Mexico and an honorary doctorate from the UAEM, which also founded the Museo Universitario Leopoldo Flores to house and promote his work. Despite advanced [[Parkinson's disease]], until his death Flores was still an active artist.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eluniversal.com.mx/articulo/cultura/artes-visuales/2016/04/4/fallece-el-artista-plastico-leopoldo-flores|title=Fallece el artista plástico Leopoldo Flores|work=El Universal}}</ref>

==Life==
Leopoldo Flores, full name '''Leopoldo Flores Valdés''', was born to a poor family in 1934 in the small town of San Simonito de los Comales in the municipality of [[Tenancingo, State of Mexico]], Mexico.<ref name=uaembio>{{cite web |url= http://www.uaemex.mx/muslf/cronologia.html |title= Leopoldo Flores Su hacer en el tiempo |publisher= Museo Universitario Leopoldo Flores |location=Toluca |language=es |trans-title=Leopoldo Flores His work in time |access-date=March 27, 2013 }}</ref><ref name=lsanchez>{{cite news |title=  Homenaje de la Alianza Francesa a Leopoldo Flores |author= Leonor Sánchez Sánchez  |url= http://www.oem.com.mx/elsoldetoluca/notas/n1708873.htm |publisher= El Sol de Toluca |location=Toluca |date=July 15, 2010 |language=es |trans-title=Homage by the Alianza Francesa to Leopoldo Flores |access-date=March 27, 2013 }}</ref>

His talent for art was evident in his youth,<ref name=uaembio/> studying at Escuela Nacional de Pintura, Escultura y Grabado "La Esmeralda" from 1953 to 1960.<ref name=matiza>{{cite news |title = Matiza Leopoldo Flores su propio espacio |author=Arturo Espinosa |publisher= Reforma |location=Mexico City |date=April 11, 2002 |page=18 |language=es |trans-title=Leopoldo Flores defines his own space }}</ref> In 1962, he received a scholarship to attend the [[École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts]] in Paris. This experience exposed him to more artistic influences and allowed him to participate in collective exhibitions in Europe.<ref name=uaembio/>

His career spanned from the early 1960s to his death in 2016. He returned to Paris to paint on several occasions, with the last being in the 1980s when he did a series of self-portraits including those which likened him to [[Van Gogh]], [[Michelangelo]] and [[Rembrandt]] .<ref name=parkinson>{{cite news |title = Muestra Leopoldo Flores resultados del Parkinson |author=Arturo Espinosa |publisher= Reforma |location=Mexico City |date=February 25, 2003 |pages=3–310 |language=es |trans-title=Leopoldo Flores shows signs of Parkinson’s }}</ref>

He was married to Dolores Almada.<ref name=justo>{{cite web |url= http://poderedomex.com/notas.asp?nota_id=40794 |title = En el Cosmovitral, justo homenaje a Leopoldo Flores |publisher= State of Mexico |location=Mexico |date=February 14, 2009 |language=es |trans-title=In the Cosmovitral, a just homage to Leopoldo Flores }}</ref>

Flores was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2000, which he documented in a self-portrait named ''Hombre con temblor en la mano izquierda'' (''Man with shaking in the left hand'').<ref name=parkinson/> He went to Cuba to receive treatment.<ref name=talentode>{{cite news |title = Exhiben el talento de Leopoldo Flores |author=Arturo Espinosa |publisher= Reforma |location=Mexico City |date=April 22, 2002 |page=18 |language=es |trans-title=Exhibit the talent of Leopoldo Flores }}</ref>  Despite its advanced stage and concerns about his health, he continued to work.<ref name=parkinson/><ref name=cpaul>{{cite news |title= Inauguraron mural de Leopoldo Flores en un cubo de las escaleras de la Corte |author=Carlos Paul |url= http://www.jornada.unam.mx/2008/07/16/index.php?section=cultura&article=a06n1cul |publisher= La Jornada |location=Mexico City |date=July 16, 2008 |language=es |trans-title=Inaugurate Leopoldo Flores murals in the stairwell of the Court |access-date=March 27, 2013}}</ref>

==Career==
[[File:A view of the magnificent stained glass inside the Cosmovitral, Toluca, Mexico..jpg|thumb|View of the stained glass and botanical garden of the Cosmovitral]]
Since 1960, Flores exhibited his work both in Mexico and abroad.<ref name=celester>{{cite news |title=Los apuntes de taller de Leopoldo Flores |author=Celeste Ramírez |url=http://www.milenio.com/cdb/doc/impreso/9059736 |archive-url=https://archive.is/20130411083831/http://www.milenio.com/cdb/doc/impreso/9059736 |url-status=dead |archive-date=April 11, 2013 |publisher=Milenio |location=Mexico City |date=November 11, 2011 |language=es |trans-title=The sketches of the workshop of Leopoldo Flores |access-date=March 27, 2013 }}</ref> From 1962 to 1968, most of these exhibits were collective, including at the [[Palacio de Bellas Artes]] during the Festival Solar of the [[Mexico City Olympics]] in 1968.<ref name=uaembio/><ref name=matiza/> From 1970 to 1971 he coordinated the “Plastica 70” exhibition and exhibited at the Sala de Arte Moderno of the Casa de Cultura of Toluca.<ref name=matiza/> The most recent individual exhibitions of his art were Génesis de tormenta and Apuntes de taller, both held at the Museo Universitario Leopoldo Flores in Toluca. Genesis contains thirty abstract acrylics in small format focused on the pollution called by oil drilling in the [[Gulf of Mexico]] .<ref name=uaembio/><ref name=celester/> Apuntes was a retrospective which contained 320 drawings, many never exhibited before, as well as photographs by Carlos Hahn.<ref name=apuntes>{{cite news |title= "Apuntes de taller", bocetos del maestro Leopoldo Flores |url= http://www.oem.com.mx/elmexicano/notas/n2319597.htm |publisher= El Sol de Toluca |location=Toluca |date=November 23, 2011 |language=es |trans-title=Sketches from the workshop, plans from the master |access-date=March 27, 2013 }}</ref>

One of Flores first major successes was in 1969 with the creation of “pancarta” murals, which consisted of the placement of large pieces of fabric over the exterior of buildings.<ref name=comunidad>{{cite news |title= Dibujos en tinta de Leopoldo Flores |url= http://www.oem.com.mx/elsoldetoluca/notas/n1920402.htm |publisher= El Sol de Toluca |location=Toluca |date=January 11, 2011 |language=es |trans-title=Ink drawings of Leopoldo Flores |access-date=March 27, 2013 }}</ref><ref name=edomex>{{cite web |url=http://qacontent.edomex.gob.mx/bicentenario/historia/mexiquenses/leopoldo_flores/index.htm |title=Leopoldo Flores |publisher=Government of the State of Mexico |location=Mexico |language=es |access-date=March 27, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140807210130/http://qacontent.edomex.gob.mx/bicentenario/historia/mexiquenses/leopoldo_flores/index.htm |archive-date=August 7, 2014 }}</ref> Examples of works of this type include Retorno de la gran manada and Desembardo de los marines, which were places at Plaza Beau-bourg of the [[Centre Georges Pompidou]] and the vestibule of the Palacio de Bellas Artes in [[Mexico City]] .<ref name=edomex/> In 1972 he also created a pancarta mural for an exhibition over the Hidalgo Market in Toluca. In addition to this movement he also headed a movement called Arte Abierto in 1976, along with working as a promoter of the fine arts for the State of Mexico in 1969.<ref name=matiza/>

Flores is best known for his monumental works, especially murals, most of which are located in the city of Toluca.<ref name=uaembio/> Early murals include ''El hombre contemporáneo'' at the Hotel Plaza Morelos (1971), ''El hombre comtemplando al hombre'' at the Palacio de Poder Legislativo (1972-1983) and ''Alianza de las culturas'' at the Alianza Franciasa de Toluca building (1985) .<ref name=matiza/> Others include ''El Hombre Universal'' at the Centro de Investigación en Ciencias Sociales at UAEM (1989), and ''En búsqueda de la justicia'' at the Procuraduría General de Justicia (1991-1992) .<ref name=uaembio/><ref name=matiza/> From 2001 to 2002 he created ''De qué color es el Principio'' at the Colegio Mexiquense, and in 2002 worked on ''Periplo plástico'' at the Museo de Arte Moderno of the [[Centro Cultural Mexiquense]] .<ref name=uaembio/> The latter mural is filled with symbols such as exploding light for the [[Big Bang theory]], along with the appearance of man and manifestations of art.<ref name=enelmam>{{cite news |title=Leopoldo Flores en el Museo de Arte Moderno |url=http://www.milenio.com/cdb/doc/impreso/8096574 |archive-url=https://archive.is/20130419135053/http://www.milenio.com/cdb/doc/impreso/8096574 |url-status=dead |archive-date=April 19, 2013 |publisher=Milenio |location=Mexico City |date=August 28, 2008 |language=es |trans-title=Leopoldo Flores at the Museum of Modern Art |access-date=March 27, 2013 }}</ref> In 2004 he created the ''La Cátedra de la Justicia'' at the Escuela de Judicial del Estado de México in only two months.<ref name=uaembio/><ref name=matiza/> In 2006 he created the mural ''Justicia Supremo Poder'' for the Palacio de la [[Suprema Corte de Justicia de la Nación]] in Mexico City. It was created in Toluca and transferred to the court building in 2007.<ref name=uaembio/> It is located in the northeast corner of the main stairs, with a size of about 300m2 in three levels,<ref name=cpaul/> sharing space with works by [[Luis Nishizawa]], [[Rafael Cauduro]] and [[Ismael Ramos]] .<ref name=scjn>{{cite news |title= Inauguran mural de Leopoldo Flores en SCJN  |url = http://www.eluniversal.com.mx/notas/522699.html |publisher= El Universal |location=Mexico City |date=July 15, 2008 |language=es |trans-title=Inaugurate mural by Leopoldo Flores at the Supreme Court |access-date=March 27, 2013 }}</ref> From 2009 to 2010 he created a mural for the State of Mexico placed at the Palacio del Gobierno in Toluca, about the [[Celebration of Mexican political anniversaries in 2010|Bicentennial of Mexico's Independence and Centennial of the Mexican Revolution]].<ref name=uaembio/>

However, his two best known works are located in the city of Toluca, the [[Cosmovitral]], which today serves as an important identity marker for the State of Mexico and Aratmósfera. The Cosmovitral was a renovation of an old [[Porfirio Díaz]] era market. The interior was turned into a [[botanical garden]] and the windows were replaced by large glass murals with 48 panels which cover an area of 3,200 m2. Inaugurated in 1980, the theme of the work is the opposition of day and night, woman and man, and good and bad.<ref name=uaembio/><ref name=justo/><ref name=cosmo2004>{{cite news |title = 'Cosmovitral'  |publisher= Reforma |location=Mexico City |date=March 19, 2004 |page=26 |language=es |trans-title=Exhibit the talent of Leopoldo Flores }}</ref> The glass work used about 75 tons of metal substructure, 45 tons of blown glass and 25 tons of lead solder.<ref name=justo/> The Cosmovitral was named in 2007 as one of thirteen wonders of Mexico and in 2008 it received the Excelsis prize from the Global Quality Foundation.<ref name=uaembio/>

''Aratmósfera'' covers an area of {{convert|10000|m2|ft2}} over part of a small mountain, Cerro de Coatepec, and into the stands of the [[Estadio Universitario Alberto Chivo Córdoba]], the university stadium on the Ciudad Universitaria campus of the [[Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México]].<ref name=matiza/> As the hill itself is part of the work, it is a type of “[[land art]]”, and Flores was the first in Mexico to employ the technique. The theme of the work is the birth of light, represented by man, which emerges from the earth and rises, looking and reaching for the sky.<ref name=uaembio/><ref name=matiza/> Although it has been restored twice since its creation between 1974 and 1978, it has problems with deterioration.<ref name=matiza/><ref name=falta>{{cite news |title = Falta atención a mural de Leopoldo Flores |author=Arturo Espinosa |publisher= Reforma |location=Mexico City |date=October 12, 2010 |page=15 |language=es |trans-title=Leopoldo Flores mural lacks attention }}</ref>

In addition to mural work, other monumental pieces include a sculpture called ''Tocando el Sol'' (Touching the Sun) found at the main administration building of the Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México. In 1992, he experimented with painting over snow on the sides of the [[Nevado de Toluca]] volcano.<ref name=uaembio/><ref name=matiza/>

His recognitions include the Meztli Award in 1964, the Acquisition Prize in Painting from INBA in 1968,<ref name=uaembio/> the José María Velasco Award from the State of Mexico in 1984, an honorary doctorate from the Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México in 2007 and the Gran Orden de la Reforma from the State of Mexico in 2007.<ref name=matiza/><ref name=granorden>{{cite news |title = Recibió Leopoldo Flores la Gran Orden de la Reforma  |url = http://www.oem.com.mx/elsoldetoluca/notas/n507064.htm |publisher= El Sol de Toluca |location=Toluca |date=November 29, 2007 |language=es |trans-title=Leopoldo Flores received the Gran Orden de la Reforma |access-date=March 27, 2013 }}</ref> He was also a member of the [[Salón de la Plástica Mexicana]].<ref name=member>{{cite web|url=http://www.salondelaplasticamexicana.bellasartes.gob.mx/index.php/miembrossalon/98-ldm |title=Lista de miembros |publisher=Salón de la Plástica Mexicana |location=Mexico City |language=es |trans-title=List of members |access-date=March 27, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131016234524/http://www.salondelaplasticamexicana.bellasartes.gob.mx/index.php/miembrossalon/98-ldm |archive-date=October 16, 2013 }}</ref>

==Artistry==
Although best known for murals and other monumental works, Flores also worked with various media, techniques and sizes.<ref name=cpaul/> Traditional media include oils, acrylics, watercolors and ink in small and medium-sized formats as well as monumental.<ref name=uaembio/><ref name=comunidad/><ref name=edomex/><ref name=sintitulo>{{cite news |title=  "Sin título", de Leopoldo Flores, en el Museo de la Acuarela  |url= http://www.oem.com.mx/elsoldetoluca/notas/n1811401.htm |publisher= El Sol de Toluca|location=Toluca |date=October 9, 2010 |language=es |trans-title="Without title" by Leopoldo Flores at the Watercolor Museum |access-date=March 27, 2013 }}</ref> More unusual media and materials have included cloth, rock, plaster, glass, wood, snow, vegetation, paper and cardboard.<ref name=uaembio/> One collection is a series of ink drawings on paper napkins, which belongs to the Máxima Casa de Estudios.<ref name=comunidad/> ''El Minotauro'' is painted over live rock at the Museo Universitario.<ref name=matiza/> Colors that frequently appear in his work include reds, yellows, ochre, grays, blues and black.<ref name=tormenta>{{cite web |url= http://poderedomex.com/notas.asp?id=61067 |title = "Génesis de tormenta", obra de Leopoldo Flores que presentará la UAEM |publisher= State of Mexico |location=Mexico |date=August 18, 2010 |language=es |trans-title="Genesis of torment" work by Leopoldo Flores to be presented at UAEM }}</ref>

His work has been featured in writings by notable Mexican art critics including [[Raquel Tibol]], [[Antonio Rodriguez (critic)|Antonio Rodriguez]] and [[Berta Taracena]] .<ref name=uaembio/> He considered his work to be a continuance of [[Mexican muralism]], and he has been described as a “disciple” of [[David Alfaro Siqueiros]] .<ref name=cpaul/><ref name=edomex/> He is an important figure in Mexican art of the latter 20th century, but his work is neither decorative nor didactic. Rather it focuses on timeless conflicts of the human race.<ref name=uaembio/><ref name=musgob>{{cite web |url= http://www.toluca.gob.mx/turismo/museos/?id=72 |title= Museo Leopoldo Flores |publisher= Government of Toluca |location=Toluca |language=es |trans-title=Leopoldo Flores Museum |access-date=March 27, 2013 }}</ref> Social problems his work has tackled include violence and consumption. Notable works of this type include ''Cien Hecatombes'' (1972), ''A la opinion pública'' (1973), ''El Hielo de Ariadna'' (1983) and a series of Christ figures (1994) .<ref name=uaembio/>  His work is mostly figurative, with images of men and nature.  When women appear, they usually accompany men.<ref name=thernandez>{{cite news |title=La dualidad en Leopoldo Flores |author=Tania Hernández A. |url=http://www.milenio.com/cdb/doc/impreso/7017799 |archive-url=https://archive.is/20130411084916/http://www.milenio.com/cdb/doc/impreso/7017799 |url-status=dead |archive-date=April 11, 2013 |publisher=Milenio |location=Mexico City |date=February 10, 2007 |language=es |trans-title=The duality in Leopoldo Flores |access-date=March 27, 2013 }}</ref> One of his influences include the writings of [[José Saramago]], who he had the chance to meet.<ref name=losmares>{{cite news |title= Anuncian Génesis de tormenta "Los mares", exposición de Leopoldo Flores |url= http://www.oem.com.mx/elsoldetoluca/notas/n1749485.htm |publisher= El Sol de Toluca |location=Toluca |date=August 18, 2010 |language=es |trans-title=Announcing "Genesis of the storm "The Seas" exhibition by Leopoldo Flores |access-date=March 27, 2013 }}</ref>

==Museo Universitario Leopoldo Flores==
In the early 2000s the artist donated a collection of his works to the Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México, which opened the Museo Universitario Leopoldo Flores in 2002, which the purpose of promoting, investigating and recording the artist's work.<ref name=uaembio/> (http://www.uaemex.mx/muslf/) The museum was opened in 2002, in a building constructed for the purpose at the Ciudad Universitaria, with Flores participating in the design.<ref name=matiza/> It contains a collection of portable murals, large paintings, drawings and sculptures donated by the artist.<ref name=musgob/><ref name=sicgob>{{cite web |url= http://sic.conaculta.gob.mx/ficha.php?table=museo&table_id=451 |title= Museo Museo Universitario Leopoldo Flores |work=Sistema de Información Cultural |publisher= CONACULTA |location=Mexico |language=es |trans-title=Leopoldo Flores University Museum |access-date=March 27, 2013 }}</ref> Among these works are ''El hijo de Ariadna'' and ''Los cristos''.<ref name=sicgob/>

It has six halls for temporary exhibitions, a library, photographic collection, bookstore, cafeteria and first aid station.<ref name=sicgob/> He had a workshop in the museum similar to the one in his home.<ref name=matiza/> In addition to the permanent collection, the museum also holds temporary exhibits by contemporary artists along with guided tours, concerts, conferences, book presentations and workshops.<ref name=musgob/><ref name=sicgob/>

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Artists related to Mexican muralism}}
{{Members of the Salón de la Plástica Mexicana}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Flores, Leopoldo}}
[[Category:1934 births]]
[[Category:2016 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century Mexican painters]]
[[Category:Mexican male painters]]
[[Category:21st-century Mexican painters]]
[[Category:Escuela Nacional de Pintura, Escultura y Grabado "La Esmeralda" alumni]]
[[Category:20th-century Mexican sculptors]]
[[Category:20th-century Mexican male artists]]
[[Category:21st-century Mexican male artists]]