My Advanced Visual Studies concentration consists of my culture. I am someone who has learned to appreciate the small things in life the older I had become. My concentration was discovered from my 2017 trip I took to Mexico which ended up opening my eyes completely, as I experienced new things that I didn't as a kid. I noticed the imperfections, the people, the landscape, most importantly the colors. My pieces for my concentration base of personal experiences and tradition. All my artwork has a meaning through its imagery and it's color scheme.
Sombra
Class: Advanced visual studies Year: 2017
Material: Acrylic on canvas
In this art piece I wanted to get out of my comfort zone. I managed to do that with the color scheme. For this project I planned to make a girl in a field of sunflowers expressing beauty. I didn't just want the flowers to express the beauty , so I went into more debt. I wanted to also indicate that beauty isn't only about looks, but who you are as a person. Looks aren't everything and I feel like nowadays we don't realize that. You could be attractive, but it all comes down to who you are to yourself and to everyone else. You don't have to be a certain color or have a certain feature to be beautiful. I wanted the color scheme of red and yellow to really pop out because red is a very powerful color and yellow just balances it out. These colors would work perfect for the meaning I am trying to express. A new touch that I decided to add was the tree. I think adding the tree was a very good idea because it made the painting not feel as lonely.
La Tienda de la Esquina
Class: Advanced visual studies Year: 2017
Material: Acrylic on chipboard
In this art piece I was inspired by my trip I took to Mexico this summer. Out of all the other times I've been to Mexico, this one stuck with me. I've always appreciated Mexico's style, but never really thought much of it until now. I noticed how beautiful Mexico is in the morning and especially at night. I would say the think that struck me most was when I went to the roof of my grandma and saw all these bright beautiful lights that went around the mountain. So for this project I wanted to do something that would give everyone a feeling of Mexico. I know many people don't go onto roofs, so I did something more traditional. I chose to do people dancing bailes floncloricos. The color scheme is going to be brighter/ happier colors, because they are used most. I want the audience to get a vibe of Mexico.
Empire
Class: Advanced visual studies Year: 2017
Material: Acrylic on canvas
This piece was also inspired by my trip to Mexico this year. As I was saying for the piece “La Tienda de la Esquina” , I felt like I had more of a connection with Mexico, than I did before. I would say that is because I’m older now, meaning I’m allowed to do many more things than I could when I was younger. I also noticed that I learned to love those small things about Mexico. I loved how imperfect the building were, how they had cracks, and paint almost coming off the walls. I loved the variety of colors people would paint their homes, it's something you don’t really see here. I loved how everyone knew each other and they seemed so happy, to where here at times I feel isolated. But what I loved most about Mexico was going on top of roof, just to see the gorgeous views of all those small lights miles away. The views from my cousins roof, inspired this painting. It was originally a picture I took but I decided to make it into a painting because the colors and details were very hard to see in the picture. I would say the colors used, he blues, reds, yellows, browns, and oranges in this painting went very well with my message. My message was realizing the beauty in small things. That is also where the title “Empire” came from. The feeling of you on that roof looking over everything makes you feel so invincible. In this painting I do not have a person physically on there, because it is more about the audience feeling like they can see the beautiful scenery with their own eyes.
Abuelo
Class: Advanced Visual Studies Year: 2017
Materials: Acrylic on canvas This piece was inspired by someone who meant the world to me. Someone who made me realize who I was and what I enjoyed in life. Someone who made me realize my love for animals was so strong, and my personality so bold. And that is my Grandpa. Growing up, we were fortunate to have my grandpa be able to travel to the United states at times to visit. He would come as much as possible, because it was hard for us to go down there at times. My grandpa was the sweetest, most genuine person I ever knew. He was the one who showed me to never be afraid of animals because they are pure. Which did not mean that if I saw a tiger to stick my hand in to pet it, he obviously told me to stay safe. But it showed me to always stand against animal abuse, to never hurt them or anymore, to always show love and respect if you want it to be shown back. My Grandpa helped me find a huge part of who I was, and I will always appreciate everything he has done for us. I decided to make a painting about my Grandpa for my dad as a Christmas present. Sadly a couple years back my grandpa passed away, and he was really the only one who would bring family together. Meaning after that my dad stopped going to Mexico, because he said it didn’t feel the same anymore. Which he was right, without my grandpa everyone became so distant. I decided to make the painting because my grandpa wasn’t only important to me, but especially to my dad. I did have a reference photo for this painting, but I wanted to add my style and colors to it since the picture was blurry. The colors and how I decided to set them up make my grandpa look like the main focus. The meaning behind the picture is to show my grandpa’s personality. I think the colors really capture his genuine and friendly side. Who was exactly the kind of person he was. I did manage to finish this painting, but eventually I feel like I will add something small to complete it.
Vida de Color
Class: Advanced Visual Studies Year: 2018
Materials: Acrylic paint with collage on chipboard
This collage was an addition to my concentration which was over my Mexican culture. I decided to make a collage about all the things that reminded me of what Mexico is made of. Each collage cut out stands for something but there are three with a deeper and a more important message. Those three cutouts are the men on the bottom right constructing a home, the lime kid with a proud grandmother, and the reaching arm. The meaning behind the men with the constructing home symbolizes how people in Mexico are very hardworking and dedicated to making money to make a living. Some people from Mexico don’t make enough and even risk what they have to come to the United states for a better life. My parents are one of those people that sacrificed all they had, so they could have better opportunities and give their future kids an easier life, which is us now. I will always appreciate and love my parents for everything they have done for us. The lime kid with the proud represents family and coming together. Money is a huge obstacle that keep one from visiting their family in a different country. But whether it's two years or even a decade, family learn to wait and always have their hands wide open. Family will always be there when you need someone and that is exactly what the proud grandma is doing for the lime kid. Also I chose a lime because it is one of the most popular fruits in Mexico and it goes on everything, literally. Does your food feel dull? Add lime. Did you cut your finger? Add lime. Are you sick? Lime. The last cutout is the reaching arm. The reaching arm represents freedom and opportunity. The hand is reaching for both opportunities and freedom, just like many immigrants are. Immigrants only come for better jobs to raise themselves or a family, but it’s very hard to come into a place you’ve never been to and on your own. I believe in opportunity and chances and that’s all people need. The title of this collage means the Life of Color. This name was inspired from the colors I would see daily in the streets in Mexico, the colors everyone has to live with each day, the colors my parents grew up with, the colors of pride.
This piece was inspired by Mexican women. I have respect for the women who raise kids on their own and put their kids before them, the women who work day and night to raise a family on their own, the women who have multiple jobs just to make a little extra. In Mexico I see many kids growing up without a father figure and I just wanted to show appreciation for the good women who have raised their children right even if it was stressful. The image of the women in the middle represents independence. Women are strong, we don't need anyone pulling us down. There are only women in the background and I chose that to only focus on women. I want the audience to look at this women and be like " she's an independent women, she don't need no man". Women are strong human being who only deserve happiness and appreciation. Each good mother should be appreciated and never forgotten about.
El Paletero
Class: Advanced Visual Studies Year: 2018
Materials: Acrylic paint on canvas
This art piece was inspired by a man who dedicated most of his life selling ice-cream to support himself and his family. I thought it would be cool and a good idea to show the appreciation I have for people like him. I have known this same ice-cream man ever since I was a child and so did my mom. He worked morning to night even in the hottest conditions. For this color scheme I decided to go for colors that you would see in a daily basis in Mexico. My grandma lives in an area with homes here and there because it isn't the city. She lives in the mountain area where homes are built anywhere and you see lots of green everywhere. People in Mexico uses bright colors for their homes which makes it very unique. The homes in Mexico are beautiful, very unique, and bring out many sides of people's creativity when it comes to building them. This is the first painting where I wanted to get loose with the brush and not detail everything like I usually do. I made the back ground have small brush strokes to represent a home or building, This painting shows hard work and dedication that Mexican people like "El Paletero" have for making a living and providing for loved ones in his life.
Untitled 03
Class: Advanced Visual Studies Year: 2018
Materials: Acrylic paint on chipboard
For my last project ever (in high-school) I decided to make three paintings that wouldn't go together in meaning but reminded me of my childhood. Each painting is a separate memory I had as a kid and still remember till this day. The first piece are about mariachis, who I think bring life to Mexico. You can find music almost everywhere there, not only from speakers but live. For me Mariachis remind me of where my parents came from and how proud I am to be Mexican. The second one are about connecting trees that you can find in almost every plaza’s in Mexico. I feel like these trees are very unique, not only because of their shape but because the tree bark is painted white. Apparently people in Mexico paint their trees white from the bottom because it can protect them from insects, which I don’t know if it actually works though. The last painting I made were about two birds which my dad called “pericos australianos”, which only meant australian parrots. I decided to make a painting over these special birds because they were the most common birds I had in my childhood. I remember always having them around whether it was seeing them at the Tianguis or as a pet at home. These birds remind me of six year old me and my curiosity. I would describe this project almost as a memory and something I would never want to forget.