I am a painter who creates artworks that reference photographs of my local surroundings. I compile snapshots to create a journal/documentation of the environment around me and how people interact within it. Though my paintings are formal by nature the applications of the painting process command both representational and abstract qualities. I insert design elements whose color is inspired by artwork that I have grown up with in my neighborhood (i.e., grandmother’s blankets, murals, storefronts and hand painted signs). I paint because it helps me tell stories of my family and culture that I can’t express in words. My work communicates a moment in time, it is important that its main source is a candid photo whose qualities contain emotions of everyday life. When I paint, I think about my response to the image and how the colors around it affect the image. I am inspired by Joan Mitchell for boldness of paint application and Jesse Trevino because his intimate connection to the image as symbol. Unlike Mitchell my images are based on photograph and different from Trevino my paintings are based on current events in my locale as stimulus.
Banderas No. 3, 2021, 2.5 minutes, loop