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Naúl Ojeda (1939-2002) was a painter and printmaker in Washington, D.C.
Ojeda was born in Uruguay and studied fine arts at the University of Uruguay. The political climate of Uruguay in the 1970s led Ojeda to leave the country. He traveled to France, Chile, and Mexico before settling in Washington, D.C. While in Chile, Ojeda covered the presidency of Salvador Allende as a photojournalist. He selected fifty of the photographs of that period for his exhibition Homage to the People of Chile at the Galeria Inti Centro de Arte in Washington, D.C.
Ojeda was best known for his woodblock prints and linocuts, which he printed by hand in small editions, usually of no more than twenty-five prints. He also had some success with decorated furniture, both pieces he designed and painted, and pieces he decorated. Although his images appear whimsical, they often express themes of separation from his homeland and family. His work has been shown in numerous exhibitions throughout the United States as well as in Europe and South America including Immigrant Artists/American Experience (1985-1987) and an exhibition in 1995 honoring Franz Bader, the owner of the Franz Bader Gallery in Washington, D.C. Bader and Ojeda bonded over their shared immigrant experiences. Bader represented Ojeda for nearly 20 years and frequently held exhibitions of Ojeda's work at his gallery.
Ojeda's work is represented in private collections as well as the collections of the Smithsonian American Art Museum and the Art Museum of the Americas, in Washington, D.C., the Museum of Modern Art in New York, and the National Hispanic Cultural Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Ojeda also produced illustrations for The Washington Post Book World, Washington Review, Curbstone Press, and the Institute for Policy Studies among others.
During his career Ojeda received several awards, including the 2001 Distinguished Immigrant Award from the American Immigration Law Foundation. He was also the recipient of several grants from the D.C. Commission of the Arts and Humanities, including grants to illustrate the poems of Pablo Neruda and Federico Garcia Lorca.
Ojeda died in 2002 in Washington, D.C.
