Calling Seattle home for the last decade, I made my way here from my hometown of Houston via Zaragoza (Spain), New York, Madrid, Paris, Dakar (Senegal), Rome, Padua (Italy), Oaxaca, Caruaru (Brazil), and Berkeley. As a professor in the French and Italian Studies department at UW who specializes in multilingualism, migration, and identity formation, I spend a lot of time researching, writing, and teaching about how people move through the world and how they narrate their life stories through various languages.
As a visual artist, I try to do something similar by bringing my own life and the lives of those around me into focus through color and contrasts. I find that my academic work and my artistic projects are richer when I do them simultaneously. For that reason, I am grateful to Herkimer – Ravenna for giving me a space to exhibit my work and for being the impetus I needed to paint again after almost three years. This art show is my first solo exhibit in Seattle and follows previous solo shows in New York, Paris, and Oakland.
I rely on my travels, my interactions, and my curiosity to guide me in my creative endeavors. The new pieces displayed here are an homage to my dear friend and college roommate Estefanía, now a professional flamenco dancer. In a moment in time marked by pandemic fatigue, fear, hate, despair, and sadness, I felt a need to create something that could counteract this negativity—in this case, the joy and vitality that Estefanía exudes when she dances and shares her craft with the world.
Visit Herkimer – Ravenna at 5611 University Way NE, Seattle between July 1 – Aug 31, 2022.
