ARTWORK

"The central themes in my work involve the lasting effects of conflict trauma on the human psyche and issues of cultural identity. Reoccurring images of war, helpless victims, struggle, bloodshed, chaos, tragedy and anguish appear throughout much of my work. There are often both indirect and direct references to this series of subjects. It is through the presentation of these images and subject matter that I reflect my compassion for the suffering of repressed peoples and war torn nations.

As an artist of Puerto Rican heritage, I relied heavily on my own families tales of struggle and hardship as I grew up. I often incorporate these stories into my work in order to communicate a more universal struggle for identity and acceptance of all people. The struggle to overcome conflict and poverty is cross-referenced in my work with cultural awareness of people from all walks of life that endure great pain to achieve stability.

I use many aspects of mark making to compose my work. I incorporate traditional printmaking processes, collage elements, drawing, and digital manipulation to achieve the final product. The images are often sparse of color and contain dark contemplations on humanity. One color that stands out among the mostly black and white imagery is a crimson red. This crimson color is at first a reference to blood, but also a symbol of danger and urgency. I also incorporate images and patterns of paint degradation, burn marks, torn surfaces, graffiti, and stains into my work. The process and development of the resulting artwork is often ambiguous and is meant to center the focus on the image itself."