Artist Dialogue: Esteban Ismael Durán

Artist Dialogue: Esteban Ismael Durán A Dialogue on Memory and Ancestral Knowledge between Artist Esteban Ismael Durán and Curator hazel batrezchavez Sunday, December 6, 2026 12:30 – 1:30 pm NHCC | Wells Fargo Auditorium Join NHCC Curator hazel batrezchavez for a dedicated series of one-on-one conversations in connection with our Community Gallery exhibition i thought i saw you yesterday. Each dialogue functions as an individual chapter, unpacking a single artist’s material practice, ancestral ties, and creative process. This dialogue with artist Esteban Ismael Durán examines the relationship between place, material, and memory. i thought i saw you yesterday is a group exhibition that explores memory and ancestral knowledge to create a dialogue between life cycles, food, land, place, and the body. Featuring artworks by artists Amanda Dannáe Romero, ashleigh steele chavez, Caroline Liu, claudia hermano, Esteban Ismael Durán, Jesus Miguel Avena, Joe Ramiro Garcia, Margarita Paz-Pedro, and Stephanie J. Woods. Free Community Event, please register in advance using the link below. PLEASE MAKE YOUR RESERVATION HERE! About the artist: Esteban Ismael Durán, a self-taught artist, was born in 1955 and grew up in Albuquerque’s historic Old Town. His roots in that traditional community have always been important to him and helped him to shape his work. As a young man, he began his formal studies with artist Frank McCulloch. In 1993 he started incorporating traditional New Mexican tinwork into his paintings, studying this discipline with tinsmith Ted Arellanes. Esteban’s local work has included public art for the City of Albuquerque and Bernalillo County. He, along with his cousin PAZ, had the lead role in the 1995 creation of a series of tile murals along Fourth Street in Barelas, mentoring local youth to help design the murals based on Barelas’ history. Esteban began to work with recycled materials as he ventured into combining traditional tinwork with more contemporary media. For the past ten years, he has built the unique ability to blend contemporary and traditional media/design and the use of recycled materials. Artist Dialogue: Esteban Ismael Durán | New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs