109 HRES 978 IH: Expressing profound sorrow upon the death U.S. House of Representatives 2006-07-28 text/xml EN Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.

IV 109th CONGRESS 2d Session H. RES. 978 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES July 28, 2006 Mr. Reyes (for himself, Mr. Gonzalez, Mr. Pearce, Mr. Hinojosa, and Mr. Ortiz) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Government Reform RESOLUTION Expressing profound sorrow upon the death of Luis Jimenez and recognizing his distinguished career and great contributions to American art.

Whereas Luis Jimenez' Jr. was born on July 30, 1940 in El Paso, Texas and grew up in the border city’s Segundo Barrio ward; Whereas Luis Jimenez, Jr. was the son of Luis Jimenez, Sr., who crossed into the United States from Mexico in 1924 at the age of 9 and rose to become the owner of an El Paso sign shop and eventually received national recognition for his spectacular neon sign creations, which the son described as individual works of great imagination; Whereas Luis Jimenez, Jr. attended Texas Western College (now the University of Texas at El Paso) from 1958 to 1959, received a Bachelor of Science degree in art and architecture from the University of Texas at Austin, studied at Ciudad Universitaria in Mexico City, and assisted abstract expressionist sculptor Seymour Lipton in New York; Whereas reflecting on his experiences in Mexico City, Luis Jimenez, Jr. said, I learned that although I am of Mexican descent, my thinking formed on this side of the border.; Whereas Luis Jimenez, Jr. revolutionized the art world by creating monumental fiberglass sculptures that drew on a broad understanding of the American experience at a time when other sculptors chose not to connect with their audience through narrative content; Whereas Luis Jimenez, Jr. elevated the medium of pop art, establishing the form as a vehicle for expressing powerful social and political meaning; Whereas in his art, Luis Jimenez, Jr. proved adept at blending past and present, articulating a connection between the men and women who have previously contributed to the building of the country, the prosperity of contemporary America, and those who continue to contribute today; Whereas Luis Jimenez, Jr. was committed to the notion of art as a public gesture and determined that his works speak to a broad population and have meaning in a direct, popular way; Whereas Luis Jimenez, Jr. provided singular, essential representation of the Latino experience in America, the saga of migration and border life, and the mystique of the Southwest United States; Whereas Luis Jimenez died on June 13, 2006 in a tragic accident while working on one of the monumental fiberglass sculptures of mustangs commissioned for the Denver airport, in his Hondo, New Mexico studio; Whereas Luis Jimenez is widely acknowledged as being among the most influential and important American artists, literally changing the face of contemporary art, and his works are highly sought after by appreciators and collectors of fine art and his sculptures grace public areas in El Paso, Pittsburgh, Oklahoma City, Houston, Albuquerque, Fargo, and Washington, D.C.; and Whereas the Smithsonian American Art Museum displays the monumental Luis Jimenez, Jr. statue Vaquero next to its front entrance, along with holding several of his drawings, lithographs, and smaller statues: Now, therefore, be it

That the United States House of Representatives expresses profound sorrow at the untimely death of Luis Jimenez and recognizes his distinguished career and great contributions to American art.