JULIAN RODRIGUEZ'S "DEL FUEGO" EXHIBIT AT ALONSO HOUSE

By Juan Montoya

The first thing one notices about Julian Rodriguez's clay-fired ceramic sculptures are the large feet of his saints.

But oh that the sculptures were that simple. Instead, one has to look past the cartoonish-like feet and hands of his Santos to get their real meaning. They are part of a large exhibit of Rodriguez ceramics called "Del Fuego" and now on exhibit at the Historic Alonzo Building at 510 E St. Charles Street. 

The exhibit is free to the public and runs from September 7 thru the 28th.

Bowls and vases are one thing, and they are quality pieces there like the Royal and Jupiter vases, transmitting their name into kiln-fired ceramics that stand on their own for their distinctiveness. The Royal Vase has an almost Egyptian appearance that conveys an ancient, elegant grandeur. 

But it is the Santos that grab you eye with their detail.

Santa Cachucha is a saint wearing a cap, of course, but it is also a common expression among local Mexican Americans and reflects a type of border humor. 

Saint Francis of Assissi, also with the large-toed feet, holds a white dove in his spread hands. San Pokar is a poker gambler with shades trying to hide his hand and looks nonchalantly behind his stacked chips.

All convey a sort of inside joke, a kind of whimsical poking humor at some of our own personal human qualities.
But our favorite has to be Santo Remedios (and we told Julian about it), a ceramic piece of a traveling friar equipped with all the accoutements of a medicine man ready to handle any illness of the people that he meets.

This piece shows that Rodriguez is intricately acquainted with the local culture. He holds a bunch of aloe vera (savila) in his right hand and a pestle in his left. On his left, on belt is tied a bundle of sage, a bunch of yerba buena (mint) on his right. Behind him, not shown here, is an egg, the cure for fright and mal ojo, an a bottle of Vicks' Vapor Rub (mentolato). And, wearing it in a holster as if a weapon, a newspaper rolled into the shape of a funnel to treat earaches or remove air from your ears.

This last prop is known by many residents locally who as kids had their parents use the funnel by placing the pointed end directly in the ear canal without disturbing the interior. An adult would then light the large end of the newspaper funnel and as the paper caught fire, it would funnel some heat and warm smoke to the thin end. If successful, one would see a puff of white smoke come out of the funnel indicating that the ear was expelling whatever was bothering you and the pain would. Rodriguez's capturing of this cultural index point through ceramic sculpture give it jut the right touch of authenticity that resonates with border residents. No one has any idea why this remedio works, or why it happens, except that it seems to work and the discomfort ends.
Once you get caught in the cultural detail, pedestrian thoughts like the Santos' large bare feet sticking out from below the robe become secondary.

When we visited there Saturday for the grand opening, we met some good Brownsville people like the Anthony Kopps, Bitty Truan, Jim Mills and mate, and CAVA activist Mary Helen Flores. Gilbert Velasquez was gracious enough (as was Julian), to send us these photos.
(An added bonus when you visit the Alonso House is that you get to walk in the ancient grandeur of Brownsville's  old residential district with some historic houses which have been preserved. We didn't know, for example, that J.T Canales, the former state representative who tried to rein in the Texas Rangers and  in the Texas Legislature lived there at one time and that he had attended the University of Michigan Law School as did Jerry Ford and locally, Judge Art Nelson. Go Wolverines!)

Check out Julian's exhibit. It'll be worth your time.