Manuel Bennett, an American painter, sculptor, designer, and teacher was born in Philadelphia in 1921, moved to Mexico in 1951 and now lives in Orange County, California. His training began under the tutelage of his father, a master carpenter, and continued at the High School for Music and Art in New York and under sculptor Jacob Paul Daniels. His art career was interrupted by service in the US Army from 1942-46 as a cartographer.
In 1951, the Montgomery GI Bill enabled Bennett to return to his art training at the world famous La Esmeralda School of Painting and Sculpture in Mexico City under such luminaries as the great Mexican muralists Diego Rivera and David Alfaro Siqueiros, landscapist Dr. Atl, and sculptor Francisco Zuñiga.
His long and varied career has included the invention of the pholage and contour sculpture techniques, the publication (with archaeologist Dr. Alfonso Caso) of the Bodley Codex Mixtec manuscripts, and thousands of sculptures, paintings, serigraphs, lithographs, and drawings. “Pholage” is an extension of collage: pholage consists of taking positive or negative photographic film images, cutting out sections called “masks”, and reassembling them to create a varied reproduction of the original. Additional drawings can be added to the color-separated original to further manipulate the original.
In recent years, Bennett has devoted himself to humanitarian causes through his art including donating time and work to the cities of Encinitas, CA, El Paso, TX, and Hondo and Hiroshima, Japan to symbolize international peace. He has also been involved with the American Cancer Society, UNICEF, and the American Heart Association from whom he received an award to recognize those who have dedicated themselves to cardiac health in the Latino community (the inaugural winner of which was Actress Eva Longoria). His work has also been published in a series of books for school children in the Mexican public school system.
Manuel Bennett – Pájaros
Manuel Bennett, un pintor, escultor, diseñador y maestro nació en Filadelfia en 1921, y se mudó a la Ciudad de México en 1951, y ahora vive en Orange County, California. Su entrenamiento comenzó bajo la tutela de su padre, un maestro carpintero, y continuó en la Escuela de Música y Arte en Nueva York bajo escultor Jacob Paul Daniels. Su carrera artística fue interrumpida por el servicio en el ejército de EE.UU. entre 1942-46 como cartógrafo.
En 1951, el Montgomery GI Bill permitió que Bennett regresara a su formación artística en la famosa Escuela Esmeralda de La Pintura y Escultura en la Ciudad de México estudiando con los grandes muralistas mexicanos Diego Rivera y David Alfaro Siqueiros, paisajista Dr. Atl, y escultor Francisco Zúñiga.
Su larga y variada carrera ha incluido la invención de las técnicas pholage y la técnica de crear contornos en escultura, la publicación (con arqueólogo Dr. Alfonso Caso ) de los manuscritos Bodley Codex mixtecas y muchas esculturas, pinturas, serigrafías, litografías y dibujos. “Pholage” es una extensión del collage: pholage consiste en tomar imágenes positivos o negativos de materiales fotográficos, cortando secciones denominadas “máscaras”, y después montarlos para crear una variada reproducción del original. Se pueden añadir dibujos adicionales y color para manipular aún más el original.