Get Smart About Art: Anna Valdez
May 16, 2022
As part of my ongoing series about artists I admire, I wanted to share a bit about California artist, Anna Valdez.
From the Hashimoto Contemporary website:
Anna Valdez (b. 1985) is a multi-disciplinary artist who examines the relationship between objects, cultural formation, and collective consciousness. Creating epic tableaux in her studio, Valdez moves seamlessly between still life and landscape painting, collecting objects and making new ones, and cultivation, observation, and fictionalization. Valdez received her MFA in painting from Boston University in 2013 and her BA in Anthropology and Art from University of California, Davis in 2009. Her work has been exhibited nationally at venues including Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, AR; North Carolina Museum of Art in Raleigh, NC; New Britain Museum of American Art in New Britain, CT; Cañada College in Redwood City, CA; Hashimoto Contemporary in San Francisco, CA and New York, NY; David B. Smith Gallery in Denver, CO; 1969 Gallery, Alexander Berggruen Gallery, and Nancy Margolis Gallery in New York, NY; and OCHI in Sun Valley, ID and Los Angeles, CA. Valdez’s work has been featured in publications including Juxtapoz Magazine, New American Paintings, Artsy, and Artillery Magazine. Her work is included in various public collections including Pérez Art Museum Miami in Miami, FL and the Phyllis & Ross Escalette Permanent Collection of Art at Chapman University in Orange, CA. Valdez lives and works in the San Francisco Bay Area.
You can visit her website to view a treasure trove of wonderful images of her contemporary artwork. She also has an instagram account. Here are a few pieces by Anna Valdez that I love (all images are from her website):
Personally, I've become really interested in "contemporary still life" painting as of late. And I adore her color and pattern packed still lifes -- not to mention all the books laying about. There's a flattened feeling to her paintings that I also really respond to. She shared this tidbit about her process in a 2014 online interview: "Usually I create arrangements that contain all of the information that I wish to feature in a painting. I will make drawings from this set-up and look for smaller paintings within the composition.” Her approach is anthropological, which makes total sense since that's her background.
You can learn more about Anna Valdez in these three videos of her talking about her work:
You can read the complete interview with Anna Valdez HERE. And if you want to buy some of her work, I believe that she is represented by the Ochi Gallery.
So, what do you think of Anna Valdez's artwork?
Thanks for stopping by!