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Victoria Montesinos is the only daughter of the
well-known Mexican movie director, Fernando
A. Rivero, and Maty Humana. When barely
three years old, Victoria was sent to live with
her grandparents. In Victoria's own words: "My
grandmother was of the old school. Her
philosophy was that children should be
disciplined, seen and not heard, only speak
when spoken to and to sit absolutely quiet
when in the company of adults.
With her parents constantly traveling, Victoria's
childhood was spent with her grandmother in
a large house in the Juarez neighborhood. She
recalls, "I became accustomed to enjoying my
own world. I took advantage of my isolation
to draw. Drawing was an escape from my
problems and it was highly rewarding for me."
Victoria did not find many incentives at school
where nothing responded to her desire to paint.
However, her father valued and recognized
her artistic talent. The opportunity to paint
was provided by a friend of her father's, Jose
Bardasano, the great Spanish painter who had
arrived in Mexico as a refugee from the Spanish
Civil War. She studied with Bardasano for five
years. Victoria recalls, "I spent two years with
a pencil in my hand doing school work.
Bardasano's high demands did not bother me
because when I drew, I disconnected myself
from everything and it was a delight.
Since childhood, she has been uninterested in
conventional life, and have felt that there must
be a higher reason for the way things are. "I
thought life was boring until I understood that
giving life more meaning depended on me." At
that time, Victoria chose a difficult path; she
decided to paint with total integrity: without
submitting herself to the judgment of the market
or a particular style, or to the expectations of
others.
In 1983, Victoria moved to New York to
concentrate on her fine art, and after a
successful stint, she decided to return to Mexico
where working ardently in her homeland she
developed an outstanding new style.
In the mid-1990's, Victoria returned to New York
with the intentions of painting flowers. "I decided
to make flowers my only focus of attention," said
Montesinos from her Manhattan studio. "I really
wanted to explore and go inside their world,
find all the textures, layers and passages of just
one flower. They are all small universes. I feel
captured by their beauty. Flowers are an
incredible way for nature to show the infinity of
existing colors." Montesinos executed her idea
brilliantly through her magnificent brush, great
skill, and abundant creative passion.
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