The Legendary Art of Jesus Helguera

Growing up in East L.A. meant the New Year started with a calendar from the menudo stand in Grand Central Market or the panaderia on Brooklyn Avenue. On that calendar would be an image created by Jesus Helguera which would hold my attention for the whole year. The calendars were my first glimpses into the greatness of my Mexican culture. They portrayed beautiful men and women of ancient Mexico. With warriors, princesses, pyramids and temples, the calendar pictures took me to a time when we were not foreigners in our own land. They told me I was special.



Helguera was not counted during his lifetime as one of the masters of Mexican art, like Rivera, Tamayo or Siqueiros. His images were not on walls and canvases but on calendars and cigar boxes found in most Mexican homes. He was the most populist of all Mexican artists and created a movement of national pride. He was born in Mexico in 1910 but left as a small child to live in Spain during the Mexican revolution. He returned to Mexico during the Spanish revolution in the 1930’s. His wife Julia was his favorite model whom he painted sexy, proud, vulnerable and spiritual.

These calendar images were a point of pride for those of us growing up in the 1950’s and 60’s. This was in stark contrast to the parodies of the Frito Bandito and Speedy Gonzales. I still have the picture of “Amor Indio” that I cut out as a child. The Aztec girl in the picture looked like me. She was a guera. Helguera painted us as the cultural rainbow that we represent as Mexicans. His most famous image is the “Leyenda de Los Volcanes” inspired by the legend of Popocatepetl and Iztaccihuatl. To enjoy more of his beautiful work, I would recommend the book “Mexican Calendar Girls” by Angela Villalba.