SKYSOUL, a solo multi-mobile sculpture installation
As the year gets underway, I wish you a continued joyful, healthy, and fruitful 2024! 2023 was an extraordinary year for my artistic achievements. I greatly appreciate the support I received from my friends, family, collectors, and curators as I exhibited my art in multiple venues. The year was filled with significant activities and accomplishments.
The Sugar Hill Museum of Art in New York City, presented SKYSOUL, a solo multi-mobile sculpture installation that fills the skylight gallery of the Museum. This artwork consists of original printed mobile sculptures and floor vinyl artwork. The project includes a full-color catalog with an essay by the art historian, Tatiana Reinoza. The exhibition originally ran from September 9, 2023, to February 18, 2024, and is now extended to August 18, 2024.
TransBorder Art Residency Governor’s Island
TransBorder Art Residency, directed by artist Graciela Cassel on Governor’s Island, New York, took place in June, when I was given the opportunity to create a large portion of the mobiles for the SKYSOUL exhibition at the Sugar Hill Museum. This was an enriching experience where, in addition to producing my artwork, I had the opportunity to interact with wonderful artists in a harmonious atmosphere.
SKYWIDE, a solo multi-mobile sculpture installation
The beginning of 2024 has been a whirlwind of activity, starting off with an invitation to create an art installation at Lehman College Art Gallery in the Bronx, New York. The wonderful curatorial team of Bart Bland, Deborah Yasinsky, and Sarah Alvira made it an amazing experience to put together SKYWIDE in the Gallery Rotonda. SKYWIDE is a collection of mobiles, prints, sculptures, and wall prints. The walls are painted in turquoise, and the center column is salmon, both covered with wall prints. The exhibition runs from February 7 to May 4, 2024.
IFPDA Print Fair 2024
I participated in the International Fine Print Dealers Associations (IFPDA) Print Fair at the Park Avenue Armory, New York City, from February 15 to 18, 2024, as part of the Dominican York Proyecto GRAFICA (DYPG) printmakers collective. This opportunity came to fruition through the herculean efforts of founding DYPG members Luanda Lozano and myself. The print fair was a great success, with many visitors and sales.
Nation of Graffiti Artists (NOGA) Book, 2nd Edition, 2023
The second edition of Nation of Graffiti Artists (NOGA) was published in 2023 with added photographs and text. The book was written by Chris Pape, with photographs by Michael Lawrence, and published by Beyond the Streets. Some of my photographs are included as well. I started out as a graffiti artist, writing as SAL 161. I eventually ventured into NOGA, the Nation of Graffiti Artists, an artist's workshop located on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It was the vision of Jack Pelsinger for an art studio where teens could develop their interests in the arts. I created some of my first artworks on canvas there. The book was reviewed by Brooklyn Street Art.
SAL-161 piece on the Broadway Line 1973
One of my old subway pieces is in the new book Gordon Matta-Clark: NYC Graffiti Archive 1972/73 (published in 2024), written by Carlo McCormick, Caleb Neelon, and Chris Pape, published by Beyond the Streets, a Roger Gastman Production. The SAL-161 piece was composed of alternating green and white letters with a chrome cloud.
These two books are available at https://beyondthestreets.com/
Enter the Dragon 2024
Enter the Dragon (2024), a Repróllage artwork composed of prints made by community printmaking workshops held in New York City parks as part of the Shared Dialogue, Shared Space Project with the Korea Art Forum, was featured in the culminating exhibition of the project at the Storefront for Ideas in Chinatown, New York City, from February 7 to April 5, 2024.
Nature’s Echo 2023 a mural at Inwood Hill Park
Nature’s Echo is a mural at Inwood Park, in Manhattan, near the Isham Avenue entrance to the park. It is part of the of the Shared Dialogue, Shared Space Project with the Korea Art Forum. The concept for this artwork is the human impact on the environment, represented by a colorful abstract background with superimposed silhouettes of the absence of animals. There was a community engagement component where the public painted stencils of native flowers of New York State onto the mural.
The Korea Art Forum, director Heng-Gil Han, hosted a multitude of multi-cultural events throughout the New York Parks Department in 2023. I conducted printmaking workshops in Bowen Park, Queens; Inwood Hill Park, Manhattan; Greely Square, Manhattan; and Maria Sola Garden, Bronx. The crescendo came with the Nature’s Echo mural painting at Inwood Hill Park.
Metropolitan Museum of Art sales of DYPG portfolios
In fantastic news for 2024, an initiative by founding DYPG members Luanda Lozano and myself made the sale of the Dominican York Proyecto GRAFICA (DYPG) print portfolios to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The museum acquired the complete collection of the portfolios Manifestaciones, Here&There, Comunidad/Community, and Uptown Print Project.
El Viajeros X2
El Viajeros X2 was part of El Ojo Del Grabado 2 exhibition, at the Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo (UASD) in the Dominican Republic, curated by the artist Humberto Grullon. The print selected, Viajeros X2, is a woodcut of humanoid bananas and wings that references the migrants’ journey.
She Angel, 2018, Printed Sculpture
I participated in the annual Caribbean Fine Art Fair (CaFA), Grand Salle Gallery, in Barbados with several of my printed sculptures in March 2023 and 2024. The art fair is curated by Anderson Pilgrim.
Cembros 5 – Rey de La Esperanza, 2022, 7.5”x5.5” each, template & painting
Summer Show at the Artego Art Gallery in Queens, New York, curated by David Lee, included two small paintings based on the Cembros print, the template, and a painting of “Cembros 5 – Rey de La Esperanza.” These artworks are an exploration of multiple mediums.
Angelo in the Architecture
Angelo in the Architecture and its mate, two large-format prints, were sold at auction in the Latinx Art auction at the Swann Auction Galleries, New York City, in May 2023. In addition, I coordinated the sale for auction of the Comunidad/Community, print portfolio by Dominican York Proyecto Grafica (DYPG).
He Angel, 2018, Printed Sculpture
Free Your Mind, an exhibition at the Jamaica Center for Arts, Jamaica, New York featured three printed sculptures. Here is “He Angel,” 2018, a printed sculpture.
New York Artists & Their Art, A Moses Ros film
My film New York Artists & Their Art was featured in the exhibition Hip Hop 101, at Wallworks New York, Bronx, NY, from July 8 to August 26, 2024.
This film was created in the Autumn of 1981. I conducted a series of interviews with six visual writers in the green room of the Winter Garden Theater in New York. The artists were interviewed before going on stage to paint the background wall as the Twyla Tharp Dancers performed “Deuce Coupe”. These artists were Crash, Daze, Dondi, Haze, Lady Pink, and Zephyr. The scenes are interlaced with subway trains, a mural by LEE, and the creation of a spray paint piece by SAL 161.
Art On Paper
Had a great showing of my mobiles and sculptures at the Art On Paper fair with the artist collective ArteLatAm at Pier 36 New York City, on Thursday, September 7 to 10, 2023.
Honoring My Mother & Father
“Honoring My Mother & Father” was featured in the Across Imaginary Boundaries exhibition at the Riverfront Art Gallery in Yonkers, NY, which was extended to January 18, 2024, from September 7, 2023.
We Can Fly
We Can Fly, a printed mobile, was on view in the Great Hall at Christ Church in the Bronx from Sunday, September 10 through October 14, 2023.
Superswift 2023
“Superswift,” a Repróllage artwork composed of prints made by community printmaking workshops, held in New York City parks as part of the Shared Dialogue, Shared Space Project with the Korea Art Forum, was featured in the Mi Parque, Mi Tierra exhibition at the Arsenal Gallery in Central Park, New York City, from September 15 to November 9, 2023.
SAGA 88th Members Exhibition, The Old Print Shop, New York, NY
A printed sculpture made its appearance at the SAGA 88th Members Exhibition, in The Old Print Shop, New York, NY, in 2023.
Unchain 1
“Unchain 1,” a silk screen print, one of four prints that addresses migration, was shown in the Migración: Rostros y Caminos exhibition in the Congreso de la Union, Mexico City, Mexico in November 2023.
Libre Mente, 2022, screen print, 12 x 18 inches
The inspiration for the print “Libre Mente” comes from the key word “freedom” in Agatha Jamine Brooks’ poem “The Woman I Am”. I thought about a drawing by Leonardo da Vinci, “the Vitruvian Man,” based on an earlier drawing by the Roman architect Vitruvius, which illustrates a divine connection between the human form and the universe. Leonardo da Vinci's drawing shows a male figure perfectly inscribed within a circle and a square, with arms and legs drawn in two positions. The circle represents the infinite, the divine, and the square represents the material world.
To this idea I have added an expanded inverse triangle, symbolizing the dimension of the mind, the imagination, and the ability to transcend. Within the triangle, the figure now has outstretched wings, with additional legs and uplifted arms holding wands. One hand holds the X, and the other holds the Y, representing human chromosomes. A spark in between them forms a mysterious Z.
“Libre Mente” was exhibited in the Committed to Print exhibition, in the Prospectus Art Gallery, Chicago, IL 2023.
Flying Angels 2023
Displayed two colorful mobiles at the Holiday Art Exhibition, in the JVS Project Space, New York City, curated by artist Ezequiel Taveras.
“El Reggaeton Del Bachatero”, Etching aquatint print with Chine Colle
Manifestaciones, the DYPG print portfolio, continues its journey in the ¡Printing the Revolution! Exhibition to the First Art Museum in Nashville, Tennessee, from June 28, 2024, to September 29, 2024. The exhibition started at the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, DC, in 2020, going on to the Amon Carter Museum of American Art, Fort Worth, TX, in 2022, and then to the Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth, NH, in 2023.
May the year 2024 be amazingly happy, healthy, and productive for all! 2023 was a wonderful year for my artistic career. Appreciate all the support I received! I exhibited my art in an array of exciting venues. The year was filled with rewarding activity and accomplishments.
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