In chosenfamily, David Antonio Cruz celebrates the bonds between individuals who have determined they may love one another unconditionally, no organic relationship required.
He paints lavish portraits of queer folks of shade wearing vibrant, patterned robes, strings of pearls, sequin tops, and stylish, boldly framed glasses. Depicted embracing, lounging, and infrequently piled atop each other in a monumental mass, the figures are comfortable and seem to unite as one.
wegotturnedawayonthesecondnight,buticamebackagainandagain,andagain_ the mound.” (2024), oil and acrylic on wooden panel, 72 x 98 1/2 x 2 inches
Rising throughout COVID-induced isolation, Cruz’s chosenfamily sequence is about at house. Victorian-era sofas cradle the themes, whose particular person our bodies dangle over the wood frames and drape throughout each other. The latest additions to the sequence mirror on what it means to really feel at house. Stretching as much as eight toes large, these immense work are on view by way of October 26 within the artist’s solo present come shut, like earlier than at Monique Meloche Gallery.
When the artist prepares to make a portrait, he may first host a cocktail party or intimate gathering to type bonds between the longer term sitters and foster a trusting group. What follows is an elaborate photoshoot throughout which the themes are inspired to dramatize.
“The way you pose for me isn’t just sitting, there’s this sense of dripping, of leaning; we’re performing and being extra, and for me that’s the radical part, that’s the joy of being non-conforming and not falling into rules,” he mentioned in an interview.
come shut, like earlier than can be a response to the connection between Spain and Puerto Rico, the latter of which Cruz has ancestral ties. Referencing maritime portray traditions and Théodore Géricault’s precarious scene in “Raft of the Medusa,” particularly, the artist questions the enduring, colonial implications of the ocean and the uncertainties related to homemaking. By work crammed with love and unbreakable bonds, he subverts the seafaring style by planting his topics on agency footing, their sights set on a hopeful future.
Along with Cruz’s present in Chicago, New Yorkers can discover the artist’s exhibition when the kids come house by way of February 16, 2025, at Sugar Hill Kids’s Museum of Artwork & Storytelling. Go to Instagram for extra.
asigh,exhale.but,icamebacktoletyouknow,gotathingforyou,andican’letitgo_ the raft.” (2024), oil, acrylic, and ink on wooden panel, 72 x 96 x 2 inches
wegotturnedawayonthesecondnight,buticamebackagainandagain,andagain_ the mound.” (2024), oil and acrylic on wooden panel, 72 x 98 1/2 x 2 inches
