Frank Romero in Conversation with David A. Romero

Join us as legendary Chicano painter Frank Romero (Los Four) discusses his career with his nephew, poet and publisher David A. Romero (El Martillo Press). Short documentary film screening on Frank Romero's work followed by Q&A. Listen as these two Mexican-American creatives discuss family, legacy and the role of art in the ongoing struggle for civil rights. David A. Romero will open with a couple of ekphrastic poems inspired by his uncle's paintings.

Opening reception with drinks and hors d'oeuvres to precede the event. 

Frank Romero (born July 11, 1941) is an acclaimed American painter and muralist recognized as a pioneer of the Chicano art movement. Born and raised in Boyle Heights, East Los Angeles, his prolific career spans over 60 years, defining the visual language of Mexican-American civil rights, urban car culture, and Chicano identity through vibrant, expressionist colors. In 1973, he co-established the influential Chicano art collective Los Four alongside Carlos Almaraz, Gilbert Luján, and Roberto de la Rocha. In 1974, Los Four became the first Chicano artists to exhibit at a major mainstream art institution during their landmark show at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA). In 1984, he painted the iconic, large-scale freeway mural "Going to the Olympics" on the 101 Freeway to celebrate the Olympics in Los Angeles. In 1986 he painted his most famous work, "Death of Rubén Salazar" a widely recognized masterpiece memorializing the slain Los Angeles Times journalist, which highlights police brutality during the 1970 Chicano Moratorium. His work is preserved in permanent collections at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the Whitney Museum of American Art, LACMA, and The Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art & Culture.

David A. Romero is a Mexican-American poet, novelist, and publisher from Diamond Bar, CA. He is the co-founder and editor-in-chief of El Martillo Press. Romero is the author of the novel The Enemy Sleeps (El Martillo Press, 2026) and the books of poetry My Name Is Romero (FlowerSong Press, 2020) and Diamond Bars 2 (Moon Tide Press, 2024). Romero has received honorariums from nearly a hundred colleges and universities in thirty-four different states in the USA and has also performed live in Mexico, Italy, and France. His poem, "You Were Born a Tree" was sent to the Moon by NASA in 2025 as part of the Lunar Codex. Romero's work has been published in literary magazines and anthologies in the United States, Mexico, England, Scotland, Cuba, Canada, and Hungary. Romero has opened for Latin Grammy winning bands Ozomatli and La Santa Cecilia. Romero's work has been published in anthologies alongside poets laureate Joy Harjo, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Luis J. Rodriguez, Jack Hirschman, and Tongo Eisen-Martin. Romero has won the Uptown Slam at the historic Green Mill in Chicago; the birthplace of slam poetry. Romero's poetry deals with family, identity, social justice issues, and Latine culture.

Cerritos Library

Cerritos Library is the civic library for the City of Cerritos, California, United States. It was rededicated on March 16, 2002, with the new moniker and the current futuristic design. It features an exterior clad with titanium panels. It has been an affiliate with the Smithsonian Institution since 2000.

El Martillo Press

Founded by Matt Sedillo and David A. Romero, El Martillo Press publishes writers whose pens strike the page with clear intent; words with purpose to pry apart assumed norms and to hammer away at injustice. El Martillo Press proactively publishes writers looking to pound the pavement to promote their work and the work of their fellow pressmates. El Martillo is the builder of bridges and the destroyer of walls.