Bare Knuckle Boxing Hall of Fame, New York, USA
2009 Official Artist Chris Guzman to Attend Opening Ceremony
Oct 14, 2009
The Bare Knuckle Boxing Hall of Fame will conduct its opening weekend October 18 through the 20th in Belfast, New York. The Bare Knuckle Boxing Hall of Fame celebrates boxing as a sport that occurred during 1889 and before, at least 40 years before the famous James Broderick, when gloves were not yet being utilized.
Alongside famous boxers Carmen Basilio, Baby Joe Mesi, and Leon Spinks, Northwest Indiana resident and Gary, Indiana art teacher Chris Guzman will attend the official ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the first annual Bare Knuckle Boxing Hall of Fame inductees.
From a Young Sketcher to the Official Artist of the Bare Knuckle Boxing Hall of Fame
Chris Guzman found the love of art at the age of three when he would play a sketching game called Gotta-Maka with his father. Heavily influenced by his own fathers drawing talents, Guzman eventually taught himself to become a portrait artist.
Guzman’s love of boxing intermingled with his innate talent of artistry. A commentator on the Bolo Punch Boxing Hour as well as a former official boxing judge, Guzman realized that he could paint portraits of boxers for autographs rather than the standard flyer or print that most celebrities are presented with. “These painting were an outlet to get noticed in an autograph crowd,” Guzman said. Little did he realize that his artwork would get recognized on such a prolific level.
Chris Guzman’s Personal Influences in Portraits and his Influence on his Students
Guzman’s initial and most prominent influence was his father, as well as Walt Disney characters and comic books. After mastering the cartoon style, and Guzman stepped into painting portraits, he needed to find a portrait style. “The style that I wanted to have with the boxing paintings was a combination of the man who started sport art as fine art, Leroy Neiman. He did the Hagler poster, he did the Rocky poster. I like to think of it as a combination of Andy Warhol and Leroy Neiman.”
Starting out in advertising agencies, Guzman decided to move into a new career as an art teacher. Beginning as a high school art teacher, Guzman heavily influenced his students by challenging them profusely, teaching them as if they were in an art studio. “He made it more real than other art teachers,” stated Evvie Tillich, a former student of Guzman and freelance graphic designer. “The only reason I didn’t go into dentistry is because Chris Guzman was my art teacher.”
After teaching high school for a short period of time, Guzman switched to a younger crowd. “I went from building portfolios with 18 year olds to gluing macaroni to popsicle sticks,” Guzman chuckled. With his elementary aged students, Guzman passes on many of the teachings that he absorbed from his father.
Chris Guzman’s Famous Paintings
The number of famous boxers who are now proud owners of Guzman paintings is impressive. Lennox Lewis, Manny Pacquiao, Lucian Bute, Paul the Punisher Williams and Andre Berto are all part of the elite group that own either full-size portraits or hand-painted gloves of themselves painted by Chris Guzman. Guzman’s portraiture skills have also led to meeting some of his ultimate boxing heroes such as George Foreman, Roberto Duran, Larry Holmes, Ron Lyle, Jerry Cooney, Pernell Whitaker and Steve Forbes.
Official Artist to the Bare Knuckle Boxing Hall of Fame
After being accepted as the official Bare Knuckle Boxing Hall of Fame Artist, Guzman began to design the ultimate artwork piece of John L. Sullivan that will ultimately hang in the museum. A photograph of Guzman in the process of painting his artwork will grace the cover of the official program, and during the memorabilia show, Guzman will have the honor of speaking and doing demonstrations. “This is the biggest honor of my art career hands down.”
AIC101
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