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Oscar Alvarado Biography
I am a mosaic tile artist and concrete sculptor. I have created art, evolving from found-object electric assemblage sculptures in the late 1980’s to large-scale sculptures covered with thousands of mosaic pieces of tile and glass now in the 2020’s. I have designed and constructed murals, sculptures, benches, bollards, and enhanced the surfaces of columns, walls and floors with mosaics in my signature Gaudi-inspired style.
I am a 9th generation Texan based in San Antonio, Texas. After graduating from UTSA in 1985, I moved to Los Angeles and succeeded in the computer business. Since 1989, when I left the corporate world, I have been self employed and involved in the arts. I am one of the founders of First Friday Art Walk in San Antonio (1994) and have continued to be active in the arts community with a home and studio in the Southtown area of San Antonio.
I have over 30 public art pieces in San Antonio, and I also have created other public art in Texas including: Fort Worth, Corpus Christi, and Plano, cumulatively valued at over a million and a half dollars and weighing over eighty tons. Each of the many public art installations that I have created were designed specifically for the site with form, function, and imagery that is related to the surrounding built environment with historic and cultural influences reflected in the design. In addition, my work has been installed in homes in several states across the USA.
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Artist Statement of Work
Tell us about your work (style, approach, philosophy, subject and/or theme):
I have created art, evolving from found-object electric assemblage sculptures in the late eighties to large-scale sculptures covered with thousands of mosaic pieces of tile and glass now. I have designed and constructed murals, sculptures, benches, bollards, and enhanced the surfaces of columns, walls and floors with mosaics in my signature Gaudi-inspired style. Each of the many public art installations that I have created were designed specifically for the site with form, function and imagery that is related to the surrounding built environment with historic and cultural influences reflected in the design.
I use steel and concrete to create the base of my pieces and cover it mostly in mosaic glass and tile. Mosaics can be in mural form to tell a story or mosaics can be decorative as they cover, arches, floors, and walls. I use mosaics to complete concrete sculptures and benches, on bas relief and on bollards.
As a seasoned public artist, I produce quality public art that satisfies the goals for each installation and I have also achieved the additional goal of creating a sense of place with much of my site specific public installations. Artistic enhancement of public spaces creates a beautiful, unique, and more memorable city and I am committed to the “thousand year solution” of making art that is built to last.
