To kick off Free State Festival 2018, Cheech Marin will talk about the history of Chicano art and his journey in, and passion for, art collecting. 

“Chicano art is American art. My goal is to bring the term ‘Chicano’ to the forefront of the art world.”

– Cheech Marin

Best known as one half of the hilariously irreverent, satirical, counter-culture, no-holds-barred duo Cheech and Chong, Cheech Marin is an actor, director, writer, musician, art collector, and humanitarian. Cheech wrote, directed, and starred in the comedy, Born In East L.A. and has acted in over 20 films. Through his popular Disney Pixar animation film roles, and as an author of children’s books such as Cheech the School Bus Driver, Cheech is also a favorite with kids and parents around the world.

In the mid-1980s, he began developing what is now arguably the finest private collection of Chicano art. Exhibitions drawn from the Cheech Marin Collection have toured more than 50 major art museums across the United States. Furthering his goal to introduce Chicano art to a wider audience, Marin has entered a partnership with the City of Riverside and Riverside Art Museum to create The Marin Center for Chicano Art, Culture, and Industry slated to open in 2020.