Draft:Juliana Rico

Juliana Rico is a nationally showcased, Latinx, queer, award winning, visual artist. She is also an educator, academic and consultant. Her artistic work focuses primarily on video and photography centered on the topics of representation and identity. As an educator Rico teaches at several Southern California institutions including Chaffey College, Cal Poly Pomona, and Santa Ana College. Rico also co-founded the Emerging Artists Society(2012) which is an artists community that focuses on aiding emerging artists in their development professionally and sharing resources.

Early Life and Education

Juliana Rico is of Latinx heritage. In 2009, she graduated with a Bachelors of Fine Art, Minor in Business from San Jose State University, San Jose. In 2014, she earned a Masters of Fine Art in Creative Photography from California State University Fullerton, Fullerton. Rico identifies as an "introverted, queer, full bodied, woman of color," and is a third generation Mexican-American.

Inspiration

Ricos inspiration for her work lies in her belief that art can "be a catalyst for change." Her aspiration is the push for a better understanding of society and the individual self, driving the viewer to question what they know and be open to contradictions through new narratives and perspectives. She uses her work as a way of "queering" how viewers in the United States understand, and depict queerness. Rico, as a Latinx, Queer woman has a unique perspective as an "other" and uses her perspective to "question and counter the colonialist defaults" and through collective healing create a space for underrepresented groups who until recently didn't see themselves represented in media and art.

Artistic Process

Rico's process is fueled by her belief in her position as an "outsider" or "othered" artist. This belief is beneficial to her artistic process. She uses her curiosity and penchant for collecting unusual bits that she thinks are important, then uses those pieces to help her create her pieces. She analyzes the pieces and sorts them based on their differences and similarities into collections, giving some kind of order to these items. The items vary drastically and contain things such as; rocks, belly button lint, sticks, dried scabs, etc. Additionally, Rico documents what many would see as the everyday or routine and through magnification of those processes, emotions, experiences, and results of the documentation, she turns them into her pieces.

Work

Many of Ricos artworks are created through performance. Performance in art contributes to pieces that have longer durations. The longer duration of the pieces lends an aspect of time and its effects onto the works. The effects of time become a prominent and grand aspect of the works. She creates maps as tools, through the use of science and subjectivity in order to create a better understanding of how things work and her position in the world. Ricos methods of creating often result in abstracted pieces that address beauty, shame, repulsion, and guilt.

Themes

The primary theme of Rico's works is the subject of identity. through her exploration of "the body in surface, function, and memory to scrutinize social constructs and define her own truth." The artist uses her platform to investigate the function and surface of the body through photography, video, or both in order to scrutinize the societal perceptions of femininity and gender stereotypes. One of Ricos artworks focused on the documentation of what happens biologically to people who suffer from insomnia, questioning what the physical effects on the body were.

Series

-Latinx Series, 2017-2020. This series focuses on the typical media portrayal of Latinx people through the viewpoint of tropes and stereotypes. Often these representations are damaging and leave out the individual and group complexities. The Latinx Series was a project that lasted from 2017-2020 in an attempt to document Latinx people from their own perspective. The artist let the individuals choose the location and clothing that they felt represented them most accurately, which gave the subject agency. Overall, the project showed Latinx people through a much broader lense, full of range, depth, and complexity.

-Self Decolonization, 2020. In Self Decolonization Rico focuses on the stories and colonial ideals that are ingrained and normalized in the subconscious of most Americans. Rico also recognizes in this piece that even in marginalized communities there is still racism, and colorism towards themselves and other marginalized communities. Through this work the artist reflects on her years of research on decolonization and anti-racism regarding the history of black, indigenous, queers, and women, then reflecting on the trauma of her own lived experiences. Self Decolonization is the artist in the act of documenting herself facing her own internalized white supremacy and doing the tedious painful self-reflective work necessary to become actively anti-racist.

Exhibitions

Solo:

1. The Sports Show (2017, San Jose Police Activities League Office, San Jose)

2. Tips 4 Tunes (2009, San Jose State University, Gallery 8, San Jose)

3. On the Horizon (2012, California State University Fullerton-Center Gallery, Fullerton)

4. Abscond (2012, California State University Fullerton-Exit Gallery, Fullerton)

5. Sessions Vol.1(2013, California State University Fullerton-East Gallery, Fullerton): Collaboration with Jennifer Frias, Kevin Stewart-Magee, Alice Emmons.

6. All That Remains (2014, California State University Fullerton-West Gallery, Fullerton)

7. 30/30+ (2015, Grand Central Art Center- Education Gallery, Santa Ana)30/30+ "investigates the body in both surface and function to scrutinize social perceptions of gender and femininity. Responding to the adage a lady never breaks a sweat' and the social stigma attached, the works serve as a quiet but firm confrontation to the male gaze. This series illustrates the antiquated notions of how women are presumed to be. Mixing a detached scientific approach with a quotidian and personal subject matter, the works create subjective maps that examine emotions felt, places encountered, and experiences lived."

8. Socorro (2017, SantoraSpace205, Santa Ana) "This annual exhibit, the signature event of the Brea Gallery for 36 years, continues to explore artistic movements happening in California, featuring artists working in a huge array of mediums and styles. The artwork in Made in California is selected by a panel jurors, including Gallery Director Heather Bowling and guest juror Juliana Rico. This show is a diverse cross-section of creativity from across the state and always surprising. A solo show, featuring a body of work by one artist, is also on view."

Group

1. Taking up Space (2020, City of "Brea Gallery, Brea)A deeply personal and intimate group show, Taking Up Space, will feature a diverse group of women artists who share their stories, cultures, and perspectives through their artistic practice. Staged to supplement rather than negate the typically male-dominated exhibitions of the past, this show will highlight experiences, struggles, and strengths of these women while providing visitors an opportunity to look through the eyes of this group of talented artists who will come together in the space."

2. Still (2022, LAUNCH LA, Los Angeles): "LAUNCH Gallery is proud to present "Still", a group exhibition of eight artists who have created their own still lifes based on the various definitions of the word "still". The exhibition organized by Rough Play Collective opens April 2, 2022 with a reception from 4-7 PM at Launch Gallery, 170 S La Brea Avenue, Los Angeles. The interpretation of Still by this diverse group of artists is informed by the time spent confined, secluded, and surrounded daily by the same objects; the exhibition design further reflects quiet isolation and expanded personal space through social distancing."

3. Rasquachismo (2024, Huntington Beach Art Center, Huntington Beach): "The Huntington Beach Art Center is pleased to present Rasquachismo, a multi-media exhibition celebrating the aesthetics and transformative power of Lowriders. Featuring work by William Camargo with Alkaid Ramirez, Justin Favela, Stephanie Mercado, Arturo Meza II, Aaron Moctezuma, José Manuel Flores Nava, Juliana Rico, Alicia Villegas-Rolon, and Cora J. Quiroz."