Natalia Torrez -

My artwork reminds me of the songs “Good Life” and “Sour Patch Kids” since it's an exploration of growing up and looking back at the memories we treasure. Through my art I wanted to portray a nostalgic feel, almost a yearning for our childhood and our past selves. Embracing the theme of childhood and growing up, I used a series of vibrant colors to further express that youthful innocence and joy.

Two of the first pieces I created Snoopy and Mickey Mouse truly encompass the idea best described by Dr. Seuss “Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory”. Both these pieces were created in homage to the Sunday mornings I spent in bed watching cartoons as a child. In Snoopy I used a variety of materials to help it resemble a child’s arts & crafts project, and childhood innocence. In Mickey Mouse I strayed away from his typical colors and chose a mixture of greens, blues, and purples instead. These two pieces truly set the scene, as nostalgia and reminisce of old times.

Similarly, my piece Genie inspired by Fernando Botero’s penchant for voluminous style, was created to celebrate one of my favorite disney characters growing up, the Genie from Aladdin. At first glance, the similarities between my piece and the beloved Disney character aren’t to be seen. However, this was purposeful as I chose to challenge myself in creating a piece of a different style mimicking Botero’s voluminous style, “Boterismo” which depicts people and figures in large, exaggerated volumes. The piece Genie continues the theme of nostalgia.

Building on this theme, my piece Chaco inspired Andy Warhol’s Marilyn Monroe Complete Portfolio is a tribute to my long time four-legged friend. Inspired by the vibrant colors and the repetition of the prints in Warhol’s piece, Chaco was created in the same light. Made up of a series of colorful prints of my dog.

In contrast, my series Emotions begins to focus on the emotions we all feel as we begin to grow up. In the series, I depict various emotions, each with their own background made up of analogous colors. As we begin to grow up we face trials and tribulations both of small and large impacts that cause us to feel anxiety, deep sadness, jealousy, anger, and joy. Each of these pieces encompasses one of these emotions. If you look closely, you can note that Joy is painted on a slightly bigger canvas. This is to highlight the hope and the happiness that we are able to find from time to time.

My work has been greatly influenced by the journey of growing up and nostalgia and yearning for the past.