It was just like any other day
Artist Antonio Lechuga is a runner. He loves to run in the heat. That was what he was doing in July 2022 when he was shot two times in the stomach, a victim of random gun violence.
After multiple surgeries and months of convalescence, Lechuga still wrestles with the effects of the shooting. But he's not playing the victim; he is fighting back for what was taken away from him.
Lechuga's story is spotlighted in the latest episode of KERA Arts Docs.
I wanted to get it back
On the first anniversary of the shooting, Lechuga returned to the Santa Fe Trail to the exact spot he was shot, at the exact time he was shot. He just stood there wanting to get that time back.
"It took so much away from me just physically, emotionally and mentally, and I wanted it back," he says.
Lechuga was a painter for 10 years before he began using blankets to create sculptural works. In response to the immigration issues at the border, Lechuga used soft blankets, or "cobijas" in Spanish, to cover lattices to form soft, welcoming border-like structures. The exhibition was called “Fences.” Although blankets are an everyday utilitarian object, Lechuga sees them as intimate and providing security and comfort.
It was the last thing I saw
After the shooting, Lechuga learned how to use a sewing machine. He now "paints" large-scale collages using the colorful and elaborately designed cobijas as pigments. Using a hot knife tool, he cuts the thick textiles and draws out the shapes he wants - deconstructing the individual blanket to meld into larger new reconstructed works.
One of the first pieces he made using this process was a picture of where he was shot. He wanted to paint the scene. Paint the last thing he remembered. Get across what he experienced. He never imagined that the work would be acquired by the Dallas Museum of Art.
When Lechuga returned to his studio from the hospital, everything was as he had left it the day he left for that July run. It was like everything was waiting for him to pick it up and start again - which he has. He even picked up running again.
At the end of the day, said Lechuga, as an artist, you want to be proud of what you create and be happy.
Read more on this story from KERA Arts Reporter Marcheta Fornoff.
Arts Docs is a bi-weekly documentary series from KERA featuring artists at work.
