​César Martínez was born in Laredo, Texas. Martínez is primarily known for his Bato series of paintings of pachucos and rucas.  He also paints abstracted landscapes that incorporate Aztec imagery and history, and creates constructions made of found wood.  He was a major figure in the Chicano art movement of the late 1970s and 1980s.  He is based in San Antonio, where he makes portraits that have become icons of Texas art history.  Martínez’s work has been in- cluded in the landmark exhibits La Frontera / The Border: Art about the Mexican-US Border Experience; CARA—Chicano Art: Resistance and Affirmation, 1965–1985; and Hispanic Art in the United States.  He has also shown at the Mexican Fine Arts Center Museum, Chicago; Museo de Arte Moderno, Mexico City; the McNay Museum and the San Antonio Museum of Art in San Antonio; and the Contemporary Arts Museum, Houston.  In 2017, he received the Distinction in the Arts Award from the City of San Antonio Arts Commission.