About the Artist

Francisco Corzas was regarded as a painter of Mexican Expressionism.  Much of his work involved the human figure and depicted an understanding of human values.  His paintings are valued for their expressiveness and drama as well as his expert technique.  His use of color and light emphasized the visual effects of the whole.

Stylistically, Corzas’ early work can leave the viewer with a sense of angst that might reflect his actual living conditions of hunger and deprivation. In the 1960’s, he was active in the Nueva Presencia and Los Interioristas movements, which defended humanistic values in art. His inclusion of clown figures in his work may reflect a sense of alienation of modern society as it has with other artists.

 Corzas’ later work borrowed a sense of mystery and drama from the baroque, but remained modern in content.

 When Corzas was 15, he studied at Escuela de Pintura y Escultura La Esmeralda in Mexico City, staying for four years.  From 1956-1959, he was a student in Rome at the Accademia di San Giacomo where he studied fresco, and at the Accademia de Belle Arti e Liceo Artistico, where he worked with nude studies.  He traveled throughout Europe and worked for a short time at a lithographic studio in New York City before returning to Mexico.