Today we’d like to introduce you to Marlo Saucedo.
Hi Marlo, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Creating and writing have always fun for me. When I was little I used to write and illustrate little mini-books, and was so happy and excited to win scholarship classes to The Glassell Junior School via their Outdoor Sketching Competition 3 years in a row, learning much more about art. I left Houston – and Texas – to major in psychology, and after a short stint in Washington, DC – where my nonprofit worked closely with the UNHCR to repatriate Vietnamese-Americans my own age born in Vietnam during the war – I was accepted into the MBA program at UT and returned to Texas to complete it.
It wasn’t an easy master’s degree, but especially for someone who wasn’t a finance or accounting undergrad. I thought about quitting. But I didn’t – and difficulties at this time in my life are exactly what led me back to art, because creative outlets – audited art classes, DJing for KVRX, writing for the student newspaper – became all-important juxtapositions to my classes. These loves have never let me go.
My internship between MBA years was working with artist management in NYC, while writing music articles for Cover NYC and other magazines. After graduate school I got a job in Houston programming a large law site on the freshly new World Wide Web, and part of the job description was traveling internationally to teach lawfirms how to program their own URLs.
At the turn of the century my husband and I moved into a loft downtown. Outside my law tech job, I wrote for CultureMap and Houston Business Journal. The city’s history became newly fascinating. I created paper pieces of the skyline, drawing each building from facts like architect, height, physical address, and materials, with Houston’s history written in a lighter shade in the background. My first of many 77002-area exhibits was at Kaveh Kanes Coffee. Architects and lawyers with offices downtown bought pieces … and so it began.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The road isn’t smooth for anyone; there’s always something – and the difficulty is when the growth happens.
There was a piece I created while I was thinking of quitting the MBA program – just a way to non-linearly dump my thoughts. But it was ALSO my first piece in the wordart style I use today, although I didn’t know that at the time. The piece became a new beginning. It now hangs in a home in Portugal, and I’m so glad something wraught from my dismay now brings so much joy to those who bought it and see it daily.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I specialize in work that literally tells a story, art that can be read (although a Word document is also included with each piece). My art is handwritten, where words become form, in any language. A single word, the history of a place, a long list of facts or names: These words might form a skyline, trees, a portrait, or a sparrow. Anything is possible. My pieces lend themselves to commissions, for family or a company, where memories and goals/values can be recorded in a unique and permanent piece of art.
Community art – where everyone signs or writes on the piece and I finish it out to become a recognizable silhouette – may also be created as a way for every individual in a group to have representation in one single work of art. This kind of piece is created to represent many people as one group, or become a unique memento of an event and everyone who attended.
My most recent commissions have been large-scale, and in collaboration with a single other artist. Artist Leslie Gaworecki and I worked with poet Outspoken Bean to create pieces commissioned by the City of Houston Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs on behalf of the Houston Airport System for the mezzanine and lower level of Gate D5 in the International Terminal at Houston Intercontinental Airport. Artist Amy Malkan and I designed and executed a 12-foot by 55-foot mural on The Woodlands Waterway, commissioned by Howard Hughes to honor the Township’s 50th anniversary. These projects were immensely enjoyable as we worked together to merge our different mediums and styles to come up with something unique to our partnership and distinct to either of our solo work.
Other examples of my work include a commission for St. Luke’s United Methodist Church, for their 75th Anniversary, a skyline installed in their lobby at 3471 Westheimer. A family’s recent commission was a large piece for their home with an extensive list of memories written into their symbolic animal, a Rhino. When the Astros won the World Series in 2022, I of course put all their players and coaches, highlights from the games, etc. into the Astros logo. “1000 Words of Gratitude” was commissioned as part of UTHealth Houston’s “Many Faces. One Mission.” campaign. It is always an honor to partner with a client to help create their vision, and to have my work’s uniqueness recognized and enjoyed in public and private spaces.
Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out?
I think I came in well-prepared in understanding that respect for the client’s time in prompt communication, clarity of expectations, and consistency in meeting deadlines are essential across industries – including art. But I’m also very thankful that I landed here, in Houston: My grandparents’ and my parents’ city, yes – but a completely different city for each generation. Today’s Houston reflects years of immigrant resettlement in its current cultural wealth; it’s extremely vibrant and diverse, replete with possibilities and inspiration for art like mine. There has been so much support from other artists and collectors, and the city of Houston itself, for local artists. This is a place to try for opportunities, learn, and grow. It’s important to realize not every city is like this for its local artists.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.marlosaucedo.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marlosaucedoart/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marlosaucedo.art/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marlo-saucedo-art/
Image Credits
Feature photo-Claire McAdams
Two photos from IAH-Skyworks
All others-Marlo Saucedo
