Today we’d like to introduce you to Fernando Cabrera Gonzalez.
Fernando, please kick things off for us by telling us about yourself and your journey so far.
I was born on January 1998 in a border town named “San Luis R.C.” on the side of the Mexican border. My city was located right next to the border that divided the states of Sonora, Mexico. And Arizona, US. I was born and raised in Mexico and spent 15 years of my life living there. I moved to Arizona when it was time for me to start High School. When I came to Arizona, I faced many problems. The main challenge for me was learning English. My lack of fluency in the language led to struggle not only academically but also socially. I was made fun of mainly because of the way that I spoke. In a desperate attempt to find a way to express myself I found my voice in painting.
I was first introduced to painting in 2013. For the first couple of years, I focused on using art in general as a way of expression. During this time, I started feeling detachment from my own culture while still not feeling included in the American culture. This feeling of detachment is something that I carry with me even as of today, and it has impacted the direction of my work.
On 2016, I moved to Tempe, Arizona. I started attending Arizona State University and pursuing a degree in Fine Arts. During this year there was very strong political tension, and topics such as race, and inequality were constantly being debated. These political and social issues have greatly influenced my work and change the direction of the subjects currently being explored in my artwork.
Can you give our readers some background on your art?
I started painting with acrylic when I was in high school. I experimented with different ways of applying it from traditionally painting with brushes to throwing the paint on the canvas. Once I got introduced to oil painting I was never able to go back to acrylic and lost interest in any other mediums. There is something about its workability that just made me fall in love with. When I started attending ASU, I wasn’t sure about what I wanted to say with my paintings. I just knew that I wanted to paint. It took some years and a lot of bad paintings to finally realize that I want to use painting not only as a way of expression but also as a tool to explore and defend my heritage and culture.
Living in Arizona, a conservative state that shares a border with mexico.,I often hear comments about immigrants. These comments are usually about how they damage the United States of America by stealing jobs and committing crime. I also hear comments about conservatives and the way that is perceived by the American culture. It feels like instead of trying to come to an understanding most people are interested in fighting each other. With my paintings, I wish to show immigrants and Mexicans like me in a different light. One that does not fight with your beliefs but instead aims to make the viewer feel and understand. I want to share stories from my life that will hopefully help people understand why immigrants like me abandon the land that we love so much.
What would you recommend to an artist new to the city, or to art, in terms of meeting and connecting with other artists and creatives?
I think simply talking to other artists is the best way to connect. I usually talk to people during their exhibitions and ask them questions about their work, This has led to some very valuable friendships that I otherwise wouldn’t have obtained.
What’s the best way for someone to check out your work and provide support?
As of right now the best way to support me is to follow my Instagram. I go by fernandocabrera475, and I usually post updates about exhibitions and projects I am currently working on. Some of my recent work is also there and will continue to upload pictures of new paintings.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fernandocabrera475
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fernandocabreragonzalezart
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