Rare 1935 El Machete "Trabajadores: Impidamos Desfilen Los 'Dorados'", Engraving by Luis Arenal

Luis Arenal Bastar (1909-1985) was a Mexican painter, engraver and sculptor. His murals and other monumental works are located in Mexico City and Guerrero. Luis was also one of the founding members of the Liga de Escritores y Artistas Revolucionarios, the Taller de Taller de Gráfica Popular and the Salón de la Plástica Mexicana. Luis' career began in 1930 when he started exhibiting his works in Laguna Beach, Los Angeles, Redlands and San Bernardino, then had his solo exhibition at the Plaza Art Center Gallery. In 1932, he worked with David Alfaro Siqueiros in Los Angeles on the murals at the Chouinard Art School, which included a fresco on cement called "La América Tropical." He was also a member of the Mural Block Painters, alongside Jean Abel, Jackson Pollock, Dean Cornwell and Radich. Luis returned to Mexico in 1933, where his work started taking a political form. He would become a founding member of the Liga de Escritores y Artistas Revolucionarios, where he created propaganda against war and fascims, supporting communism, and founded the group's magazine "Frente a Frente" alongside Juan de la Cabada. He also participated in Siqueiro's attack on Leon Trotsky's house in Coyoacán in 1940, which forced him to flee the United States for a bit. Luis passed away in Mexico City in 1985, leaving behind an unfinished sculpture.