Meet José Luis Aun, poster artist for the City of Laredo 's 250th celebration

By María Eugenia Guerra

“Poster art isn't easy. It is difficult to bring many elements together at once, to make one statement. The 250th celebration poster contest was one that I could truly feel proud to win, because it was judged as to whether it really represented the City of Laredo's 250th anniversary, not just whether the individual judges liked it,” said artist José Luis Aun, whose poster art appears on all official 250th anniversary promotions sponsored by the City of Laredo.

“I wasn't overly confident, but I had a feeling I had gotten the concept right, that what I had made represented the celebration of a city of two cultures, a city whose history is shared with another country,” Aun said. “It took me about two days to complete a design I thought would work.”

Work it does. Aun's Una ciudad, dos naciones, muchos colores captures the eye to tell the short version of this city's 250-year history. There's an all ecompassing tightness to the telling in a very colorful, very literal way.

“I feel very proud to be part of the celebration,” Aun said. “It's very cool, and it is an honor. I was happy to get the call. You never expect to win, and so it's always exciting to hear. Even though you know you created a good piece, the judges could have picked any one of the other 45 submissions. Finishing a piece I know is good, however, is better than winning. I try to make every new work a challenge, to do something I haven't done.”

The 23-year-old Laredo artist said the attention takes “a little getting used to. It feels good to know that your art has drawn this much attention, that your work has brought you to a place of honor and respect,” he said.

“When I am painting, I feel free, a freedom that opens the soul and lets it speak. That's the process I enjoy, the painting. The creative process is what interests me the most, more than winning a contest or selling a piece of art. That is secondary,” said Aun, adding that he would like to pursue graphic arts and become an illustrator.

Aun is one of seven children. “None of my siblings paint,” he said, adding that his parents had been the most encouraging influence in his development as an artist. “They were supportive from the time I was very young. They made sure I had everything I needed to draw or paint,” he said. “I had teachers, too, who encouraged me all along the way.”

Aun, the gallery coordinator for the Laredo Art League, prepares for the League's shows and hangs exhibits at the Laredo Center for the Arts. “Laredo artists need more venues for shows, more galleries, more coffee shops and restaurants and public spaces willing to have art on their walls,” he said. Aun will have a one-man show at the Laredo Center for the Arts in May.

His favorite artist? Vermeer.