The Rio Grande Valley, where I was born and raised, remains a unique place for its fusion of Mexican and American culture. Coming from this large stretch of marginalized region, I feel divided by these two nations while simultaneously composed by them. My personal identity mirrors my engagement with traditional rendering, and my challenge with contemporary drawing and painting. Much of my artistic execution is compositionally divided with a mixture of conventional, representational, and abstract approaches. This duality in approach acts as a metaphor for my upbringing along the U.S./Mexico border. I continue to seek and gain a better understanding of my ethnic background while framing and contextualizing ideas on Mexican-American identity, assimilation, acculturation, repression, civil rights, immigration, cultural misconceptions, and the individual qualities of the people around me. Ultimately, my artistic endeavors reflect border concerns, contemporary socio-political trepidations, and the ever-shifting American political landscape.

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Featured Image: Ascension, 2022, oil and acrylic on canvas mounted to bisected panel. Courtesy of the artist.