Today we’d like to introduce you to Grace Zuñiga.
Grace, we’d love to hear your story and how you got to where you are today both personally and as an artist.
I am originally from a small South Texas town named Sandia, but for the sake of familiarity I usually say I am from Corpus Christi, Texas. They share a county so it’s close enough. I grew up in a single-parent household and I am the last of seven children. Growing up in the country I was surrounded by nature which fed my imaginative personality. I took a sculpture class my first semester of college and was hooked. In 2007, I received my Bachelor of Fine Arts with a focus in darkroom photography from Texas A&M University – Corpus Christi. The alchemy of the darkroom had me in a trance.
I desperately wanted to get out of Corpus Christi and knew the only way was by continuing my education. I worked on my portfolio during 2008 and in 2009 I left for the Lamar Dodd School of Art at the University of Georgia with a full-ride to the Printmaking and Papermaking department. During my three years of graduate school I dove into processes to which I had never been exposed. The department encouraged interdisciplinary studies and through this I learned many new techniques and experimented combining them. I graduated in 2012 with my Master of Fine Arts and immediately moved back to Texas. I was missing breakfast tacos in a serious way! For the past six years, I’ve continued my practice and show both locally and nationally, while working full time.
I taught at Houston Community College and The Glassell School of Art and in 2013 I was a resident at the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft. I also worked as the Curator and Director of Art Education at MECA (Multicultural Education and Counseling Through the Arts) for three years, and now I am the Creative Director at Sawyer Yards. I continue to find a balance between work, studio, and life. I’ve been seduced by a variety of art forms, but the common denominator in my work is always the process of making and the exploration of materials. My curiosities about materials and the limits in how far I could bend, fold, and mold may never be satiated, but I feel now after 16 years I have finally found my visual vocabulary. However, I am not anchored to this thought because I understand that my practice and artwork will continue to grow with me.
We’d love to hear more about your art. What do you do you do and why and what do you hope others will take away from your work?
I work with both organic and inorganic materials, such as but not limited to, charcoal, resin, paper fibers, and thread. I strive to create powerfully emotive compositions by super imposing my visual cosmology and defining my own sacred objects, geography and sense of time. I find inspiration in natural occurrences and attempt to emulate nature through my manipulation of material. Creating these moments of reverence or reflection forces a private devotion and consideration of each object. Each composition created commemorate relationships of tension, texture, and materiality. Positioning the materials in considered landscapes is intended for them to parallel a grander scheme of memory and history in an attempt to conjure the visceral and evoke a palpable sense of the sacred. The scale of the material landscapes serves as a way for the viewer to immerse themselves in an act of reflection, mediation, and devotion.
Do you have any events or exhibitions coming up? Where would one go to see more of your work? How can people support you and your artwork?
I have an upcoming exhibition, Endless Summer, at Sabine Street Studios opening September 22nd from 6-8 PM. I will be showing with Celan Bouillet and Amy Beth Wright. You can always view my work on my website as well.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://www.gracezuniga.com
- Email: grace.e.zuniga@gmail.com
- Instagram: @gracezuniga7
Image Credit:
Tere Garcia.
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