Naul Ojeda In 1961, artist Naul Ojeda, with little more than a nail as a tool, brought to life his first woodcut. At that time he was a student in the School of Fine Arts at the University of Uruguay, and within a year his work was shown in the "First Exhibition of Graphic Art of Latin America" in Havana, Cuba. After graduation four years later, he readied a backpack, holding little more than his carving tools, and set off to continue liberating images caught in the grain and knots of the beautiful woods he found amidst the remote villages of Latin America. Print after print came forth stamped with his particular vision of "magic realism." During his travels through Latin America, Mr. Ojeda adapted his technique to his nomadic life style and hand printing became a hallmark of his work.
In 1967 he returned to Uruguay with a wealth of experiences. He won the First Prize for Prints in his country that year and the government awarded him a trip to Europe to further expand his horizons by working in the ateliers of renowned French printmakers. After a year in France, he returned to find a climate of political agitation in Latin America that decidedly influenced his life and artistic career.
He was invited to participate in the Bienal of Graphic Art in Santiago, Chile in 1969, concurrent with Salvador Allende's rise to power. Mr. Ojeda was taken by the short-lived Chilean experiment that shattered in 1973 with the coups d'etat. The neighboring countries of Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil also came under the rule of military dictatorships. Mr. Ojeda's name appeared on the infamous "black lists" that circulated in military intelligence services, and he had the distinction of being named among the "list of foreigners presumed killed" during the military coup in Santiago.
Mr. Ojeda fled Chile and began an unforgiving pilgrimage through Latin American countries in search of a climate of liberty, and in 1974 the United States opened its doors. He arrived with the baggage of his life experiences and artistic work - 15 exhibitions in 8 countries and nostalgia for the vitality, magic and poetry of Latin America.
Mr. Ojeda became a resident of Washington, DC in the late 70s and was rediscovered by gallery owner and fellow immigrant, Franz Bader. He later received three separate fellowships from the D.C. Commission of the Arts/Visual Arts in 1981, 1987 & 1988. Twenty five years later, this immigrant, now a U.S. citizen, is recognized in the city, nationally and in the hemisphere as a visual poet who brings to life lyrical images hidden in wood, linoleum, and canvas- images that draw on, respect, and honor the immigrant experience.
Return to AILF Immigrant Achievement Awards Homepage