DG - The Last Conquistador - PBS

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Discussion Guide | The Last ConquistadorBackground InformationSeason21economy, has largely shifted across the border toJuárez, where more than 327 assembly plantsemploy more than a quarter of a million people.Mining was a key industry for centuries, and thelocal state university, the University of Texas at ElPaso, was originally founded as the College ofMines; but little of the mining industry remains.Fort Bliss, a U.S. Air Defense Center, generates $1billion for the local economy annually. Tourism hasalways been a significant industry, with El Pasoproviding a stopping point for American travelersheaded to Mexico.Sources:“History of El Paso,” General County Information,www.co.el-paso.tx.us/history/history2.htm;“QuickFacts: El Paso,” U.S. Census,http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/48/4824000.html;http://www.elpasotexas.gov/development_services/_documents/city_demographic_profile_2000.pdf.Public ArtPublic art differs from art that is displayed in agallery or a museum in that it is generally designedby an artist specifically for public display. It can bea way to spotlight local artists, encouragecommunities to come together over a sharedhistory or prompt people to question urbanenvironments in relation to artistic visions. Publicart can be funded by numerous sources, includingthrough public and private collaborations,government/taxpayer dollars, developers and otherfunding resources specifically set aside for publicart projects.Sources:http://www.nnpaf.org/what_is_art.html;http://www.pps.org/info/pub_art/art_funding;http://www.publicartfund.org/pafweb/realm/realm_index.htm.Artist John Houser creating armature for Oñate horse.Photo courtesy of The XII Travelers Committee© American Documentary, Inc.10
Discussion Guide | The Last ConquistadorBackground InformationSeason21The XII Travelers ProjectThe statue known as The Equestrian, depicting Juan de Oñate,is one component of a planned series of a dozen sculpturesintended to attract tourism and development to El Paso. Cityleaders formed the idea of a significant historic project toattract people and business to the downtown region in 1988.John Houser’s proposal, known as the XII Travelers Memorial ofthe Southwest, was selected in 1992. The project was intendedto honor the history of the region’s population, featuring thelikenesses of historic figures from the communities that cametogether to make up El Paso’s population. Among the figuresincluded were John Wesley Hardin, a 19th-century gunfighter,and Pancho Villa, the Mexican revolutionary.Two of the 12 proposed sculptures have been completed — thestatue of Juan de Oñate, titled The Equestrian was dedicated inApril 2007. Fray García de San Francisco, Founder of The Pass onthe North, 1659, finished in 1996, portrays the Catholicmissionary who established the first mission in the region andis considered the founder of El Paso and its Mexican twin city,Ciudad Juárez.According to the initial plan, the costs of the project were to besplit between public and private funds. As the scope of theproject changed, so did the sources of funding. Controversy overthe statue of Juan de Oñate and delays in completion warrantedadditional fund-raising. Altogether, The Equestrian cost morethan $2 million, with about 40 percent of the funds coming fromthe public, in the form of $713,000 granted by the El Paso CityCouncil from airport revenue funds. About $1.25 million inprivate money was donated, including $400,000 from the McKeeFoundation of El Paso, a foundation endowed by constructiontycoon Robert E. McKee and his wife, Evelyn McKee, toencourage the arts in El Paso.Currently John Houser is working on the next two statues of theXII Travelers project: Benito Juárez and Susan Maglauflin. Hehas a clay maquette of Benito Juárez in progress.Sources:“As a Sculpture Takes Shape in Mexico, Opposition Takes Shape in the U.S.,”The New York Times, January 17, 2002, www.nytimes.com/2002/01/17/arts/17MEXI.html;“XII Travelers: Memorial of the Southwest”, www.12travelers.org.Juan de Oñate statue being created.Photo courtesy of The XII Travelers Committee© American Documentary, Inc.11
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DG - The Last Conquistador - PBS

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