Ajijic artist and cultural promoter Efren Gonzalez admits that there are many artists better than him, yet many of them are starving.
Why? “Because they don’t know how to market their work,” he says. “This is one of the gifts that Marie Bullock gave to me. Not only was she my friend and my sponsor, she was my teacher and marketer extraordinaire.”
Landing at Lakeside in 1995 from Nova Scotia, Bullock and her husband Ray were one of Gonzalez’s first clients, buying up many of his paintings, even hiring him to paint a mural in their home and decorate an entire room filled with Mexican art. Before long, the relationship blossomed into a solid friendship.
“At the beginning of the mural project, Marie was just a client,” says Gonzalez. “Then, something clicked and we developed a friendship. In time, it grew into more than a friendship because of the time she dedicated to me. She would suggest a project for me and explain how to do it.”
Sadly, Marie Bullock died in February 2016. Shortly after, a group of friends got together to discuss how they could honor her. Out of that meeting was born the Marie Dwyer Bullock Artist Scholarship Fund, which sponsors young artists. Gonzalez agreed to provide the space for weekly classes at his studio in Ajijic and help with the marketing.
“Our intent for creating the fund was to honor Marie, to find a way to keep her memory alive,” says Catherine Gonzales, a Scholarship Fund board member. “Efren was certainly instrumental in getting the whole thing to come together.”
So far, the organization has held one exhibition, in December 2016, showcasing and selling the students’ work at a private residence. The next one will take place in December.
Says Catherine Gonzales: “At that exhibition, all of the students sold out of everything. Our message to them is to work harder, paint more. These students give part of their earnings back to the fund, which fosters the idea about community and giving back.
“We look for them; they don’t come to us. I found one student, Oscar Ibarra, when he and his father were delivering a couch to our home. Somehow, we got on the subject of art and Oscar took out his cellphone and showed us his artwork. Lake Chapala Society featured his artwork on the last two covers of their yearly directory.”
Every Sunday, eight students arrive at Efren Gonzalez’s studio to paint. They attend between eight to 12 classes and all work on same theme. Afterward, they are encouraged to create their own unique pieces. Their teacher, Luis Eduardo Gonzalez, comes each week from Guadalajara to teach the four-hour class.
“Luis just retired from 25 to 30 years of teaching art at the University of Guadalajara,” says Efren Gonzalez. “He’s an amazing painter and has won national prizes.”
He continues: “I tell the students that, once the classes are over, it’s really up to them what is going to happen next. I encourage them to meet with me so that I can help generate some ideas. Our board members are also available to them.
“Once we find two to five students who are truly dedicated artists, who have the fire, we want to inspire them in their passion. We may take them to San Miguel de Allende and Mexico City, just to see art. I also encourage them to learn English, but it’s not so easy. They need to feel motivated to do that on their own.”
Carlos and Luis are two students in the program. “I meet with them, help them to develop their talents, and discuss how to price and market their art; how to get their art out into the world. All of this I learned from Marie,” says Gonzalez. “These two students have already put on shows at the Ajijic Cultural Center and invited other young artists to participate, and they did the whole process completely by themselves.
Besides being art aficionados, Marie and Ray Bullock founded Focus on Mexico, a tour group that organizes tours to Mexico for those considering retiring in Mexico.
Says Cynthia Gonzales: “Having spent over 20 years running Focus on Mexico, they were responsible for bringing many expats to Mexico. According to a Mexican study done ten years ago, they were responsible for bringing in a revenue of US$100 million into the country.”
Donna Burroughs, another Scholarship Fund board member, recalls Marie with great fondness. “She had a huge impact and the biggest heart. She was a great businesswoman. I met her on a trip with Focus on Mexico and we became fast friends. That group gave me a built-in circle of friends and resources.
“Marie had a million ideas of how to move a project forward. She was one of the most can-do people I’ve ever met. Because of her contributions, we want this fund to live as long as it possibly can.”