Background

From my youth to now I developed and am still evolving my medium skills. I can remember back to my childhood drawing on my arms, shoes or classwork different doodles. My surroundings were my muse whether it was good, bad, odd, boredom or just a simple memory I wanted to keep. Didn't matter to me if I got in trouble. Drawing, painting, sewing, street art and sculpting gradually became my healthy distractions to my life situations and I knew one day I was going to do something with it. If not for myself I knew I had to do it for others because I know what art has done for me. I was lucky to learn techniques from all my great grandparents, grandparents, parents and friends. Their hands-on ingenuity in creating and business are passed on to me. I am a descendant of farmers, builders, teachers, upholsterers, seamstresses, dental technicians, and entrepreneurs. I am proud to use what I learned through the years for myself.

As a young adult I moved to San Diego, CA from El Centro,CA. Before I moved out of my hometown I was working out in geothermal plants in the desert and after work I would sit in my room draw and paint with a beer. Pretty much was a routine I could have comfortably kept doing. I remember just looking up to the sky on my graveyard shifts and telling myself “ you're going to be your own boss one day”. I still cherish those hard working days and the people I met out there because I learned a lot. I just wanted to do more and see more opportunities and had the chance to move to the city. 

After years of practice and realizing my style has been more self taught through experience or through friends I had made through passion in street art. Wanted to try to find a job where I could inspire myself and others so I decided to get a job at a youth after school program. That was a whole new journey of learning new skills through many training sessions on setting up clubs of enrichment for youth.  Being new, fresh and from a rougher neighborhood actually helped me excel in my art clubs I hosted and got to be part of the number one work team in the county. I taught team building through recycled art, sculpting, drawing and lettering. This all got me to want to enrich my own art skills further so I eventually enrolled myself at Mesa College for Studio Arts. There I got my eyes opened to a whole new level of inspiration. I didn't make school a necessity for myself growing up. This time it was my choice to be there and I was hungry to use art resources and materials I never had access to.  I found myself more as an independent artist and was chosen to display my art a few times at Mesa College Art Gallery. This all prepared me to where I am at now, setting up community art workshops, submitting my art to galleries and having my art studio to share in Barrio Logan.

                           

Artist Focus

As a creator, my focus has been my experience doing street art characters to doing lifestyle slices of life pieces. Obscure characters, Mexican-American lifestyle, memories, social/ environmental issues, and street art has inspired a lot of my work. As I continue to grow in the art community and work with other creators. I have committed to share my resources and art with others so everyone can have the chance to try to create in a safe space.

 

 

portrait on home page taken by: ojocreativo