HENNESSEY + INGALLS BOOK SIGNING
(11/20/2021) 3:00PM - 5:00PM 
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To reserve a copy of your book
prior to event to guarantee your copy
Face covering required at entrance.
Hennessey & Ingalls Bookstore has the right to
refuse anyone not wearing a face mask.
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"HERE & NOW" ARTIST RECEPTION
TO FOLLOW AFTER BOOK SIGNING
Doors Open at 5:00PM for Artist Reception 

ARTE POVERA FOTO BOOKS & A CURATOR PRODUCTION 

Invite you to a very special book signing event for STREET WRITERS, A GUIDED TOUR OF CHICANO GRAFFITI. Italian photographer Gusmano Cesaretti and Chaz Bojórquez take you on a personal tour of Chicano Graffiti.  Capturing the zeitgeist of the 1970’s Northeast Los Angeles and East Los Angeles, Cesaretti’s collection of powerful images document the energy and raw essence of the streets, the artistic styles of Chicano graffiti and the people behind the painted walls.   The subject of many of these photos is the young street artist Bojórquez who introduces Cesaretti’s lens to a sacred street knowledge and the previously un-written Chicano graffiti language.   

Originally published in 1975, the much sought after Street Writers offers a view into a world by way of bold black and white high contrast photography that is Cesaretti’s world renown signature style.  The new limited edition is published in partnership with Gusmano Cesaretti and Chris Gutiérrez for Arte Povera Foto Books and includes previously unreleased images, a larger hard bound format and protective box cover with title design by Chaz Bojórquez 

  

 ABOUT THE PHOTOGRAPHER 

Gusmano Cesaretti was born in Fratina di Porcari, in Lucca, Italy. Student of Collegio Cavanis. His father gave him a camera for his 14th birthday. It became his instrument. Gusmano has expressed himself through a wide range of mediums over the years from photo journalism, editorial, fashion and commercial work to feature films, documentaries and conceptual art. 

“I’m interested in people, and I want to capture society in my photographs in a way that looks beyond the obvious”
–– Gusmano Cesaretti

 

ABOUT THE GRAFFITI ARTIST 

Chaz Bojórquez was first known as “Chingaso” on the streets. Today, Chaz is the Godfather of Los Angeles Graffiti Art. Chaz is the most continuous graffiti writer in the world today. He painted his iconic “Señor Suerte” skull in 1969 on a pedestrian staircase of the Pasadena Freeway where it meets the Golden State Freeway in an area known as the gateway to Northeast Los Angeles. Drawing inspiration from where he was born, raised and still lives, Chaz decorated the neighborhood’s walls and cement banks of the Los Angeles River with symbols of protection for locals and to warn all intruders.  

Chaz received formal art training at Guadalajara University of Art in Mexico, California State University Los Angeles, Chouinard Art Institute, known today as Cal Arts, and has an honorary doctorate from Art Center College of Design. Under Chinese Calligraphy Master Run Chung Chiang, Chaz developed a deep understanding for the written language. Chaz worked as a commercial artist in advertising and film before concentrating on painted canvas. 

“I put 50 years in of writing. I am an Original. We started this stuff”  
“We not only had the best book... but, it was the very first book” 
–– Chaz Bojórquez



ABOUT THE CURATOR

 

Born in East Los Angeles and raised on the tough streets of 1970’s Northeast Los Angeles. Chris Gutiérrez made the stretch along the oldest freeway in America and the first museum of Los Angeles his playground. Growing up, Chris witnessed the street art movement as it merged with LA’s Eastside music scene amid its era of violence and white flight. 
As a child, Chris was captured alongside his older brother Miguel by Photographer Gusmano Cesaretti while they observed Chaz Bojórquez painting on the cement banks of the Los Angeles River.  This photo would appear on the cover of the Cesaretti’s coveted book “Street Writers: A Guided Tour of Chicano Graffiti”. Chris will later re-unite with Gusmano in their careers in film taking photos for directors and cinematographers. Eventually, they will start their own publishing company, Arte Povera Foto Books, with an emphasis on photography books.

"Imagine how one photo can change your perspective on life and take you to greater heights”
–– Chris Gutiérrez