I receipt my 500 postcards today from Avant Card with my artwork "Together". They will distribute 10,000 all over Australia as part of their project to support local artists. Check them out at your favourite coffee shop and get one free! :)
"Fragility", Wild! Rhino project for Taronga Zoo - Exhibition/Auction
This year I was lucky enough to get chosen to participate in the Wild! Rhino project, painting a life-size rhino sculpture alongside other 84 artists, a total of 125 rhinos (adults and calfs). My rhino got auction for $10 K. All money will go towards programs to save the rhino from extinction. Some more info about the project:
My rhino "Fragility" takes a critical view on how humanity has impacted on the survival of the rhino and other endangered species close to extinction. It portraits the fragile contrast of life and death: On the back of the rhino the visible bones underneath the torn skin symbolise death and extinction, on the front the art-line shows the over-delicate nature of their existence.", designed and painted by Gloria Torres ( Goya Torres Art ), sponsored by Hotel Steyne Manly , as part of the Taronga Wild! Rhinos project organised by Taronga Zoo .
Taronga Wild! Rhinos is a Wild in Art event that will bring businesses, artists and schools together to create a spectacular world-class sculpture trail from the Sydney Harbour foreshore through the Blue Mountains to Dubbo and the Central West region of NSW.
From February – April 2014 a huge herd of wildly colourful rhino sculptures painted by artists and their small calves decorated by local schools will charge into town as part of a mass public art exhibition to help raise awareness and valuable funds for Taronga’s world leading Black Rhino breeding program and in-situ conservation projects.
Trail Map> http://taronga.org.au/wild-rhinos/trail-map
Wild Rhinos App> http://taronga.org.au/wild-rhinos/app
Pictures of all Rhinos> http://taronga.org.au/wild-rhinos/artists
Competitions> http://taronga.org.au/wild-rhinos/competitions
Alacran Tequila Bottle Art Prize/Exhibition
I participated in Alacran's Tequila bottle art competition to celebrate the first year of Alacran brand in Australia. The small exhibition/award night was at Bondi Beach Beach Burrito Company, alongside the other competitors. I didn't win the 2 round tickets to Hawaii, though, it was quite a fun night and I got to meet some really cool artists and people.
My artwork is strongly inspired by two ancient Mexican figures: The deity Quetzalcoatl which means "feathered serpent", an important religious and political symbol, and the sun which was a major mythological and cosmological symbol for the Aztecs. I have mixed two concepts into the bottle: the ancient Mexican heritage represented by the serpents and the Aztec sun which centre is the Alacran logo, as well as the quality of life and death/light and darkness which each serpent represent, embracing each other which is one of the major ideas of the ancient Mexican cultures: death, as life, is only a new beginning.
RAW Sydney - MOSAIC Show '14 - Group Art Exhibition
I discovered RAW, an indie arts organisation for artists, by artists. They focus on spotlighting indie underground talent to the public. Every second month they hand-select and showcase approximately 40 artists in film, fashion, music, visual art, photography, performing art, hair and make up for a one night creative explosion!
I have been chosen to participate as Visual Artist, though the only request they ask me to showcase is to sell 20 tickets (each $15). The event happened at Manning Bar in the city (the University of Sydney Bar).
Triangle, Angular Realities Travelling Exhibition - Mexico-Cuba-Colombia
I was really happy to be part of this latino-american travelling exhibition: "Triángulo, realidades angulares (Triangle, angular realities)" it's a group international contemporary art exhibition between Mexico-Cuba-Colombia with artists from each country. I have send a couple of pieces that relate to this brief I have translated for you in english (down). You can check the full event here.
TRIANGLE, ANGULAR REALITIES
How are we based in the social history we have on us? What makes us different from the rest of the world for living this political heritage? What link us socially by being mexican, cuban and colombian? In Latin America we have been characterised as diverse and multicultural individuals, with amazing natural wealth and human potentialities, at the same time we are crossing critical circumstances and moments of transformation where crucially violence is configured, injustice, repression, etc., giving way to peasants and indigenous manifestations, protest organisations and movements, guerrillas, independent action collectives, among other activities; these gestures are key areas to show a message of social reflection in contemporary art, therefore the question: What importance art has, apart from the institutional commitment, of political preference or censure to art, at the moment of sharing and showing these realities today? What deserves to be expose, to be remember and therefore to intervene in the directrices of our future?
Local Art Show - Manly, Sydney.
I got to participate in a local show here in Manly, Sydney, hosted by Lauren Metzler and Presley Joy Paget at their home. There were other artists from the Northern Beaches such as Ben Brown, Oliver Brennan, and more. I believe this is a great idea to show work and also meet the artists community. Hoping to do more in the future! :)
Toy To The World Auction - Melbourne, Australia
I participated painting a toy for the Toy To The World Auction in Melbourne, Australia. The exhibition opening was at ArtBoy Gallery in Melbourne and all the toys were auction online to raise funds for the Victorian AIDS Council's work in HIV research and education. Check out their page with the other fabulous entries here
Independiente digital magazine - Interview from Mexico
Independiente is a digital magazine dedicated to spread the knowledge, resources and design culture of northern Mexico. Is a causality that I know one of the contributors: Raul Arrieta, aka Sato. We used to live in the same area when we were teenagers, we both always had interest for illustration and art.
Sato invited me to answer this interview (originally in spanish), please read it here in english.
See the original link with images here.
"The art of coffee and surf of Goya Torres"
("Art of Coffee" because I'm originally from Cordoba, Veracruz, a famous area because of its coffee)
My name is Gloria Torres, alias Goya Torres. I am a visual artist and illustrator originally from Cordoba, Veracruz (south Mexico), at this moment I am living in Sydney Australia. Artistically I take inspiration from mexican traditions and culture, street art, pop surrealism or lowbrow and nature. I use traditional media such as oil, acrylics, pastels on canvas, paper and wood, as also spray paint and printmaking techniques such as linography.
I studied the Bachelor in Graphic Design in the port city of Veracruz. Before graduating, I used to do freelance illustration projects for publishing. After finishing college I moved to Sydney where I worked in design agencies. After a couple of years I started exploring a path related to the visual arts and now I divide my time between my daily work doing illustration for a online game company and my practice as a visual artist.
Drawing is something that always got my attention. Since I was a little girl I started to show an interest for painting and drawing. I took painting lessons in high school and during my Bachelor I used to practice as a hobby. Until a couple of years ago I started taking my hobby more seriously and practice it and share it professionally. Living overseas since 3 years ago has inspired my work to produce images full of culture and tradition from Mexico, mostly focus on the folklore and identity of my heritage. Elements from nature, surrealism and arguments about life and death are topics that lately stand out a lot in my work, however I consider I am still experimenting and looking for my own voice.
My first exhibition as a visual artist happened last year when I got selected as a finalist to be part of International Women Day Exhibition and Art Prize of Meadowbank, Sydney. After this event I got more confidence to continue developing more work and send it to national and international call-outs. Thanks to a couple of successful exhibitions and commissions from last year, it has been like a takeoff as more and more people start to recognise my work and invite me to participate in more exhibitions and projects.
Normally I only take on projects that go along my values and vision of what I want to be as an artist. A project that I really enjoyed was the Wild! Rhino project, where I paint a life-size rhino sculpture for the Sydney Taronga Zoo, in order to create awareness and get funds to save the rhino from extinction. Another very important project for me was the group exhibition "Triangle, angular realities", a Latin-American travelling exhibition between Mexico-Colombia-Cuba, which showcased work from various latin artists who exposed their condition as individuals from latin countries, with all that this entails social, political and conceptually.
I really like to work on public art and projects with other artists, specially when these have a social mission and an important ideals for human and social change. At this moment I don't focus my work in a personal life aspect, but all the opposite: from a global aspect, awareness and human spiritualization. My dream is to keep moving forward with my work, be more productive, more exhibitions and projects, continue growing as an artist, travel more and keep inspiring other people.
In a couple of weeks I will be doing live painting for a Spanish Food Festival I was invited to participate. After that I will be painting a koala sculpture for a tourism public art project in Port Macquarie, an area very close to Sydney. At the same time I am preparing paintings for a group exhibition I will be doing with two good artist friends about animals as gods from ancient empires. I will also be traveling to Barcelona to take a printmaking course.
Personally I will recommend to anyone that wants to be an artist to never give up, keep practicing, fulfill yourself with inspiration, go to museums, meet new places, travel, be open to meet new people and new points of view, be open to new styles and tools, take courses and workshops, learn new techniques… And very important: if you want something, never stop until you get it. Having a clear goal on mind will take you to actually achieve it. Not everything is work either, take your time to relax, travel and take a breath. And more than anything, enjoy what you are doing. Always be humble with your work and your successes. *Goya Torres
2013 - Year in Review
2013 was a great year for me. Since few years ago, even before finishing my graphic design degree, I tried very hard to break into the world of commercial illustration. I got very rewarding projects in Mexico, specially two focus in publishing in the education sector: a book for UNICEF and the book My City Today, collaboration with the Government of Mexico City.
Though, when I moved to Australia I realized that commercial illustration didn't feel the way forward for me. I start exploring other possibilities in my practice, and inspired by pop surrealism and street art, I decided to venture into self-taught visual arts and what I would call "artistic illustration". I began to use more traditional media such as oils, acrylics and pastels on paper and canvas. Little by little I start to build a body of work that reflects more my style and my own voice. I'm still quite far from where I want to be, but I think this year that pass unleash the artistic activity I really want to do and move forward from there.
So I hope that this year that comes will bring more commissions, gigs and projects, national and international, as also sales. Anyway, feel free to follow my Instagram, Flickr and Facebook Page for news and latest work. Thank you for watching and good luck everyone for 2014! :)
Ocean Care Day Exhibition - Manly, Australia
For the last event of the year I was invited as a local artist to participate with my artwork at the Ocean Care Day in Manly. The festival was held in the beach front with environmental organisations, fair trade markets and other activities related to the ocean care and conservation.
I decided to make a new piece related to the festival, so I did "Marina", a watercolour and pencil drawing. I had a small wall exhibiting the original drawing and reproductions of my other work, as also free postcards, cards and Manly guides.
As an unexpected extraordinary move, the Ocean Care Day Artist tent continued in the Fix8 Gallery in Freshwater, where everyone artworks were exhibit for 2 weeks. I had the pleasure to exhibit 4 original paintings/drawings, which were also on sale in the gallery, alongside the other awesome local artists.
Manly Guide Cover
This year I got to be part in another awesome project: I did the illustration for the Manly Guide cover, a local tourist magazine that showcases the best places in Manly and the Northern Beaches in Australia. The illustration was done in ink and then painted digitally.
The magazine will be around for 6 months in different distribution posts around Sydney, including the ferry station. If you are australian, you can grab a copy or check it online here.
Steyoyoke Label Night & Azuldecobalt Book Launch and Exhibition - Berlin, Germany
Few months ago I did a big oil/pastel canvas painting of 1.25m which I called "Equilibrium". It was meant to be for an open call for a particular exhibition related to climate change. Unfortunately it didn't make it to the final, though it was very well received from people who follow my work.
I keep trying to send it to other open calls. Amazingly, I got selected to participate in an exhibition and book launch in Berlin, Germany through the Talent House website. The event was called "Steyoyoke & Azuldecobalt Book Launch & Exhibition", where the electronic music group Steyoyoke played songs in the night, while Azuldecobalt artist launched his book (where me and 50 other international illustrators had our work included) plus an exhibition of prints of all the works. I didn't attend the exhibition but I got some pictures of the event.
Manly Arts Festival - Markets
I was quite happy to participate in the Manly Arts Festival by selling some originals, prints and other stuff with my illustrations (cards, wood blocks, calendars, iphone covers) at the festival market. It was my very first time in the markets so it was a bit stressful at the beginning, but it was also interesting to see how people react to my work.
After some thinking and other market experiences, I don't think I should focus too much in markets as I don't want to become a "market artist", though I'm happy to participate once in a while only in markets with an independent artist focus.
Discovering the world of Etching
One of my year resolutions was to learn a new technique so I enrolled in a short course of etching in the Warringah Printmaking Studio. I learn to do lino printing which was quite regarding, I find that such a traditional way of doing artwork is quite honest and humble.
After four classes I ended up with few runs of portraits inspire in the antique mexican gods: Jaguar and Quetzalcoatl. Really looking forward to learn the other etching techniques and bring that more and more into my work.
TINA Funraise Exhibition - Newcastle, Australia
I took part in an event in the city of Newcastle, Australia along other local artists by giving away one of my original glicee prints "Together" to help fund raise the "This is Not Art Festival" for October. When we arrived to the exhibition the print was sold already (Yei!), one of the coordinators liked it straight away.
International Women's Day Art Prize & Exhibition 2013 Sydney, Australia.
As I mentioned in my last post, I was selected to participate at the International Women's Day art Prize & Exhibition at Medaowbank, City of Ryde in Sydney under the professionals' category.
It's my first collective exhibition here and was awesome to participate in such an special event with other great local artists. All pieces will be for sale and exhibition from 7-23th of March. You can see more photos at my Facebook Page
What is coming for this year...
This year, apart from my illustration work, I really want to get into more traditional painting. Since last year I planned in my head sketchbook a body of work for exhibitions, but only until this year I feel I'm ready to start working on that.
Back from my long trip I put my hands on it. I finished this two pieces: The first one it's an advance of the first solo exhibition I'm planning for this year; the second one was part of another exhibition I had in mind, but I did it in advance as I wanted to submit it to an specific contest: The International Women's Day of City of Ryde, Sydney... And guess what! I got selected! :)
The opening night will happen tomorrow and my piece will be on sale. There will be around 60 works of paintings, drawings and sculptures. I will upload some photos of the event so stay tuned :)