Love In the Time of Corona

31 07 2020

It's been 136 days since the pandemic quarantine began. 136 days of non stop mothering (shoot me!)

The two earlier months of free will and freedom of at least eight hours a day of being myself, seems 

like eons ago. I'm in a warped reality...an unnatural world...anti-human almost.

Thank you universe for art and hands to make things out nothing....

The police murder of George Floyd (and many before him and thereafter) ignited a nationwide protest this past June. Artists in Oakland/SF took to the streets to paint the anger, frustrations, pain, displacement, spectrums of emotions brought on by Systemic Racism. 

This is what i did in my neighborhood of Fruitvale. I also made prints of the image below and fundraised for a local nonprofit Anti-Police Terror Project, an organization dedicated to "build a replicable and sustainable model to eradicate police terror in communities of color."

Jean Jacket Show

Lately, I've been getting involved with Rock Paper Scissors Collective. They've truly been feeding my soul with my love of diy crafts and just meeting these rad group of artists doing what they love!

The current exhibit I'm honored to be a part of is the Jean Jacket show. Here's some snippets but there's really nothing like seeing it live and present. Now showing 'till October 19th!

My Jacket

It's been a long time...

Roughly 3 years since posting. It's been a whirlwind...this parenting...and growing pains mostly.
There's been a lot of patience testing and stretching. Not only are the girls growing, but i'm evolving with them. It hasn't been easy. Most times i'm perceived as a dragon lady or perhaps a tiger mom. But nonetheless, I've risen to the occasion, of being, doing...as a mother should to their children. But this dedication, with a lack of a support system is and has been detrimental to a relationship I've tried to work on for so long. I suppose at this stage in our lives, with our challenging circumstances, something (or someone) had to give. A connection we have fostered for so long, has festered.
We have become each other's sacrificial lamb and scape goats. Love drowning in the daily mundane chaos of having a family!

Here and there

So the multitasking goes on! Since my last post, I delivered Frida, and almost making her one year journey around the sun. Time is so elusive. Life keeps on. Now a mother of two rad girls! I keep on being a work in progress through it all; sometimes more backwards than onwards but 'tis is life after all.

Although recently I've managed to get juried into this poster exhibit and I'm pretty stoked to get back fully immersed in this art thing! Here's a rough sketch of the concept I'm working on titled "East Oakland families matter." It's a statement on the housing crisis in Oakland as a result of gentrification; once again displacing many long time residents and natives out of their homes. 

Multitasking

Here are some of the work I did in 2014 early 2015. 

I was really into line work and being less tight, more free in the creative process. It was also the result of time constraints (nap time allotments), figuring out how to get it done quickly and executed well.

paloma's world

 So it's been over a year since i've last posted. Time has been my constant foe eversince Paloma's birth. All of a sudden my status quo warped into this new bizzaro world that was unfamiliar, exciting and scary at best.  It's been a whirlwind to say the least...A year assimilating into this new frontier called motherhood! Paloma took shotgun and my art kinda took a backseat, temporarily, but when situations permit, meaning when i'm not exhausted or feeling the blues and brunt of being a mama, I am definitely trying to paint!  I will post some art i've done in the past year momentarily. 

Happy International Women's Day!!!

<3

"Things change and friends leave; and life

doesn't stop for anybody." -- Perks of being a wallflower

No rest for the wicked

Managed to finish a few projects while nesting in my pregnancy. 

Lately, I've been wanting to take a break from character drawings, and try to do more intricate, detailed ones. The first two below are homage to my father. I've been a fan of tattoo art and just love to explore vignette compositions.

June Events

I can't believe it's already summer around the corner! And what better way to begin enjoying it, than taking a sweet art stroll ;-)

I'm finally participating in the East Bay Open Studios--my very first official one. Yikes! A bit nervous that no one would show up, but looking forward to the experience.

I will also be one of two featured artists at Oakland's Uptown Nightclub for months June & July.

Artmurmur
First Friday June 7
Uptown 1928 Telegraph Ave.

East Bay Open Studios
Saturday / Sunday June 1, 2, 8, & 9 11-6pm
Warehouse 416 Gallery
416 26th st. b/t Telegraph / Broadway, Oakland

    Uptown Bar, June 7- end of July 1-- 1928 Telegraph St. Oakland

     Warehouse 416 Gallery, 416 26th St. Oakland

The way of the artist

To expand the repertoire, I started vending about 3 years ago and joined the world of what's now known as "pop-up". A great way for the indie artist / artisan to get out there face to face with the masses--a form of guerrilla marketing, if you will.

Neo (Pilipino) Folk Art

Been playing around with images, referencing cultural iconographies from my country.