Paula Lazos (June 30, 1940 – January 27, 2010) was a Mexican painter whose work has been exhibited in both North and South America and recognized with membership in the Salón de la Plástica Mexicana.

Life

Lazos was born in Cuernavaca, where she remained based for her life and career. In 1954, she graduated a program for art teachers at the

Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos The Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos (Autonomous University of the State of Morelos, UAEM) is a university in Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico. It is the largest institution of higher education in Morelos, with facilities statewide. Histo ...

. From 1958 to 1959, she took classes in modern dance with Luis Alonso. For a time, she was undecided between a career in painting or in dance. In 1963, she met painter Dr Atl at the Instituto Regional de Bellas Artes, proposing with him the idea of creating a socialist science center in the town of Tepoztlán. While she had Atl’s support, and was named secretary of the institution, Atl fell ill and died in 1964, and the project withered. In 1965 she married painter Rafael Mazón at the

Cuernavaca Cathedral The Cuernavaca Cathedral ( es, Catedral de la Asunción de María) is the Roman Catholic church architecture, church of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Cuernavaca, Diocese of Cuernavaca, located in the city of Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico. The church ...

. Living on Chulavista Street in the city, the couple had one child named Tláloc Rafael. In 1985, she donated a work to PROMOVOR to raise money for the victims of the

1985 Mexico City earthquake The 1985 Mexico City earthquake struck in the early morning of 19 September at 07:17:50 (CST) with a moment magnitude of 8.0 and a maximal Mercalli intensity of IX (''Violent''). The event caused serious damage to the Greater Mexico City area a ...

. In the early 1990s, she and her family were invited to meet writer

Andrés Henestrosa Andrés Henestrosa Morales (November 25, 1906 – January 10, 2008) was a Mexican writer and politician. In addition to his prose and poetry, Henestrosa was elected to the federal legislature, serving three terms in the Chamber of Deputies, ...

, then in San Francisco Ixhuatlán,

Oaxaca Oaxaca ( , also , , from nci, Huāxyacac ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Oaxaca ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Oaxaca), is one of the 32 states that compose the political divisions of Mexico, Federative Entities of Mexico. It is ...

, where an exhibition of the artist’s work was on display at the Martina Henestrosa Library, which the writer had built in honor of his mother. Lazos died in Cuernavaca in 2010.

Career

In 1957 she became a founding member of the Instituto Regional de Bellas Artes of Cuernavaca (IRBAC), which supported her work throughout her career. Starting in 1965, she gave classes in painting and origami to children at the institution. Her teaching career extended into kindergarten for much of her career, and from 1975, at the Dirección General de Capacitación y Mejoramiento Profesional del Magisterior, Centro Regional No. 16. Lazo’s first individual exhibition was at the Trini Gallery in Cuernavaca in 1960. Since then, her work has been exhibited in Mexico, the United States and into South America. Many of her individual exhibitions were in Mexico in venues such as Trini Gallery, Galería 5, Calmecac Gallery, the Salón de la Plástica Morelense, the

Palacio de Cortés Palacio (''palace'') is a Spanish habitational name. It may have originated from many places in Spain, especially in Galicia and Asturies. Notable people with the surname include: * Agustina Palacio de Libarona (1825-1880), Argentine writer, sto ...

, the Van Gelder Art Gallery, the Instituto Municipal de Bellas Artes in Cuautla and others. In 1975, a national exhibition of her work was sponsored by the Unión Feminina de Escritoras y Locutoras of Mexico City, for the International Year of the Woman. In 1968, the Museum of the

University of Memphis } The University of Memphis (UofM) is a public university, public research university in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1912, the university has an enrollment of more than 22,000 students. The university maintains the Herff College of Engineering ...

acquired two of her works, which opened the US market to her. Lazo’s first recognition was an honorific mention at the V Salón de Pintura at the

National Autonomous University of Mexico The National Autonomous University of Mexico ( es, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, UNAM) is a public research university in Mexico. It is consistently ranked as one of the best universities in Latin America, where it's also the bigges ...

. Later in her life, she received the Quetzalcoatl Prize from a panel that included the news agency Vibraciones de la Ciudad and the Pinacoteca del Reclusorio Oriente. She donated two works to the latter institution. She was also induced into the Salón de la Plástica Mexicana where she remained active until her death in 2010.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lazos, Paula 1940 births 2010 deaths Mexican women painters Artists from Morelos People from Cuernavaca 20th-century Mexican painters 21st-century Mexican painters 20th-century Mexican women artists 21st-century Mexican women artists