This is the first solo exhibit by 2019 Oolite studio resident Diego Gutierrez; it is curated by the Frost Art Museum’s Amy Galpin. The young artist is having fun with art, covering the floors and walls in bright colors and matching the burst of colors in the paintings, often with Pop-ish, playful references. But he also includes more searing topics of the day, such as gun violence and discrimination, and tears the edges of the works. Some even include objects such as ceramic dolls, creating what Gutierrez himself describes as an “over-romanticized imagery.”
Mixed messages here? The artist thinks so.
“Diego is asking, ‘What constitutes a painting?’ How are they even relevant in today’s world,” writes Galpin. “These are questions posed by the artists who influence him, yet he answers in a distinctly different manner.”
