Visiting Artist Lecture - Rudy Gutierrez, Illustrator

Visual & Performing Arts Center, room 144
WCSU, Westside Campus

Free & Open to the Public
Limited Seating Available

Rudy Gutierrez is an award-winning American illustrator and educator born in Bronx, NY, of Puerto Rican heritage. He has created artworks for films and performances, U.S. Postage stamps, book covers, posters, picture books, and LP / CD covers. His artwork for Santana’s hit album Shaman was used as a set design at the 2002 Super Bowl half-time show, and his paintings were commissioned for the film Chasing Trane: The John Coltrane Documentary.

In 2019, Rudy’s paintings were featured as the Curatorial Spotlight at the Mesa Contemporary Arts Museum in Mesa, Arizona. His work was shown at the Norman Rockwell Museum as part of the Unity Project Exhibition 2020, an initiative of the museum dedicated to an inclusive America. He was also included in Imprinted: Illustrating Race in 2022 and 2025 at the Delaware Art Museum. The work will also be on exhibit at the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, TN, in 2026. Imprinted explores how the printed image has both challenged and reinforced cultural stereotypes in the United States.

Rudy’s art is in many public and private collections, including those of musical icons Carlos Santana, Clive Davis, and Wayne Shorter. His awards include: Dean Cornwell Recognition Award; Distinguished Educator in the Arts Award; Society of Illustrators Gold Medal; Caldecott Honor Award; Africana Book Award; and Pura Belpre Award for his children’s books. In October 2025, Rudy was inducted into the prestigious Society of Illustrators Hall of Fame. He is a Professor Emeritus at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, NY, and has lectured at various institutions internationally.

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