'New Mexican' cartoonist among recipients of excellence in arts award

Aug. 4—Ricardo Caté, whose cartoons have offered a laugh and penetrating insight to readers of The New Mexican for 15 years, was one of seven recipients of the 2021 Governor's Awards for Excellence in the Arts.

Caté, of Santo Domingo Pueblo, joins a stellar group of artists and organizations to receive this year's award, including Edward "Gus" Foster of Taos, Susan Contreras of Santa Fe, musician and composer Dave Grusin of Santa Fe and Jemez Pueblo's Kathleen Wall.

The gallupARTS nonprofit and the Spencer Theater for the Performing Arts in Alto are recipients of a major contributor to the arts award. The awards, in their 47th year, are presented by the New Mexico Arts Commission and New Mexico Arts, a division of the Department of Cultural Affairs.

Here is more about the work and careers of this year's recipients:

Edward "Gus" Foster: Foster moved to Taos in the mid-1970s, documenting the landscapes of his new home with a panoramic camera. He later was elected to the governing board of the Harwood Museum of Art, helping raise money to build a new museum wing.

Foster donated his collection to the Harwood in 2013, with 391 works of art by more than 80 artists becoming part of its permanent collection.

Ricardo Caté: The only Native American cartoonist in a mainstream daily newspaper, Caté began drawing in the seventh grade. During his time with The New Mexican, he said he has created two main characters — the Chief and the General. Through them, he has tried to bridge the gap between cultures.

"I don't feel I should be responsible and represent all Natives because each tribe is different with its own history," he said in a news release issued by the Department of Cultural Affairs. "I think mainstream America often depicts us as one even though there were well over 1,000 tribes before the Europeans came. I base my cartoons on my knowledge of other tribes as well as my own."

Susan Contreras: Contreras, who moved to Santa Fe in 1968, is known for her masks — both those she's made and those she's collected.

"Masks reflect a desire to escape and explore, and, when painting, I can be a space traveler, a deep-sea diver, or say, a cat, a fish, a faster-than-fast greyhound, chasing a cat in space or a fish in the ocean," she said. "Sometimes when I'm painting, I feel as if the masks are painting themselves, singing their own operas, building their own sets."

Contreras also is known as a regular in supporting fundraising auctions and helping younger artists in college programs.

Dave Grusin: An internationally known composer arranger and record company executive, Grusin has worked with most of the greats, including Barbra Streisand, Steven Spielberg, Quincy Jones and many others. He has received eight Academy Award nominations and 80 Grammy Award nominations. He lives in Santa Fe but does much of his work on both coasts.

He is known for a variety of work, but his arrangements for film are well-known. He has created themes for movies including The Firm, The Fabulous Baker Boys, On Golden Pond and Tootsie.

Kathleen Wall: Her lifelong work in clay, bronze and acrylics has brought Wall a variety of accolades. She will be the featured artist for the 2021 Institute of American Indian Arts gala. She also has been named a living treasure by the Museum of American Indian Arts and Culture. He work has been seen throughout the country and at the Smithsonian Institution.

Wall also has led pottery workshops and contributed her artwork to charity through the years.

GallupARTS: The nonprofit arts council will receive a major contributor award for its many efforts to help the arts community in Gallup. It also was part of a $150,000 "Our Town" grant from the National Endowment for the Arts and works with other showcases for Native artists in the area.

Spencer Theater for the Performing Arts: Also a recipient of a major contributor award, the facility, designed by famed architect Antoine Predock, opened in 1997 and operated throughout the years with concerts, shows, plays, dance companies and children's events. The theater focuses on supporting the local arts communities in south-central New Mexico.