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For Isaac Hernández, popular art supports identity and international recognition. It is fundamental that Folk Art continues to be cared for and that the work of these artists and future generations of Mexican artists and artisans continue to be cared for and protected. The dancer shares in an exclusive conversation with Statement before his presentation in the Sensory Experiences of the Museum of Popular Art.
What does Popular Art represent for Isaac Hernández, and what would be your favorite piece of it?
I grew up very close to Tonalá, and my parents took me there and to Tlaquepaque very often. Since I was a child, crafts were present in my house and were part of everyday life, as with Paco Padilla’s tableware. Curiously, my favorite piece I got recently on one of the trips I had the opportunity to go to Rodo Padilla’s workshop, and I brought a bird seller on a bicycle, and I have that piece here in my house. It is one of my favorite pieces of art. It is a very cheerful and striking piece. It is like the typical Rodo’s figures, grand and with a candid friendly face. It is so beautiful. Every time I go up the stairs, it transports me to Mexico when I see it.
Having started so young, what has been the most valuable lesson in pursuing your dreams?
I believe one of the hardest lessons to learn is through failure; that means that you have to learn to accept failure as a lesson and as something positive, and I think that is a lesson that is painful to live and understand, but that is essential to achieve success. I think, a lot of times we’re constantly setting ourselves up to be successful, and a lot of times you get to a level of success at a young age, and you can expect success all the time, and I think the biggest lessons of my career so far have come with failure.
And, after those failures and so many successes, what does it mean to you to have been the first Mexican recipient of the Benois de la Danse award?
When that recognition came for me, it was no longer about the award or my career. At that time, I was trying to discover what ballet meant and how much I could contribute to this profession. How far could I take my talent to serve as a tool for future generations? I think that was the beauty of receiving this award. It gave me a valuable platform in my country that encouraged me to talk about the value of Fine Arts in a person’s life; the possibilities that it can bring to the life of the person who has access to it. That is why it meant something more than being the first Mexican to achieve it. It meant being able to reach many Mexicans who did not know about my history, and that allowed them to have the possibility of knowing a little more about classical ballet. I believe that gave a lot of value to this achievement, beyond personal achievement.
We know that with programs such as Despertares and Despertares Impulsa, you have supported art and creativity in Mexico; what motivates you to do this, and how do you consider Art Programs should be encouraged in Mexico and Latin America?
It sounds a bit harsh, but for me, the first thing was to be able to dignify my existence, and it seemed important to me to be able to achieve it through a nobler purpose that went beyond my own needs. I wanted to know that all the work I had done did not end when I left the stage, nor that success meant that little bit of applause on the stage; I always looked for another meaning for success and found it in helping others. When seeking to have the opportunity to have a positive impact on people’s lives and to be able to create quality options and opportunities, which are those that have the potential to change the lives of young people, striking for it is not easy. I would love for it to be a little easier so that more people would be encouraged to prioritize it at their best as professionals. Honestly, that is one of the things that I would like to achieve in my country, that it could be easier helping people so that there are more and more Mexicans who show solidarity and give more of their time and work for a good cause.
And then, what message would you give to young people by following their dreams?
The prime thing for me so far has been to have a vocation. Since I was young, it was essential for me to know what I wanted to do; It gave me time to work and achieve it. To muster the strength to wake up every day wanting to improve and grow professionally. That spilled over into my personal life and gave me structure and discipline, the benefits of hard work, and the importance of having goals. It gave my life structure from an early age, and that has led me to achieve other things and be happy most of my life because I knew what I was looking for, what I wanted, I had a passion to which I could give my time and strength. So many times, young people leave their dreams and tastes to fit in and meet expectations that may seem more normal or safer for their future. Sometimes, we forget the importance of doing things we like and feel motivated and happy to follow our profession and feed our dreams.
I think that on a day-to-day basis, we devalue this. And I think it takes courage to support your child in a dream-like Fine Arts because the majority of society around them says that they are going to die of hunger, that they will not is going to live a decent life. My message is that you can live a decent life through art, and most important of all, is you can be handy in society through art and that there is unparalleled participation of creative and cultural communities in the future. I’m not saying this as something utopic. There is concrete data that support the growth that the creative industries generate in the economy. Future jobs are all related to creativity and how it is also beneficial to access these activities for their well-being and promote happiness. So, I think it is fundamental as a society to reposition the benefits to understand them in the best possible way and have the courage to allow our young people to fulfill their dreams.
Now that you are a parent, would you like your son to follow the same steps as you and Tamara?
I think it is hard to imagine, I see Mateo, and I cannot imagine him in a year. It is mystifying to visualize this way. I am sure that I will do everything possible to get him close to art, all the expressions of art. I want to make it possible to give him access to classical ballet, obviously, but also to music, theater, writing, painting. And that he could be close to these activities because I have experienced the benefit that this gives us first-hand. I understand that all human beings need a refuge to hide to get to know each other and learn about ourselves and our emotions. I believe that art can be this refuge that is so important for its development, and therefore I want it to be close to it. I know if someday he decides to continue as a dancer, I’m sure we’ll support him, but for now, I know I want him to be close to art.
In your presentation at the Sensory Experiences at the Popular Museum, how did the common thread of mixed race participate?
In the tradition from Classical Ballet of European cradle and how it came to our country; everywhere where classical ballet flourishes, it takes on certain representative qualities of the performers and traditions where vocabulary tells stories relevant to each of the societies that use this language.
It also fills me with emotion to present a fragment of the ballet that I recently premiered, Raymonda. I feel excited to talk about the creation of Raymonda’s ballet and present a scene from it to more or less explain the motivation behind the physicality of movement, how we transmit emotions through physicality, and how we give it intention to each of the steps to tell a story. I was glad to be able to do it in that class.
What message do you think the attendees of this event took away?
I would like to believe that a window was opened to a world that, I hope, gave them something both emotional and practical by understanding a little better, the world of the dancer. That is why it was fundamental for me to break down the barrier between the audience and the performer a little bit and to be able to invite them to see a little bit of the process that I do before they see me on stage. The way I stretch, how I warm up, and how I go over things before the moment just before I step on stage.
I opened up to their curiosities and questions about what it means to be a professional dancer. What day-to-day is like, and how every decision and almost every thought you have at the moment you’re performing affects the story you’re telling and how you can take the audience to different emotional places through musicality and choreography.
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Alejandro Olvera.