Collection Conversations: Cruz Ortiz and the Modern Portrait presents a selection of the San Antonio-based artist Cruz Ortiz’s paintings displayed alongside some of the McNay’s most treasured modern portraits. Cruz Ortiz (American, b. 1972) was drawn initially to easel painting as a form of documentation rooted in art history. Inspired by nineteenth-century French modernism, punk rock aesthetics, and the Chicano experience in Texas, Ortiz brings a local, contemporary perspective to portraiture. He considers art museums an important influence, recalling visits to the McNay and other institutions to view works by artists like Rivera, Alice Neel, and Pablo Picasso. Although he considers himself an interdisciplinary artist, painted portraits are now a primary focus for Ortiz, as they allow him to tell present-day stories through a medium that connects him to the past. Collection Conversations: Cruz Ortiz and the Modern Portrait encourages visitors to reconsider portraiture and its evolution.