Mirrored - Kalyn Flores

Kaylin Flores -

Nature versus nurture, a fascinating concept behind any individual. Personally, both largely exist by my upbringing. My body of work aims to explore the relationship that my upbringing has on my art, specifically region driven. My personal influences and interpretations may vary from the viewer, but that is the goal as everyone has a unique upbringing. My body of work explores technique development and my growth as an artist in general over year one and year two IB art.

Thus, a unifying idea behind my body of work is “New Mexico True”. New Mexico is unlike any other. A lot of people overlook emblems that are true to New Mexico and symbolic of the rich history within the state. Whether it be the culture or just symbols New Mexico is known for, it truly is a vibrantly colored state worth noticing. Growing up in New Mexico is one of the most influential parts of my life as I’ve experienced so many noteworthy things that encapsulate beauty on multiple fronts. Within this, I am influenced by prominent New Mexico artists such as Georgia O'keeffe and current artist, Noé Barnett. Georgia O’keeffe’s style, choice of subjects and concepts, and media use is similar to my own as well as color choices. Noé Barnetts influence on me is similar to Georgia's but is more modern in terms of depictions and techniques. His street art is incredibly inspiring to me and breathtaking. Both likewise explore cultural concepts or global issues of prominence that speak a lot to necessary change that needs to occur. Colorado tattoo artist Chris Roberts is also a very prevalent influence in my work because of his use of geometric elements, colors and stippling. I utilize mixed media because of the various pigments and textures that can be created, techniques that can be used and the overall effect they have on a piece. I often utilize contrast in terms of color and space that has a varied effect depending on the medium used.

I have always been drawn to pointillism art and focused pieces so a lot of my art uses the same technique of stippling to create contrast and shading effects. A few pieces this technique is prevalent in include Burques Finest, Travel My Way, Who Let the Dogs Out, ¿Rojo o Verde?, and Eterno. The use of watercolor is similar to media usage of Georgia O’keeffe, the colors are similar to both artists but the vibrancy more so Noé Barnett. The geometric elements in my art, like Burques Finest, are inspired by Chris Roberts. I intend for my art to be visually appealing color wise and presentation wise. I believe the flow and coherence to my work is strong and personally, outlines a stronger and richer meaning behind the concepts depicted.

My art has grown significantly from junior year to senior because I have been able to focus primarily on my use of mixed mediums including watercolor, acrylic and ink. I have been able to refine my techniques and build on what I believe to be true New Mexico. I attempt to express what I think is true New Mexico. I am (likely) creating a unified display of work that is visually appealing and coherent color wise in terms of contrasting black and white placement. I hope that the audience perception of the works can be influenced by their own experiences as we are likely all New Mexicans. Though the significance of my pieces may vary for each person, what's visually and conceptually present will aid in that understanding of personal experience. An example of this is the “Dog House” piece I created. A lot of people might recognize it or automatically connect it to Breaking Bad, a New Mexico staple, but for me, I think of childhood experiences. Going to get lunch at the Dog House after a day at the Zoo or Explora, memories likewise from my upbringing. Not everyone shares these experiences but they might have their own or be able to create other connections. Therefore, New Mexico true is a unifying idea behind my worlds that explore New Mexico emblems, concepts, culture and personal experiences through mixed media depictions that have various influences and interpretations.

Burques Finest, watercolor and ink on paper, 27.94 cm x 38.1 cm

This triptych-like series encapsulates New Mexico emblems through watercolor and ink using techniques and geometric concepts observed by Colorado based tattoo artist, Chris Roberts. Combining vibrant colors and stippled, pointillism style ink creates a colored shading effect without overpowering the piece. Each piece utilizes a different technique of watercolor (wet on wet paper, wet on dry paper and both combined) and a different type of ink (fine point sharpie, Micron 05 ink, and gel ink).

¿Rojo o verde?, watercolor and ink on paper, 27.9 cm x 38.1 cm

Building upon the everlasting impact New Mexico has had on me thus far, it has also taught me to embrace personal identity and beliefs. Sticking with vibrant watercolor and ink techniques which show growth in precision, this piece utilizes identifying visual elements such as the chiles and license plates to emphasize the prominence of developed identity. Rojo. Just like most New Mexicans, I have an answer for this question so, what’s yours?

Travel My Way, watercolor, acrylic and ink on paper, 27.9 ct bex 38.1 cm

This piece was inspired by Route 66, the road symbolic of opportunity. Though it's not the road itself, Route 66 Diner is a staple for many. I wasn't sure how to create neon lights using watercolor but I decided to do something similar to my previous watercolor pieces by making the colors pop only in some areas and letting it flow. Though I'm not sure they glow per say, they are vibrantly lively. This piece emphasizes the opportunities New Mexico has provided me with thus far.

Cruise Control, watercolor, acrylic and ink on paper, 40.6 cm x 17.8 cm

Similar to some of my other pieces, I explored the contrast of watercolor colors, with black on black background. This seems to result in a pretty cool effect that highlights certain aspects. This piece depicts a lowrider behind the Route 66 sign that is found along Central. The lowrider community is a big part of New Mexico and thus has a deep cultural influence. This along with my APD lowrider project are reflective of part of my identity.

NM Piece by Piece, alcohol markers and colored pencils on paper, 27.94 cm x 35.56 cm

This piece functions as a cultural statement and can be perceived as a religious one. The use of landscape and color evokes excitement and alludes to origins. The element of space and the principle of pattern create areas that seem to have more dimensions while the rest is smooth. Warm and dark tones are present to add to this allusion and just make the middle pop when compared to the puzzle pieces. There is a theme of beauty in origins despite faults associated with it.

Eterno, watercolor and ink on paper, 27.9 cm x 38.1 cm

New Mexico has imprinted an everlasting and eternal impact on my life and development. Whether it be through the culture that is seen in the people, the atmosphere or the overall physical environment, some parts of New Mexico will be forever ingrained in my life. Consistent with previous techniques, my watercolor was symbolic of my life flowing through the colorful state and each dot in my stippling came to represent that growth amongst myself and where I currently stand.

Who Let the Dogs Out, watercolor, acrylic and ink on paper, 30.5 cm x 22.9 cm

This work depicts an authentically New Mexican cityscape, the “Dog House''. The stippling in the bricks took a tediously long time but I believe it paid off in the end. This cityscape is a very recognized staple in Albuquerque for its popularity in Breaking Bad but to me, it’s about childhood innocence ironically. Nonetheless, not only does it highlight the ever growing film industry in New Mexico, but my own developmental experiences.

Come On In, watercolor, acrylic and ink on paper, 30.5 cm x 22.9 cm

This piece image was taken at Route 66 diner where the “open” neon lights sign was inviting me in with a welcoming glow. For most places, their “open” signs do not speak to me like this one did. I believe this could have been due to the life moving around inside, the colors, or even just the neon sign itself. I tried to capture the classic nature of the scene while preserving the welcoming aspect of it with flowing colors. I translated this towards NM as a whole, welcoming others in.