Rescheduled Opening: Sight Unseen – the Sculptures of Michael Naranjo February 8, 2011

“Sight Unseen,” a retrospective exhibition showcasing 30 years of work by sculptor Michael Naranjo opens at the Las Cruces Museum of Art on Friday, February 4, 2011 and runs through Saturday, April 2, 2011. A reception for the artist will be held on Friday, February 4, from 5 pm to 7 pm. Mr. Naranjo will present a lecture at Branigan Cultural Center on Saturday, February 5 at 1 pm.

As the child of noted Santa Clara Pueblo potter Rose Naranjo, Michael Naranjo walked by the windows of many art galleries in Taos. He was inspired to become a sculptor. In 1968, while serving in Vietnam and during a grenade attack, he was blinded and his right hand was badly injured. While hospitalized, he requested a piece of clay from which he formed an inchworm. According to Mr. Naranjo, “That’s how it all started. Once I made something with clay, I knew I was going to be okay.” In the 1980s, the artist had the opportunity to climb on a scaffold, built just for him, in order to touch Michelangelo’s David. For Mr. Naranjo, this experience gave him a ”…new sense of the stone…I had a new life in my hands.”

Michael Naranjo sculpts in stone, wax, and clay. Many of the sculptures on display are cast in bronze with a dark black patina, the color the artist sees. Works on display include intimate scenes of every day life, reflections of the Pueblo culture and a life-size figure of an Eagle Dancer.

Mr. Naranjo wants others to have the opportunity to feel sculptures as he does. In “Sight Unseen,” the public is encouraged to do just that. Visit this special hands-on exhibit and feel/see the artist’s true vision. Remember, please touch!

Funded by the City of Las Cruces. The Las Cruces Museum of Art is located at 491 N. Main Street. Branigan Cultural Center is located at 501 N. Main Street. Gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 9 am to 4:30 pm. For more information, call (575) 541-2137 or visit the website www.las-cruces.org/museums.