Luchita, What?
A collection of interviews with artist Luchita Hurtado
Born in Venezuela in 1920, Luchita Hurtado has lived a relatively unknown but long and colorful life. My wish was to explore her life and introduce her artistry to other people’s lives. I used multiple interviews from the “Smithsonian Archives of American Art” and “Hauser & Wirth” to showcase the different parts of her life and artwork. After the initial set of two interviews were chosen, I then selected two more recent interviews that dealt with her on a more personal level. The combination of these interviews inspired the format of the book, moving from her friends and family to her personal artistry and from her past to her present..
The book features two pull–out inserts of photos of Luchita, alternated with a selection of her paintings throughout the years and phases of her styles. The overall concept is for the reader to journey through Luchita Hurtado’s life from birthplace to her many homes thereafter. I use environmentally sourced paper as a tactile medium to give a feeling of rawness and nature—to help ground you to the many roots of Luchita. With this 8” x 6” book I want to showcase Luchita Hurtado’s work alongside the context of influential artists in her life as well her external environmental inspiration.
“An artist’s recesses become a condition, a preparation to transmit, a commitment to oneself.”
—Luchita Hurtado
Typefaces
Acier BAT from Production Type
Paper
Neenah Teton Tiara
Carnival + Via Felt