Art is always around me, whether it’s the sculptural street shrines that mourn the losses of loved ones. Or the seven prideful and previously banned Puerto Rican flags that waves on the telephone wire. These aesthetics of growing up in the South Bronx have greatly influenced me in my creative practice, personally and politically. I want to translate these cultural nuances of struggle, strength, rage, love, and pain into my artistic work. I am strongly drawn to the Mason Gross Visual Art program because it’s an ideal place for me to continue to develop and challenge my artistic vision, voice, and technical skills that I am eager to contribute to the Rutgers community.
My creative practice is a reflection of my spirituality and growing up in the Bronx, and how these two Identities overlap and influence each other. I am interested in spirituality as a way to empower women and people of color, and how it stems from the African diaspora. In poor Black and Latino communities, spirituality like Santeria has historically resulted from the political and economic conditions of chattel slavery. However, Afro-influenced spirituality was a way to create a space for political, economic, and cultural resistance that is still relevant today. Spirituality is important in my work because it’s a space for healing, to ask for advice, as well as promote liberation, and build political consciousness and collective power. In my work, the rituals, products, and spaces that I use derive from the legacy of racism and class oppression from the everyday objects and spaces that reflect the material conditions of the poor working class Black and Brown people. From Afro-picks, Bamboo Earrings, Aunt Jemima Syrup, to street altars, Hip-Hop music videos, and beauty salons. I use these symbolic places and materials as an inspiration from their material, colors, textures, symbolism, as well as their political, cultural and economic function that is historically overlooked and undervalued. I want to reclaim and embrace their sacred meaning in my work.
I am passionate about the opportunity to study at Rutgers that offers a public research university; accessible resources, studio space, and facilities that will help me grow as a serious artist. I respect the values and space that Mason Gross upheld for visual literacy, critical thinking, dialogue, experimentation, and exploration that will allow me to advance my creative practice with the freedom to take non-specific disciplinary classes. Rutgers will provide the support and foundation for me to sustain my artistic practice outside the studio and into my personal and professional life.
