Art
Social Issues
#activism
#identity
#Moises Salazar
#portraits
#textiles
Glitter has a deep connection to queer tradition and identification. Showing in drag performances within the early twentieth century, the glowing materials rapidly turned related to gender-bending, and in the present day, it’s regularly utilized in protest and activist circles advocating for LGBTQ+ rights.
Moises Salazar references this historical past and their Mexican heritage via mixed-media portraits. Rendering faceless figures in glitter—a selection that permits every topic to be a surrogate for queer Latinx folks—Salazar depicts scenes of pleasure, confidence, and defiance as they current figures who’re tender however resolute. The portraits usually have an autobiographical bent, rising from the artist’s connection to Chicago’s queer neighborhood and originating with depictions of their very own physique.
Drawing on craft traditions, the plush mixture of fake fur, sequins, and acrylic paint nested inside crocheted yarn frames feeds into the ostentatious nature of those works, dovetailing with Salazar’s insistence that the topics are revered and celebrated. In an interview with The Latinx Project, they are saying of their materials selections:
I like feeling glamorous, and I feel that’s one thing common. No matter gender, age, and sexual expression, all of us love feeling our greatest, and that’s what I’m attempting to specific in my work. As youngsters, I feel we’re taught to not stand out or trigger consideration to ourselves, however I feel we must always do the other. That’s why I put a lot emphasis on making a tactile expertise. I would like my work to face out, and I pull out all of the stunts to do it. I’m an individual that if I’m requested, “Don’t you assume that’s an excessive amount of?,” I add twenty new issues.
Salazar’s portraits are on view for In My Arms via July 27 at Epiphany Center for the Arts in Chicago. Discover extra of their work on Instagram.
#activism
#identity
#Moises Salazar
#portraits
#textiles
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