Artist Statement

My most recent paintings incorporate mixed media, duct tape, paper, acrylic paint, wood, drawing and screen print.I pull from my culture, history, and origins to produce three-dimensional paintings that address the tattered relationships with my Gautemalan, Mexican, and American ancestry. I borrow the frayed elements from the “piñata,” in an effort to transform its original identity from one of mere birthday celebrations to one of an alternate identity of decaying traditional structures.Elements of the traditional Piñata are deconstructed and incorporated into these works in order to transform the Piñata’s original identity of gratuitous celebration into one of collapse and distress. The use of fringe also permeates the structure of the painting as if they were bacterial spores creating a reproduction chain specifically suited for living in unfavorable conditions. The anatomical aspect of the piñata is also appropriated and amplified, creating a complex network suggesting the strength and the inner complexity of relationships.

Artist Bio

Hailing from the Oak Cliff area of Dallas, Valderas graduated in 2012 from the College of Visual Arts & Design at the University of North Texas with a Master of Fine Arts in Drawing & Painting. He teaches Mural Painting, Beginning and Intermediate Figure Drawing at the University of North Texas as well as Foundation Drawing and Art Appreciation at Mountain View College in Dallas. Valderas’ mixed-media paintings combine a wide range of mediums and materials to create works that challenge traditional structures by hanging awkwardly and irregularly on the wall. His work will be featured in the 2013 Texas Biennial and in New American Paintings, issue #108.

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Website
http://www.giovannivalderas.com/