Lou Maestas...
2/10/39 - 4/20/17

"So long" to our old friend and mentor, Lou Maestas, a highly-regarded and very successful fine artist and master of the oil rub-out method. He also enjoyed a rewarding career teaching art to many aspiring students, some who have established their own successfull art careers. Poor health and a thriving art community brought him to Tubac where climate was beneficial to his well-being.

Maestas grew up among Indian friends in Seligman, Arizona and was inspired by the Native American model for his painting. He resurrected the ages-old oil-rub-out, traditionally used as an under painting with a single paint color, usually of a dark hue such as burnt umber. Using rags folded in different ways, as well as anything that might leave a unique mark on the canvas, this method establishes the vitally important values of a painting. After the darkest values are applied, paint is thoughtfully removed to delineate the mid-tones and lighter values. Traditional brushes are used sparingly and the whole painting can be accomplished with an economy of tools and materials. The simplicity of this method allows the painter to focus on line, shape and values and is often, but not always, followed by the application of color. Lou's teaching style also included discussions in philosophy, the arts, and creativity. He was influenced, among others, by Robert Henri, an American painter and teacher of the Ashcan School of American Art.

Lou's teaching experience included owning and operating Art Masters Academy in Albuquerque, New Mexico from 1986 - 97 with 17 teachers offering a full curriculum in Fine Arts. Previously, he taught art full-time at Clarke County Community College, Las Vegas, Nevada from 1975 - 82. Starting as a advertising layout artist in 1958, he became a newspaper editor, and eventually opened Lou Maestas Advertising Agency in Las Vegas.

Maestas officially opened the Tubac Academy of Art, at El Presidito in June, 2016 with lessons designed to help students succeed in drawing and painting. His goal, to create a thriving creative environment allowing area artists and art educators, to provide classes in their varied mediums, wll be continued by his friends and students. His unique prescence will be sorely missed.