From Puerto Rico to The Valley is a big distance away from each other. Not just in distance, but of course different. You can simply imagine the differences between the food, the festivities, and the environment. Although it has been some time now I hope she was welcomed with open arms. This week's feature is Jesmil M. Maldonado-Rodriguez,@jmmr_art
We start off by learning a bit about Jesmil as she shares a bit about himself "Lately, I've been concentrating on teaching. Currently, I am a Printmaking and Drawing
Professor at UTRGV. Besides teaching, I spend most of my time creating new works,
practicing techniques, reading and listening to music" Along with what she's been enjoying lately "recently I have been reading a lot about self-acceptance, body positivity, and how to
stay motivated to continue to work towards my goals and dreams." Learning to love yourself is very important and of course, it isn't just a simple transition due to my personal experience with self-acceptance/positivity.
When it comes down to the arts of the 956 she states " I feel like I have not explored the local art scene a lot. I'm not a huge fan of crowded
places. I was starting to go to different art venues and events, but due to the virus, I
stop. I enjoy seeing how artists have continued to support each other in social media
and how it has helped me find and interact with the creatives out there."
Hopefully, after the virus, Jesmil may be able to experience a local event, but of course with good company to ease off any feelings that may come from crowded areas. Even so, she sees what the community provides with social media along with the artists she works within her classes.
I'm no art expert, but it's something I enjoy just like anyone else. I can't tell you the type of art it is or the medium used, but it's always just fascinating looking at these artists' posts and what they create. Time has gone by that I have seen and read about different art styles and they have become distinguishable to me, but now Jesmil shares hers "My artwork is a visual representation of the Weirdness and Peculiarity within me that have come to accept. I have always been different, but it until a year ago that I came to terms with the essence that makes who I am and fuels my creativity. I enjoy even more what I do if I am happy. I will continue this journey." Would anyone else call this "weird?" Sure things can be "weird" but in a sense, to some people, it may have become their norm and are intrigued by it. For example "vamo' pa' la high" can be "weird" for some people, but I find it super cool and it has a certain charm to it. In a way, it can be said that it has Jesmil's own personal taste added to it as she says "I came to terms with the essence that makes me who I am and fuels my creativity." She continues by saying "If I had to pick an art movement to identify with, it would be the following: lowbrow art, bizarre art, and pattern design. Currently, I am working on a series that involves the recreation of illustrations from my childhood as peculiar and headless characters. I take my inspiration from different medical and freak books I have. Besides these characters, when I have an artist block or need to control my stress or anxiety, I tend to create patterns using insects. Insects are a huge part of my work; they represent all the things I don't talk about or express emotions. My artwork is ever-changing, but these are the two main elements in my work at the moment." When she mentioned "headless characters" I looked at my piece by Jesmil which is headless and yes it is "bizarre", but other than that I'm glad I have it up on my wall along with other pieces by local artists. Art is more than just "art" but a form of self-expression as Jesmil states "stress or anxiety" when it comes to creating certain things. Overall it is always nice seeing her all pop up in our feeds and we look forward to more.
As mentioned Jesmil is from Puerto Rico, but is now residing in The Valley, but due to this change how does she incorporate themes from home or anything revolving around Puerto Rico as she explains " Puerto Rico's color palette influences my work always. It is my way of remembering my homeland and reflects how I yearn to return. Some of the insects in my artwork are images sent to me by my brother, Jesus. Every time he finds something incredible, he sends me multiple photos." Knowing that the color palette comes from Puerto Rico is rather interesting, but knowing her brother sends her images from back home continuously influencing her work. Although she may be gone from her home she may be a bit closer to home with the addition of what Puerto Rico gives to her upon her work. She continues by saying "The illustrations I am working on are based on the Cartilla Fonetica my mom used to teach my brothers and me to read, a typical book to have in each Puerto Rican
household. A lot of what I do reflects my attachment to Puerto Rico and my memories over there. On some occasions, the references are explicit in others. I'm the only one that sees them." Although we may see the themes behind her work, we can't truly see them. For what can lie within an art piece can only be told by the artist themselves at times. Yes as a person we can feel, see, relieve an experience by looking or hearing something but as she said: "I'm the only one who sees them."
With the wide variety of artwork created by Jesmil begs the question of how long have they creating art as she says "I have been drawn to art since I was young, but I've had my ups and downs. I did not commit until I started college in 2011. I believe one of the very first pieces I was proud of was a watercolor piece I did during my second or third year in college. Looking back at it, I wish to recreate this. I still have a sketch of it so that it can be a future project." Wow, so almost a decade of learning, and as she mentioned earlier "ever-changing."
As I went through her artwork I noticed a couple of her pieces using insects along with bugs and I found that interesting. Even as we learned the reasoning behind it earlier in the post she explains it a bit more by saying "I have always been a taciturn person. I tend to keep everything bottled up and pour it all over my artwork. Since I did not express myself verbally, I decided to give insects the attributes of my thoughts and emotions. Insects are creatures that are misunderstood and killed for their appearance. When I selected to do this, one of my brothers, Alberto, was taking an entomology class, and I would find dead insects in a plastic bag in the freezer. I got used to it, but there is one that I cannot stand, not even in videos, and it is the centipede. I remember clearly as one night, I was drawing one while I was lying on the floor of my apartment and a live one came cruising into my room. I had never smashed my drawing board on the floor with such force." We can't all express ourselves the same way whether its verbal, art, literature, or music along with anything else. It's there to help us out when we come to face certain times to empty ourselves out of what we have bottled up. When it comes to insects they can be pretty cool looking and yes some may be "ugly", but it just wants to survive even if our first instinct is to SMASH it. So when it comes to her using insects, but as she brings them to life with her work, but with a piece of herself along with everything that comes with it. She continues by saying "all negativity within me is transferred to them and create intricate patterns. It is a representation of how emotions and thoughts tend to repeat themselves throughout our lives. It is a vicious and intoxicating cycle, which is how I feel when creating patterns. I focus only on that, and I could spend hours making them and forget about life." The cycles and the patterns are not just in the art created, but of course, fall in place with how we can be. Overall we each have our ways of releasing ourselves to start again new.
There's so much to unfold from a piece by Jesmil that I had to ask about her creative process to which she replied with "I am a hoarder of imagery. I have a lot of reference pictures, both digitally and hard copies. I go through them and pick the one that catches my attention and start working with that image. For my patterns, I select the silhouette that seems more appealing and use tracing paper to create a form. Then I use my light table to repeat it all over a piece of paper, or I make a stencil of this form. For my characters, I select the one that seems more appealing at the moment, and then I start to sketch with a blue pencil, add details with a red pencil and do the final image with a drawing pencil. Sometimes I go over my books about medical curiosities or freak shows and find elements that I want to add. Other times I go down memory lane and remember all the cartoons, anime, movies, and weird stuff I've seen or read. I then transfer my image using my light table or a projector to my paper, and then I add ink. I use Igor, my manikin, to determine the values in the position, and the rest develops as I'm inking the character. My color choice is based on whatever is left in my palette. Since I use watercolor, it is easier to reuse every time. But I tend to use a cool palette that references the sky and water sources in Puerto Rico." Yes, the references from the images sent to Jesmil by her brother along with the mentioning of Puerto Rico's color palette which is interesting. Sort of like the base to starting the piece, but as she says "I go through them and pick the one that catches my attention." Now that she mentions it "sketch with a blue pencil and add detail with a red pencil" looking back at my print it is something I noticed, but looking back at it its something that's popping out for more. It certainly does add a nice to it and its the little things that really do make a difference. Reading this and going back to her artwork or the images shared upon this post with her permission see what you can find. Take your time with each piece and take it all in.
From the numerous pieces created which one is Jesmil's favorite as she says "I would have to say my pattern piece, Entomological Drugs. I took around a month or more to create, and it represents my determination and the nostalgia I feel towards Puerto Rico. I've been craving to create new works based on that one but referencing the unique floor tyles in Puerto Rico, forming patterns and images." Looking at "Entomological Drugs" I have never been to Puerto Rico and looking at images won't give it justice or help me understand, but looking at these pieces and understanding where the palette comes from I can certainly create an image. Looking at this image feels like its moving which works with the title, but I understand there is a meaning for her behind this piece as well.
From 2011 to now how would she like to grow as an artist as she says "I would love to develop more the habit of creating or developing ideas daily. Besides this, I want to keep doing what I love and grow in content and my techniques." As she mentioned her art is "ever-changing" which is the perfect statement for her statement.
On the topic of growth and the years between her first piece to her most recent how has she changed as she says "I have grown a LOT, and it shows in my work. I have found what I love to create, and I do not have a mental struggle anymore. There is always room to improve. I enjoy learning and revisiting techniques and applying them to my practice. The only person
that can put limits, it is me and I do not plan on doing that anymore." Now that sounds like positivity to me as it is something she is working on with herself which is what we love. We hope to continue seeing her work and the progress she makes as time goes by!
As mentioned she is an artist from Puerto Rico but is now in The Valley and here is what she enjoys the most "I enjoy the company of the people that have made The Valley my second home. I love learning about Mexican culture, finding our similarities and differences. I love the area where I live because it is quiet, yet I miss seeing colorful nature. I do love mangonadas and learning about different dishes. A nice meal, talk, and art hang out is a must now then."
Along with her thoughts on the local art scene, "I believe that it is blooming, but it still needs to be more represented and give more opportunities to newcomers. There is room for growth, improvement, and accessibility to all."
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