Octavio Medellín (1907-1999) was an influential Mexican American artist and teacher whose work helped shape the Texas art scene for seven decades. The DMA is proud to present Octavio Medellín: Spirit and Form, the first-ever museum retrospective for the noted sculptor. The exhibition includes approximately 80 works, exploring the evolution of Medellín’s sculptural practice, his public art commissions, and his legacy as a beloved and respected teacher. During the more than 40 years he lived and worked in the Dallas area, Medellín influenced generations of students as an instructor at the school of the Dallas Museum of Fine Arts and as founder of the Creative Arts Center.
Click here to read the full press release.
Focus Installation
Admission is FREE.
MEDELLÍN AROUND THE METROPLEX
Explore an interactive map highlighting the life and work of artist Octavio Medellín, inspired by the exhibition Octavio Medellín: Spirit and Form. Discover the sites in North Texas that played a role in his career, and dive deeper into the history behind each work! EXPLORE
Octavio Medellín: Spirit and Form is organized by the Dallas Museum of Art. Support for this exhibition comes from The Jorge Baldor Curatorial Fund for Latin American Art. Exhibition catalogue support is provided by the Texas Art Collectors Organization (TACO). The Dallas Museum of Art is supported, in part, by the generosity of DMA Members and donors, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Texas Commission on the Arts, and the citizens of Dallas through the City of Dallas Office of Arts and Culture.
Images: Octavio Medellín: Spirit and Form, February 6, 2022 to January 25, 2023, installation image, courtesy of Dallas Museum of Art; Octavio Medellín. Courtesy of Bywaters Special Collections, Hamon Arts Library, Southern Methodist University. Photographer: Jay Simmons; The Spirit of Revolution, 1932. Octavio Medellín. Direct carving in Texas limestone. Lent by the Estate of the Artist; The Hanged, 1939. Octavio Medellín. Direct carving in black walnut. Dallas Museum of Art, Kiest Memorial Purchase Prize, Fourteenth Annual Dallas Allied Arts Exhibition, 1943, 1943.9; Print 5 from XTOL: Dance of the Ancient Mayan People, 1947. Octavio Medellín. Linoleum block print. Dallas Museum of Art, anonymous gift, 2021.31.1-13; Bowl, about 1949. Octavio Medellín. Stoneware with azurmalachite glaze, Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas Art Association Purchase, 1949.37; Moses, 1955. Octavio Medellín. Direct carving in black walnut with lead fills. Lent by the Estate of the Artist.