Jesús Moroles

Jesús Bautista Moroles (September 22, 1950 – June 15, 2015) was an American sculptor, known for his monumental abstract granite works. He lived and worked in Rockport, Texas, where his studio and workshop were based, and where all of his work was prepared and finished before being shipped out for installation. In 2008, he was awarded the National Medal of Arts. Over two thousand works by Moroles are held in public and private collections in the United States, China, Egypt, France, Italy, Japan, and Switzerland.

Career Moroles was born in Corpus Christi, Texas. He earned an associate degree from El Centro College in Dallas, Texas in 1975, and a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of North Texas in 1978. Also in 1978, he was an apprentice to sculptor Luis Jiménez. After studying for a year in Italy in 1980, he returned to Texas and began producing his trademark large-scale granite sculptures. Jesús also served for 4 years in the United States Air Force.

One of his first commissions was "Floating Mesa Fountain" for the Albuquerque Museum. In 1987, he created one of his best-known pieces, "Lapstrake," for CBS Plaza in New York City. In 1997, he created the public art piece "The Fallen Friend" for the New Mexico Veterans Memorial Park, which consists of 84 Portland cement pylons. In 2005, he installed the work Gateway Stele at Lubben Plaza in Dallas, Texas. His works are displayed in numerous museums in the United States and other countries, including the personal White House Collection, the Albuquerque Museum, the New Mexico Museum of Art, the Dallas Museum of Art, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, and the Smithsonian Institution. The work consists of four 15-foot, 10,000 pound granite columns. At the time of his death, he was leading a student internship program at the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma, where he had been artist-in-residence and primary designer for the university's Coming Together Park. Moroles's studio in Rockport will work with USAO to finish the park, and the university is planning an event honoring Moroles for September 2015.

In March 2021, the trustees of the Dallas Independent School District voted unanimously to rename its Sidney Lanier Expressive Arts Vanguard School in West Dallas for Moroles. The artist attended the school when he was young. The name change went into effect in the fall of 2021.

Works Museums where Moroles's works are displayed include the Dallas Museum of Art, Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, Museum of Contemporary Art in Osaka, Japan, as Museum of Fine Arts, Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, Museum of Fine Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico, Albuquerque Museum, the Art Museum of Southeast Texas, Beaumont, Texas, and the Smithsonian American Art Museum. Moroles' sculptures have been included in over three hundred museum and gallery exhibitions worldwide. Moroles's works include both polished and natural granite surfaces in what he described as a "harmonious coexistence." He described his works as a "discussion" of how man interacts with nature, and he wanted viewers not only to observe his sculptures but also to touch the different surfaces. In 2011, he was designated a Texas State Artist by the Texas Commission on the Arts.