As The Future wraps up Art Month I am really excited about featuring one of my closet friends as my second artist of the month. Charly Dominguez is an amazing artist who's art captures his spirituality, creativity, and passion. I have had the opportunity of even having Charly put art on my body in a photo shoot that we did together many years ago. Please take a look at the influence and talent that this young man has on a new generation of artist.
1. What is your inspiration behind your art?
The inspiration behind my art is life itself. Primarily I am inspired by a ritualistic life and my experiences in the spiritual communities I belong to. My first paintings were based on the spirit world. I would receive visions of deities, spirits, and beings from other dimensions, and these visions informed my work. Sexuality and gender have also been themes of inspiration. Growing up in New York City is difficult period because of poverty and violence, and as a Queer Multi-Spirited young person, often misunderstood and ostracized because of my sexual orientation or my gender expression it was even more difficult to find places of peace and refuge. I came up existing in several cultures and subcultures. I identified with the black/latino, LGBT, house ball, Hip Hop culture and the many issues of oppression that we as a people face have inevitably been subjects which I have produced works. The process is therapeutic and is a constant outlet for me dealing with my issues. I am one with the art, everything from my appearance, my very extreme emotions, and my experience of this and other worlds are incorporated into my work. Art allows me to capture visions from beyond, docu
ment my experiences, purge from my own issues, and engage in a creative life with my community.
2. What was your initial instinct when you decided to produce art professionally?
My initial instinct was the need to find my own language to communicate with the people in my life. Creative expression has been the basis by which I’ve been known since I was child. Dancing, Drawing, Painting, Writing poetry have been the tools I’ve used in my communication, and have been how people have identified with me throughout my life. The social service work of healing in which I have worked for and received benefited from brought me opportunities to use Art as a method of Education and tool for healing. I have collaborated with many community artists in projects, events, performance and visual art installations where I have been able to incorporate my personal struggles and issues that I am working through
3. How often do you produce work of art?
I produce works almost every day, from drawing, to painting, to my many physical transformations, photographs, writings…these are all parts of my daily rituals, whenever I’m not doing any of these things, that’s when I know something is seriously wrong.
4. What is your work space like?
My work space is my living space. My home is always filled with paintings in progress, a space to I can make almost anywhere my work space because if I get a vision or idea on the train, and I have my colored pencils with me, then that too becomes my work space. I always live with a whirlwind of organized mess, cluttered with paints, wig heads, wood, canvases, stones, clay, etc.
5. What other skills do you have that your art contributes to?
My art contributes to my skills in creative direction. I am able to visualize concepts for events, programs, and other productions.
6. Can you be taught to be an artist or is it a skill you are born with?
I believe we all have an artist inside of us, if we listen and allow it the freedom to express everything it feels and says. The skill is something I was born with, and am now interested in refining my skills through schooling but I do not want to lose the authenticity in my personal process. I do feel that the spirit of creativity is something that is not taught, it is something that like a child grows and like a sculpture molded.
7. Have you ever used your art in the bedroom?
Not often enough, but I am open to suggestions and may make special invitations for one or more…
8. Who’s work have you admired?
I admire the artists that I am connected through in my own life. Those people who I know personally who like me are
constantly creating and engaging in creative projects with me. They are too many to name but they are my family and friends, and you have been one of them ;-).
9. Who has influenced your talent the most?
The goddess Oshun, she is my joy, my sadness, my laughter, my movement, my love, and my inner queen. And all the people who have been reflections of her in my life.
10. Do you sell your art? When is your next sell?
My original artwork is for sale. I am in the process of making prints of my works to sell. I have also been commissioned to create works for organizations, writers, and individuals for print, exhibition, and personal. My next sell will be a series new images created for the coming holidays, followed by an unveiling of new works and yet another altar ego NUINWIN during my birthday gathering January.
11. What type of emotions do you typical translate through your art?
I translate almost every emotion. I am a very moody old man/young child, and I have created works while feeling emotions I can name, and emotions that there are no words for. I would say passion is what I have to feel to in order to create anything.
12. Have you ever produced work that you have not liked or appreciated?
There have been many works that upon starting I have not liked, most of these I build upon, or totally start from scratch with, and I also believe that this is part of the creative process because most of my paintings start out being one thing, and turn into something totally unexpected/unplanned.
13. How can we follow you as an artist?
My website will be launched early 2010 but I can be contacted @
1.347.259.1166 (voicemail)
Charlyjdominguez@hotmail.com
Facebook.com/charlyjdominguez
Myspace.com/charlyjdominguez
Twitter.com/charlydominguez
The inspiration behind my art is life itself. Primarily I am inspired by a ritualistic life and my experiences in the spiritual communities I belong to. My first paintings were based on the spirit world. I would receive visions of deities, spirits, and beings from other dimensions, and these visions informed my work. Sexuality and gender have also been themes of inspiration. Growing up in New York City is difficult period because of poverty and violence, and as a Queer Multi-Spirited young person, often misunderstood and ostracized because of my sexual orientation or my gender expression it was even more difficult to find places of peace and refuge. I came up existing in several cultures and subcultures. I identified with the black/latino, LGBT, house ball, Hip Hop culture and the many issues of oppression that we as a people face have inevitably been subjects which I have produced works. The process is therapeutic and is a constant outlet for me dealing with my issues. I am one with the art, everything from my appearance, my very extreme emotions, and my experience of this and other worlds are incorporated into my work. Art allows me to capture visions from beyond, docu
ment my experiences, purge from my own issues, and engage in a creative life with my community.2. What was your initial instinct when you decided to produce art professionally?
My initial instinct was the need to find my own language to communicate with the people in my life. Creative expression has been the basis by which I’ve been known since I was child. Dancing, Drawing, Painting, Writing poetry have been the tools I’ve used in my communication, and have been how people have identified with me throughout my life. The social service work of healing in which I have worked for and received benefited from brought me opportunities to use Art as a method of Education and tool for healing. I have collaborated with many community artists in projects, events, performance and visual art installations where I have been able to incorporate my personal struggles and issues that I am working through
3. How often do you produce work of art?
I produce works almost every day, from drawing, to painting, to my many physical transformations, photographs, writings…these are all parts of my daily rituals, whenever I’m not doing any of these things, that’s when I know something is seriously wrong.
4. What is your work space like?
My work space is my living space. My home is always filled with paintings in progress, a space to I can make almost anywhere my work space because if I get a vision or idea on the train, and I have my colored pencils with me, then that too becomes my work space. I always live with a whirlwind of organized mess, cluttered with paints, wig heads, wood, canvases, stones, clay, etc.
5. What other skills do you have that your art contributes to?
My art contributes to my skills in creative direction. I am able to visualize concepts for events, programs, and other productions.
6. Can you be taught to be an artist or is it a skill you are born with?
I believe we all have an artist inside of us, if we listen and allow it the freedom to express everything it feels and says. The skill is something I was born with, and am now interested in refining my skills through schooling but I do not want to lose the authenticity in my personal process. I do feel that the spirit of creativity is something that is not taught, it is something that like a child grows and like a sculpture molded.
7. Have you ever used your art in the bedroom?
Not often enough, but I am open to suggestions and may make special invitations for one or more…
8. Who’s work have you admired?
I admire the artists that I am connected through in my own life. Those people who I know personally who like me are
constantly creating and engaging in creative projects with me. They are too many to name but they are my family and friends, and you have been one of them ;-).9. Who has influenced your talent the most?
The goddess Oshun, she is my joy, my sadness, my laughter, my movement, my love, and my inner queen. And all the people who have been reflections of her in my life.
10. Do you sell your art? When is your next sell?
My original artwork is for sale. I am in the process of making prints of my works to sell. I have also been commissioned to create works for organizations, writers, and individuals for print, exhibition, and personal. My next sell will be a series new images created for the coming holidays, followed by an unveiling of new works and yet another altar ego NUINWIN during my birthday gathering January.
11. What type of emotions do you typical translate through your art?
I translate almost every emotion. I am a very moody old man/young child, and I have created works while feeling emotions I can name, and emotions that there are no words for. I would say passion is what I have to feel to in order to create anything.
12. Have you ever produced work that you have not liked or appreciated?
There have been many works that upon starting I have not liked, most of these I build upon, or totally start from scratch with, and I also believe that this is part of the creative process because most of my paintings start out being one thing, and turn into something totally unexpected/unplanned.
13. How can we follow you as an artist?
My website will be launched early 2010 but I can be contacted @
1.347.259.1166 (voicemail)
Charlyjdominguez@hotmail.com
Facebook.com/charlyjdominguez
Myspace.com/charlyjdominguez
Twitter.com/charlydominguez
1 comment:
Great Job on this intervew. Charly shares his vsion in his art work,
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