Mel Weiner

The mangled, distorted and contorted qualities of the boxer have always fascinated me. Back in the ‘50’s, I would watch The Friday Night Fights, usually from Madison Square Garden in New York City. The black and white feed of these fights and the classic artisans of the ‘sweet science”, Sugar Ray Robinson, Carmen Basilio, Rocky Marciano and Kid Gavilan, etched a permanent spot in my psyche.
My father introduced me to Joe Louis, the heavyweight boxing champ, outside The Hollywood Legion
(now Bally’s Gym in Hollywood) and to Lauro Salas, the Mexican boxing champ who held the lightweight title for a brief period. He lived down the street from us on Echo Park Avenue.

In a sense, the history of boxing might relate naturally to my use of mosaic glass tile as my preferred medium. Both crafts are ancient and I feel that the mosaic portrait has timeless iconic relevance.

I grew up in L.A., in Echo Park and graduated from Chouinard Art school in 1971. After art school I worked as a billboard painter for Pacific Outdoor Advertising and as a scenic artist for movies and television. Influenced by the Huichol Indians of Mexico I created a series of Beaded Baseball Cards that were produced while I was living in Taos New Mexico in the 90’s. I have been working with mosaic tile for about 10 years.

I intend to have about 12 mosaics in the show. Three large mosaics, of Carmen Basilio, Sugar Ray Robinson and Cassius Clay and smaller mosaic portraits of Roberto Duran, Jake La Motta, Mike Tyson, Manny Pacquiao and others. Also a series of ink drawings will also be shown.