Monica Garza (born in Alamogordo, New Mexico) is an American artist of Mexican and Korean background based in Atlanta, Georgia.[1][2] She specializes in painting care-free, ethically and racially ambiguous women of color, of all body types.[3] She is known for nude, contemporary portraits, contemporary figurative painting, sex and racial ethnicity, ceramic, text, and sculpture work.
Monica Garza | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1988 Alamogordo, New Mexico |
| Occupation | painter |
Biography
editBorn in 1988 in Alamogordo, New Mexico, Garza has a multi-cultural background with a Mexican father, and Korean mother. Garza resides in Atlanta, Georgia, where she focuses on her art after traveling on and off consistently. Her art work depicts women of different shades of brown, displaying the nude body, while playing sports, texting, working out, and the average modern-day leisure activities.[4][5] Garza focuses on themes of sex positivity, self portraits, and modern day technology in her artwork. She emphasizes being unapologetically herself, when creating nude portraits of women doing the normal day-to-day functions. She creates her paintings based on her own cultural background and memories, which mainly exhibit women of color.[6]
Education
editWhen Garza was 18 years old, she attended Syracruse University until she left to travel to Kibera, Kenya. Soon after, Garza attended California College of the Arts in San Francisco, where she earned a BFA in painting and drawing.[1][7]
Artworks
editBonjour De Monique, 2018
editThis art piece by Garza consists of acrylic, wool, embroidery string, and oil pastel on canvas. It is held in the VI Gallery at the Mine II show.[8] This piece displays a woman who appears to be enjoying her solitude in her own space. The color scheme is a soft pink, and a dark blue. The background displays a chaotic area with cups, utensils, and plants.
Desayuno 17, 2017
editThis art piece by Garza consists of acrylic and oil pastel on canvas. It is held in the VI Gallery at the "Copenhagen V Show.[8] This piece displays two racially ambiguous women very close to each other, sitting down on separate chairs. Their bodies are connecting through the palm of their hands.
Spf, 2016
editThis art piece by Garza consists of acrylic and oil pastel on paper.[8] This piece by Garza displays a woman, specifically a woman of color, laying on a red rectangular object. The woman in the painting is nude, with a blue rectangular object adjacent to the red object. Fruit is also displayed in the painting, above the woman.
Exhibitions
editSolo exhibitions
editGroup shows
edit- 2019
- One Thousand and One Nights, Artual Gallery, Beirut[10]
- 2018
- MINE II, V1 Gallery, Copenhagen V
- Drawing Room, Over the Influence, Hong Kong [8]
- 'EXTRA, The Hole, New York [8]
- The Beyond: Georgia O'Keeffe and Contemporary Art, North Carolina Museum of Art, North Carolina[11]
- 2017
- Mine- Art, signed books, exhibition catalogues, artist books, collectibles, editions, posters, rarities, prints, and free stuff, V1 Gallery, Copenhagen V
- Nude- Group exhibition, v1 Gallery, Copenhagen V [8]
- 2016
Collections
editGarza's work has been held at Crystal Bridges Museum in Bentonville, Arkansas,[12] V1 Gallery in Copenhagen V,[13] and New Image Art Gallery in West Hollywood, CA.
References
edit- ^ a b "The brilliantly brazen brushstrokes of artist Monica Garza". It's Nice That. 2016-11-24. Retrieved 2019-04-28.
- ^ "Monica Kim Garza: Food, Culture, and Creating Art from Atlanta, Georgia - Interviews". KZSC Santa Cruz. 2017-09-25. Retrieved 2019-05-29.
- ^ "Monica Garza paints women in all their curvaceous glory". Design Indaba. Retrieved 2019-05-29.
- ^ "monica garza's female form". The Fifth Sense. Retrieved 2019-05-29.
- ^ Newell-Hanson, Alice; Wheeler, André-Naquian (2017-10-13). "brilliant, irreverent paintings of woc living their best (nude) lives". I-D. Retrieved 2019-05-29.
- ^ "You Need Monica Kim Garza's Nude Paintings In Your Life". The FADER. Retrieved 2019-05-29.
- ^ "MUSE: Artist Monica Garza". Labeling Men. Retrieved 2019-05-29.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "Monica Kim Garza - 158 Artworks, Bio & Shows on Artsy". www.artsy.net. Retrieved 2019-04-28.
- ^ "Monica Kim Garza". Wall Street International. 2017-04-07. Retrieved 2019-05-29.
- ^ "US artists reinterpret Arabia's '1001 nights' in Beirut exhibition". The Arab Weekly. Retrieved 2019-05-29.
- ^ Applebaum, Lauren (October 9, 2018). "Georgia O'Keeffe and the Beyond". NC Art Museum.
- ^ Benson, Eben. "Juxtapoz Magazine - Vetting a Vibe: Monica Kim Garza". www.juxtapoz.com. Retrieved 2019-04-28.
- ^ "STUDIO VIEW 5: MONICA KIM GARZA". V1 Gallery. Retrieved 2019-05-29.