Our Artist in Residence for Fall 2022 is Federico Rosas from Honduras. An artist who has lived and studied in several countries and now turns his experiences and experiences in our fall residency. Federico Rosa Suazo Website: www.federicorosas.com Instagram: @elfederosa About Federico's work: Federico Rosa (Honduras) is an artist who mainly works with contemporary strategies. Rosa tries to approach a wide scale of subjects in a multi-layered way, likes to involve the viewer in a way that is sometimes physical and believes in the idea of function following form in a work. His conceptual artworks are an investigation of concepts such as authenticity and objectivity, his works directly respond to the surrounding environment and uses everyday experiences from the artist as a starting point. Often these are framed instances that would go unnoticed in their original context. With a conceptual approach, he reflects on the closely related subjects of archive and memory. This often results in an examination of both the human need for ‘conclusive’ stories and the question whether anecdotes ‘fictionalise’ history. Guido Garaycochea Expressiones Co-founder, Artist, Curator.
Federico Rosa's webExpressiones Cultural Center is very proud to launch Sisyphus, an exhibition made during his stay in New London as part of his artist-in-residence experience. The title of this exhibition – is a reference to the Greek myth of Sisyphus – the tale of a king who, for cheating death, enraged the gods so much that Hades punished him by condemning Sisyphus to push a boulder up a mountain only for it to roll back down again, for all eternity. “Sisyphean” has invaded our language as an idiom for a difficult, yet pointless task. Albert Camus, the French existentialist, used the myth as a metaphor for our human predicament: if our existence is meaningless, thus futile, how do we make sense of it? This is our choice, according to Camus, and not our dilemma; at the end of his essay “The Myth of Sisyphus”, he states that we must imagine Sisyphus happy.
"When I arrived at New London and Expressiones, I had a very clear objective. I wanted to make a body of work that was consistent and articulate, so that I could feel like I had brought my craft into a clear and coherent state, which would also the culmination of ideas I had been working with for the past 4 or 5 years. I wanted to be able to say at the end of this period: “this is my craft.” “This is what I make.” All the pieces in the show I feel have real purpose and direction, and I hope the audience can see that. What really helped me stay focused and reach this other level, was the constant dialogue with the craft. Having the studio in my living space made the time between work and rest time very blurry. This constant confrontation with work felt like I was trying to solve puzzles all the time. It was very intense, physically, and mentally, but it was also very beautiful. I am very proud to show this work in New London, which my first solo show in the US. My name is Federico Rosa and my opening is Friday the 18th of November at Expressiones Cultural center." Federico Rosa, Novembre 2022.
The art-loving community gathered at Expressiones this past Friday to celebrate the opening of the exhibition 'Sisyphus" by Honduran artist-in-residence Federico Rosa. The exhibit features a group of works created over the past 3 months in New London and during his stay here. Many of these works reflect the artist's search and how these months have influenced a process of introspection reflected in the experimentation of different techniques. Many thanks to our friends and partners at Spark Makerspace in New London for giving space and knowledge to our artists.
Life experiences and growing up in Chile during the regime of Augusto Pinochet crafted my sardonic attitude and a compulsion to create and sew. The events of 9/11 in New York city increased my propensity. How absurd that the military coup in Chile took place on September 11, 1973. My art depicts a sharp point of view with a stark sense of humor that is a mixture of imagery from the ecclesial to pop-culture, along with references from art history, and memories from my youth and life events, combining a curious exchange of the profane, the pagan and the secular. I am a perpetual maker of art and collector of materials and textiles. I adopted the art of quilt making when I studied in Maine. I resonate with Dadaism, creating textile collages, embroideries, drawings and paintings. Like Klimt I believe there is an unspoken thought that beauty is perhaps an answer or at least a consolation to life’s absurdities.
Expressiones has a new artist in residence for this spring 2022. Carlos is an artist who works quilting as his primary medium. He gathers traditions from his ancestors to talk about a wide variety of subjects. His work contains questions as well as reflections on profound issues that mark our contemporary culture.
Carlos Bautista Biernnay: , 2011 Textile collage 40 x 50"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y89jD6SkAkQCarlos Biernnay, Expressions' artist-in-residence for the Spring-Summer 2022 period talks to us about his creative process. Carlos will open his temporary Art Studio at Expressiones this coming Saturday, May 28th in anticipation of his exhibition to be announced at the end of his stay.
I believe in the cathartic power of storytelling and art making which provides an opportunity to share perspectives with people of diverse backgrounds. A theme in my art is absurdity, caused by a constant awareness of the socio-political conditions and attitudes of humankind. This project is a response to the fragmentation and polarization we are experiencing because of the double Pandemic of socio-political tensions and the current health crisis. Projecto del Pez encourages participants to be rigorously aware, always observing, searching for beauty, kindness, the struggles of good and band, justice, bias, joy, pain and realizing gratitude and realization of the fragility of our environment, our blessings, relationships and that we are stewards of our planet, our community and ourselves. Carlos Biernnay
About this exhibition: El Proyecto del Pez puts many techniques together masterfully united by Carlos' imagination giving life to characters. This installation is composed of more than one hundred and fifty quilt pieces, joined, colored, designed to provide the viewer with a unique experience. Guido Garaycochea-curator. “I believe in the cathartic power of storytelling and art making which provides an opportunity to share perspectives with people of diverse backgrounds. A theme in my art is absurdity, caused by a constant awareness of the socio-political conditions and attitudes of humankind. This project is a response to the fragmentation and polarization we are experiencing because of the double Pandemic of socio-political tensions and the current health crisis. Proyecto del Pez encourages participants to be rigorously aware, always observing, searching for beauty, kindness, the struggles of good and band, justice, bias, joy, pain and realizing gratitude and realization of the fragility of our environment, our blessings, relationships and that we are stewards of our planet, our community and ourselves”. Carlos Biernnay The exhibition will be open to the public by appointment until July 30. Guided tours by the artist can be arranged in advance. email: dirctor@expressiones.org
Art Opening and Artist Talk April 9th, 5-7 PM. Exhibition will run until Saturday, April 30 TRAILBRAZING Expressiones Artists in Residence Iliana Scheggia & Ramón Ostolaza Expressiones Cultural Center is very proud to launch TRAILBRAZING an exhibition of two artists whose artistic practices and personal lives intersect in the same exhibition. About the exhibit Trailblazing is a sculptural installation result of Iliana and Ramon’s three-month residency program at Expressiones Cultural Center in New London, Connecticut. Their works make first contact, opening the path to a broader universe of form and thought. In Trailblazing we find two imaginary and timeless ecosystems in transit that evolve as they intersect, creating a new universe. These ecosystems are a metaphor for the evolution of thought and the fragility of its processes and sustainability over time. It reflects the need to renew strategies and knowledge to avoid stagnation and extinction. Iliana and Ramón approach their ecosystems from the abstract and the figurative, using geometric and organic shapes, respectively. On this occasion, Iliana presents pieces of unfired clay, highlighting the ephemeral and fragile nature of her constructions; in contrast, Ramón uses more durable materials.
LEARN MOREAn invitation to explore the stories and legends of different cultures, reinterpret them and turn them into a new element. This collaborative project was born from the imagination of one of the current artists in residence at Expressions, Ramon Ostolaza. Expressiones has invited various artists, with diverse artistic practices to intervene these objects created by Ramon. Each artist received a small-sized object that Ramon called Mostroks. The artist tells us that the Mostroks appeared with the intention of bringing the traditions of different cultures to a public that is increasingly moving away from the stories and traditions that have shaped humanity. Through collective work, we recreate a new and updated vision. With this project I transmit some of these stories to the other participants and, at the same time, we collectively invite them to reflect on what can be behind a character. The Art toy format makes it more every day and takes it out of the rigidity of a formal environment such as a textbook or a museum. The intervened pieces will be exhibited at Expressions on a date yet to be announced in which the artists will be able to tell us about their experiences during the process.
During his residency, Ramón is researching and creating a project that involves science and art, his two passions. The MicroMacro project is an experimental ecosystem in the creation and constant evolution in nature. The creatures that inhabit it play different roles, such as the Walkers that concentrate energy and modify their environment; the creatures in constant change and adaptation to the environment and the situation, or the Isos that recycle waste and return it to the cycle. In MicroMacro, the artist expresses artistically how size and time constantly change and cease to be a frame of reference. The interaction between Collectors, Transformers, and Recyclers becomes the framework on which the evolution of this ecosystem is measured. It is an ecosystem in permanent transformation, new beings are appearing and sometimes disappearing with each interaction. Durente su residencia, Ramón esta investigrando y creando un proyecto que envuelve ciencia y arte, sus dos pasiones. El proyecto MicroMacro es un ecosistema experimental en creación y evolución constante en la naturaleza. Las criaturas que lo habitan cumplen diversos roles, como los Caminantes que concentran la energía y modifican su entorno; los tardis en constante cambio y adaptación al medio y la situación o los Isos que reciclan los residuos y los retornan al ciclo. En MicroMacro, el artista expresa como artisticamente como el tamaño y el tiempo cambian constantemente y dejan de ser un marco de referencia. La interacción entre Colectores, Transformadores y Recicladores viene a ser el marco sobre el cual se mide la evolución de este ecosistema. Es un ecosistema permanente transformación, nuevos seres van apareciendo y en ocasiones desapareciendo con cada interacción.
Peruvian visual artist Iliana Scheggia will be developing a series of free workshops for all ages every Saturday this February 2022. The workshops are based on her own artistic practice exploring geometric patterns. La artista visual peruana Iliana Scheggia estará desarrollando una serie de talleres gratuitos y para todas las edades cada sábado este febrero 2022. Los talleres están basado en su propia práctica artística explorando patrones geométricos.
Artists in residence Ramon Ostolaza and Iliana Scheggia conducted an Origami workshop for families last Saturday, February 19, 2022. These, as part of Expressions giving back to the community Artist in Residence program. This workshop was just one of the many activities that this couple of talented Peruvian practicing artists are doing during their stay in New London, CT. The various forms and shapes a piece of paper can take with multiple folds fascinated young and not so young alike in a memorable morning
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