Manuel Acosta (1921-1989) - El Paso, Texas

The painter, sculptor and illustrator Manuel Gregorio Acosta was born in 1921, in Aldama, Chihuahua, Mexico, as son of a Mexican revolutionary. The family moved to El Paso in 1924 and lived in varios barrios. Acosta graduated from Bowie High School in 1941. After having served in the United States Air Force during World War II, he became an American citizen and decided to pursue his artistic education, during which he also attended the College of Mines and Metallurgy (now the University of Texas at El Paso). He established a home and a studio in El Paso and, amongst others, worked together with Peter Hurd, who encouraged Acosta to use his Mexican-American heritage in his work, and the people and scenes in El Paso's barrios subsequently became Acosta's primary subject matter. In the mid-1950s his talent began to be recognized and he exhibited his artworks nationwide. He was murdered in his home on October 25, 1989, by Cesar Nájera Flores, a Mexican national.

Area: Central / Clardy Fox

Source: C.L. Sonnichsen Special Collections, University of Texas at El Paso Library. Collection Name: Manuel Acosta. Photo ID: manuel acosta 01.

Uploaded by: UTEP Library Special Collections