Artist Statement
I am a cultural worker in the genre of socially engaged practice art. Socially engaged practice art is an art form that combines creative practice with community social justice work. The core of my practice is my training as a painter, which I utilize to create gallery work, community murals, digital imagery, and installation works. This work includes creating public art projects, mentoring underserved youth, studio art practice, and art activism.
My work is an exploration of personal identity in the context of broader Latinx/Chicanx narratives. The work touches on ideas of displacement, migration, exclusion, ancestor work, and language. My work draws from my personal family history and experience mentoring migrant young people who have experienced incarceration. My work aims to present a broader view of what it is to be American, Latinx, and male-identified and to offer commentary on issues of multiculturalism, assimilation, white supremacy/racism, and sexism. The themes I explore in my work include belonging, community healing, and counternarrative.
I believe in abolishing systems of oppression such as systemic racism, the prison-industrial complex, environmental injustice, systemic poverty, racialized capitalism, and settler colonialism of indigenous land. I believe the way forward is through creating sustainable systems, restorative justice, and community support networks. My practice weaves together studio practice, mentoring under-resourced youth, creating public art projects, and direct action art activism.
My work is an exploration of personal identity in the context of broader Latinx/Chicanx narratives. The work touches on ideas of displacement, migration, exclusion, ancestor work, and language. My work draws from my personal family history and experience mentoring migrant young people who have experienced incarceration. My work aims to present a broader view of what it is to be American, Latinx, and male-identified and to offer commentary on issues of multiculturalism, assimilation, white supremacy/racism, and sexism. The themes I explore in my work include belonging, community healing, and counternarrative.
I believe in abolishing systems of oppression such as systemic racism, the prison-industrial complex, environmental injustice, systemic poverty, racialized capitalism, and settler colonialism of indigenous land. I believe the way forward is through creating sustainable systems, restorative justice, and community support networks. My practice weaves together studio practice, mentoring under-resourced youth, creating public art projects, and direct action art activism.