A Little Corner Next To
Heaven
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Opening Reception July 2nd, 2022 4pm-6pm Show runs from - July 2nd, 2021 - August 6th, 2022 |
(Click above image for press kit)
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Artist - Osvaldo Mesa
Statement
Before moving to Baltimore in the early 80's, I had lived almost all my life in Miami in a prominently Latin environment and I really noticed that I was different than my “American” classmates. Baltimore was a culture shock for this Cuban boy. I began to investigate my culture and personal history. I began to recall Sunday dinners at one of my many surrogate grandmothers. I would sit in a rocking chair and stare at her household Santeria shire. I loved trying to figure out what all the different components meant. I would also recall the local Botanica and the smell of the incense that would travel out into street. My work was basically made up of wood canvas and paint; it also had a spiritual element to them, especially an Afro-Cuban feel.
I continued to work in this way for several years after graduation from MICA. I even started to do installations. I remember sitting in a painting class as an instructor and watching my students painting still-lives and saying to myself, hey that looks fun, yet at that same I felt that my work had hit a wall and wanted to move into another direction. I decided that I would paint whatever I wanted. I didn’t care about style period technique. I paint what I enjoy; I mix Baroque, especially Latin American Baroque with Surrealism and Abstraction. I put together things that make sense to me visually and come together demonstrate who I am.
I continued to work in this way for several years after graduation from MICA. I even started to do installations. I remember sitting in a painting class as an instructor and watching my students painting still-lives and saying to myself, hey that looks fun, yet at that same I felt that my work had hit a wall and wanted to move into another direction. I decided that I would paint whatever I wanted. I didn’t care about style period technique. I paint what I enjoy; I mix Baroque, especially Latin American Baroque with Surrealism and Abstraction. I put together things that make sense to me visually and come together demonstrate who I am.
Biography
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Osvaldo Mesa (b. 1960 - Havana, Cuba) grew up in Miami and started to take painting classes with traditional training at the age of ten with Cuban artists who had studied in Spain. In college he was introduced to Abstract Expressionism and rejected much of my academic background and began to rebel against painting itself. He would break up the canvas stretchers and tie them together with canvas and finally add paint to its surface. Osvaldo earned a BFA from The University of Miami (1983) and a MFA from MICA (1985). He was a full time instructor at CCBC from 1999-2001 and is presently an Associate Professor at CCBC and has been since 1999. He has taught Drawing I & II, Painting I & II, Life Drawing , 2D Design, Color Theory, and Art Appreciation. Osvaldo has been exhibiting in solo and group shows for decades all over DC and MD, but has also expanded his reach to FL, PA, CT, and NYC as well.
Osvaldo's work was featured in the book Santeria Aesthetics in Contemporary Latin American Art published by Smithsonian Press. |