Artist Statement

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  The graffiti movement has been the biggest driving force behind my work since I am part of this growing art subculture. I approach and execute my work in almost the same manner that I would a piece of graffiti on a wall. The attitude that I have when I create a painting is similar to the one that I have when I am out painting the streets. My mentality is part ego, part adrenaline, part competitive, part street and always looking forward to the next project.

  Mixed with the skills that I learned in the streets is the knowledge that I have gained in an academic setting. It’s binding painting’s traditional techniques with experimental forms of applying paint on a raw surface. Interweaving art history references with graffiti art’s history, which is still being made today. Creating a hybrid way of thinking made from art jargon and slang from the streets.
 
  My studio work deals with a variety of ideas ranging from religion, immigration, politics, family, graffiti and different cultural rituals. My paintings currently deal with the idea of immigrants and how people in America see them. I was born in Mexico, but my parents brought me to this country at the age of three. Growing up not knowing English and fearing deportation created a lot anxiety for me as a kid. Now as an adult American Citizen, I am comparing my experiences to those immigrants that live in this country. A lot fears and sense of hate are still very prevalent. I feel that immigrants are sometimes seen as monsters or aliens by some of today’s society and news media. My work depicts the idea of how I think people see me and other people from other countries. How we are different because of where we were born, even though we look the same. The figures become hybrid creatures through the mixture of animal features, colors, patterns, textures and shapes inspired by many cultures.