Douglas Padilla bio:
Dr. Swami Lucky Dougie Padilla is a self-taught visionary artist of Norwegian/ Mexican/cowboy roots living in the wilds of Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. In his 63 years he has lived in a tent thru a sub-zero winter, farmed soybeans, survived the psychedelic travails of Haight-Ashbury, created and lost a million dollar a year business, trained with an armed underground anti-war cadre during the Vietnam war, meditated and lived with his guru in India, done thousands of drawings and paintings, and founded numerous organizations, among them Art Jones Gallery, Grupo Soap del Corazón, Salon Artisimo, and Paris Northeast. Among occupations he has counted artist and arts activist, farmer, blacksmith’s apprentice, jade cutter, sportswear designer, psychic, yoga instructor, carpenter, nurse’s aide, roofer, and census taker. He learned to sight sing Bach cantatas at age 11, lasted one embattled year in college (1967), wandered schizophrenic on the streets of Chicago, had his first heart failure at age 20, helped birth his daughter in a rural commune, and coached and played soccer until his foot didn’t work anymore (age 49). He has studied with Ronnie Nelson, Jerry Gerasimo, Swami Vishnudevananda, Swami Venkatesananda, Stephen Gaskin, Katagiri Roshi, Bhagwan Shri Rajneesh (Osho), Michael Macmacca, Robert Bly, James Hillman, Malidome Some’, and Martin’ Prectel. He sees the Cobra School, Marc Chagall, Pharoah Sanders, Federico Garcia Lorca, Howard Finster, Rahasaan Roland Kirk, Johnny Cash, Louise Nevelson, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Tom Waits and Artemio Rodriguez as pillars of his aesthetic universe. He has shown at the Museé Halle Saint Pierre in Paris, France, the Minneapolis Institute of Art, The Fredrick Weisman Museum, the Plains Museum in Fargo, countless galleries throughout the Twin Cities and the U.S.A. and currently is working on a solo exhibition for “goats in woods” to be hung this fall near Monticello, Minnesota. Padilla has served on boards and committees of numerous arts non-profits and educated and mentored artists of all ages. He has curated and organized exhibitions and art events at all levels. For this Douglas Padilla has received the Minnesota State Arts Board Fellowship, several Ofrenda awards form CreArte, Chicano Latino Cultural Center and Museum, the Jerome Foundation Travel Grant and was named one of Minneapolis’ City Pages’ “Artists of the Year”. He resides in lovely Northeast Minneapolis with his extraordinary wife and delightful extended family and is pleased to live in this world.
