Artist, printmaker, and cultural activist Juan Fuentes was born in Artesia, New Mexico to migrant farm workers. The turbulence of the 1970’s heavily influences his aesthetic proposal to create art with strong social content. The struggles for equality, peace, and justice by Chicano, African American, Middle Eastern, Asian, and Native American people are consistent themes in his work.
Mentored by Chicano artists Rupert García and Malaquías Montoya, Fuentes credits both with his development and introduction to silkscreen printing which guided his subsequent community and political poster involvement. Fuentes also acknowledges influences in his linocut and woodcut processes from the social realist tradition of Latin American printmakers.
After 10 years as Director of Mission Gráfica at Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts, Fuentes resigned and created Pájaro Editions, a press and printmaking studio. In addition, he is a founding member of Art 94124 Gallery in San Francisco and teaches printmaking at the San Francisco Art Institute.