About the Artist

Biography

I was born Fajardo, Puerto Rico in 1975. My family moved from Puerto Rico to Hartford CT when I was 2 years old. We spent a few months in the city of Hartford and then moved to Queens, New York. My first education experience took place in New York. My family spent 3 years there and we moved again to Hartford, CT (1980). We spent the next Five years in Hartford, CT. In 1985, moving back to Puerto Rico was a vacation experiment that extended to almost a year. By 1986 we moved Back to Connecticut. Hartford, CT has been my home ever since.

The Spanish language was frequently used in and out of my schooling and at home. I remember the first few years of schooling being so confusing. It is amazing how the brain can distinguish between two distinct languages after you learn them. A small example of how flexible and adaptive the brain is.

I remember my first experiences of creative work took place in a classroom, at Barnard Brown Elementary School where teacher David Comas introduced the idea of abstract painting to me. The first painting became a national arts awards winner. The training of the arts began shortly after.

In 1993 my High school experience was extremely enriching. Ms. Bazanno Klotz an art teacher at Hartford Public High School was one of the first teachers to recognize my artistic interest and begins to develop my art skills. An extreme move from spray cans and super heroes to paint brushes and self-portraits evolved. My hands had not warmed up to the feel of 3 dimensional forms. I was assigned a mentor through a youth enriching program call career beginnings. Peter Waite employed me for a month or so painting panels for his huge paintings. His help getting into The University of Hartford Art School was unconditionally supportive along with klotz.

A fascination with the roughness of materials and their transformation from a raw material to a finished work of art inspired me. In 1998 a new sculptor was thrown into the world. I graduated and was on a two-year journey of trying to find myself. The question was how my artistic skill could sustain my financial need. No one tells you about hitting a brick wall after graduating. There is no ad in the paper that reads “ artist for hire”, It’s one of those pave your own road experiences. I manage to convert a 2-bedroom apartment into a comfortable studio. The purchase of a kiln, set –up the first few steps out into the unpaved road in 2000. I could smell the tar freshly lay awaiting the impression of my boots. Soon after producing my first batch of work I applied to several grants and received one from the Connecticut Commission on the Arts. The first show was a one -man show at the Charter Oak Cultural Center in 2002; a series of bust depicting the diversity of Puerto Rican ethnicity. The process involved interviewing community members and recording their life experience to be part of an installation that combined the physical features of busts with audio describing these people, their differences and similarities.

The concepts of identity and community signatures my work. A series of murals dating back from 1994 to the present day, all focusing on community issues and community identity are scattered through out the city. One of the most interesting things of this journey has been the responsibility to sustain myself financially. A true art in it self. Working as a youth worker for 15 years has been another road running parallel to my art career. This road however is already paved and has its turns and twists but is well lit and the proper signage to aid you along. The one I am currently paving is that of my artistic career

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