As a child, Adrian Aguirre gravitated toward art. A natural-born creator, Aguirre fostered that talent as a student at New Mexico State University and now has spent a decade sharing his expertise as a program manager for NMSU’s Innovative Media Research and Extension.
As studio manager, Aguirre art directs and oversees the production of all games, interactive and animations created by the NMSU Innovative Media multimedia team. In addition to his work as a digital media artist, he also makes traditional works of art in oil and charcoal. For his extraordinary achievements as a visual artist, Aguirre is a 2026 Governor’s Awards for Excellence in the Arts recipient.
“It’s something I’ve felt since childhood. A desire to create images, to draw and paint. I almost can’t help myself,” Aguirre said. “As I got older and had the chance to visit museums, I fell in love with what you could accomplish formally with traditional media, with painting and drawing. I remember visiting the Siqueiros mural in Chapultepec, Mexico, and being floored by the emotional impact. How it hit you from a distance and then, up close, revealed the fragmentation of brushstrokes and the artist’s hand. It amazes me that even in this digital age, with computer-generated imagery and artificial intelligence-generated images everywhere, we still appreciate an oil painting or a graphite drawing.”
A local reception to honor Aguirre will be held from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 25, at The Mad Hatter Gallery, 221 N. Main St. in Las Cruces.
Aguirre and the entire 2026 cohort will be recognized Oct. 15 in Santa Fe. The day will include an opening reception from 2 to 3:30 p.m. in the Governor’s Gallery on the fourth floor of the State Capitol, official awards ceremony from 5 to 6:30 p.m. at the New Mexico Museum of Art’s historic St. Francis Auditorium and reception from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the Museum of Art courtyard. The events, which are presented by the New Mexico Arts and the New Mexico Arts Commission, are free and open to the community and do not require tickets or advance registration.
Even though Aguirre was aware of the nomination for the Governor’s Arts Awards, he was surprised to receive the recognition.
“It’s encouraging to know that the work I do as an artist is valued, and humbling to be named alongside the remarkable artists honored this year and in years past,” he said.
A Mexican-American artist who creates in both oil and charcoal, Aguirre’s work focuses on the politics of immigration and the people caught in the middle. Drawing on his personal experience of crossing the bridge between the El Paso, Texas and Juaréz, Mexico border to attend school, Aguirre uses his perspective on borders and immigration to capture portraiture and representations of life as an immigrant or refugee.
“I love oil paint, its color vibrancy and translucence. You can paint wet-on-wet or glaze over a dry layer. I love the depth of sections of opacity, working with translucent layers and areas where the underpainting comes through. The versatility in the materiality of painting is something I nerd out about often,” Aguirre said. “I also love dry media: charcoal, pastel, graphite, colored pencil. The immediacy of a stick of charcoal, the ability to make both soft marks and hard lines based on how you physically handle it, is so interesting. Really, I like any medium that’s forgiving, direct, expressive and capable of representational illusion.”
Aguirre has participated in many solo and group art shows. His most recent solo show was “Caballos de fuerza” at the Strata Gallery in Santa Fe in 2023. Aguirre’s next group exhibition will be Nov. 6 at the Las Cruces Art Museum for “Declaración/Declaration.” Additionally, he is currently working on a large-scale mural in El Paso with Annunciation House.
As a lifelong artist, Aguirre honed his craft at NMSU while pursuing his bachelor’s degree in fine arts and credits his professors for the impact they’ve had on his personal journey.
“The university is an incredible community, dedicated to helping students succeed,” he said. “My professors were instrumental in my decision to pursue an MFA in painting, and their encouragement and support continued for years after graduation.”
Now as a NMSU staff member for the last 10 years, Aguirre is happy to share his knowledge with students in support of their dreams.
“I’m fortunate to work with top researchers and experts from NMSU and other universities across the country,” he said. “It’s also given me the opportunity to mentor students and teach — there’s something really meaningful about being on the other side of that cycle now, offering students the same kind of guidance and encouragement that shaped me when I was in their position.”
To view Aguirre’s work, visit adrianaguirre.com.
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CUTLINE: Adrian Aguirre, a program manager for New Mexico State University’s Innovative Media Research and Extension, is a 2026 Governor’s Awards for Excellence in the Arts recipient. He will be honored with a reception in Las Cruces Sept. 25 and at the awards ceremony in Santa Fe Oct. 15. (Photo by Gustavo Martínez Contreras)