Art Obscura hosting ‘Like•ness, Thirty Years of Self Portraits by Bob Diven’

Art Obscura Gallery is hosting “Like•ness, Thirty Years of Self Portraits by Bob Diven.”

The show began May 7 and continues through Sunday, June 5, at the gallery, 3206 Harrelson St. in Mesilla Park.

“This will be the first time for many of these portraits to be shown, and the first time all of them have been shown together,” Diven told the Bulletin. “They range in size from 11 by 14 inches to almost 4 feet high, in oils on canvas and panel. Two of them have been exhibited nationally, one winning a place in a national competition. The first portrait is from 1993, the most recent about two months old. They chart both my growth as an artist and as a person.

“Whenever you sit for a portrait, you inevitably learn something about yourself, if for no other reason than getting to see yourself through another’s eyes,” Diven said.

Self-portraits, he said, “are valuable as helps to self-understanding, documents of the time and as exercises in improving my skills at portraiture (after all, you are the one model you will always have at hand).

“I recall hearing Sister Wendy (of PBS fame) describe self-portraits as acts of egoism,” Diven said. “They may be that, but she missed the most essential point, at least to the artist. I think they are more about exploration and discovery.”

Diven is a long-time Las Cruces artist, actor, singer and composer. His statue of Billy the Kid is part of the “Riding Herd with Billy the Kid: The Rise of the Cattle Industry in New Mexico” exhibition currently on display at the New Mexico Farm and Ranch Heritage Museum.

Visit www.bobdiven.com.