Findings

On Friday March 14 I had two appointments: One at Ontario Arts Council in Toronto, and the other at the Archives of Ontario, located in York University in the north of Toronto. Both appointments were connected to the work of Ricardo Gomez Campuzano. The first to find out more on how to apply for a grant to search for his paintings in Canada, the second to look for information of his life as an artist when he lived in Toronto with his family.

Myles Warren from the Ontario Arts Council was great. He gave me useful tips on how to apply and how the process works. The deadline to apply for the Chalmers Arts Fellowship Grant is June this year.

The archivists of Ontario Archives were incredibly kind and helpful, and they helped me find some information on the days of Ricardo Gomez Campuzano in Canada. I found three newspaper clippings with information, which I am posting here. In the first of them RGC offered to paint portraits of children for $150, head and shoulders for $250, and three quarters for $350. Considering this was fifty years ago, I wonder how he would announce those services today. Would he include digital copies as part of the deal? Would he take Pay Pal? Would he offer options such as installation portraits or performance-landscapes? I wonder what he would think of todays art world. I suspect though, he wouldn't bother and would continue with his oil paint landscapes and portraits, unaffected.