I can say about myself that art is what moves me, I'm 25 years old, I graduated as a Mechanical Engineer but I don't practice because as soon as they handed me the degree I threw myself into becoming a professional in the arts so I could make a proper living from my creative work, I'm the youngest of 3 siblings, I have a beautiful girlfriend called Jureilys who is with me in every detail of my life, she's my inspiration and the push I need to keep growing every day.
When and why did you start painting?
Ever since I was little I always had a leaning towards drawing at school, making the noticeboards for the teachers and doing my friends' drawing homework, but I started painting at 17, just as I was also starting my university degree in Mechanical Engineering, with the help of an art teacher, Darwin Romero. I had the chance to join an artists' collective called “Bariquía” where they welcomed me with open arms because they saw in me a hidden potential that needed developing, alongside that I finished my degree and immediately started working on promoting my art nationally and internationally, which has allowed me since then to live decently off what art gives me.
How do you think a gallery and its artists should help each other?
I think galleries are fundamental to an artist's growth, here in Venezuela there are a good number of galleries that support emerging talent and the great established artists day after day, I don't think so much about how the gallery should help the artist, I think rather about how the artist has the obligation to surprise, to innovate, and to live up to the great galleries that are out there, to be able to deliver good work for them to sell and exhibit. I think about the commitment we have if we want to deserve being recommended by gallerists, about the responsibility that comes with deciding to devote yourself to painting, about understanding that you're never alone, that you always need the support of gallerists and mutual respect for each other's work.
What advice would you give to artists who are starting to show their artwork?
I think the best message I can leave for new talent is to encourage them to keep going, to cultivate in themselves the desire to study, to know history, where we come from. Knowing about the origins helps you project the future you want for yourself better, understanding deep down that nobody can ever fulfil your dreams and goals except you, that thousands of barriers will get in the way but there are also thousands of people who have managed to get past them, and I tell them, of course, that it's possible to dream and to touch the fruits of work done with the heart, study every day and you'll see the results growing in your life little by little.
How did you sell your first artwork? Is there one you feel a stronger connection with?
The first artwork I sold was in 2009 at my first solo exhibition, called Sensación Onírica, which I held at the Hotel Judibana when I was 19, the artwork was titled Elegante Recuerdo.
An artwork that's always with me and that I keep in mind because of the connection I have with it is Oda, because with it I welcomed my muse, girlfriend and inspiration, this artwork comes with a poem called Oda a un amor written by a great friend, the poet Andrés Medina, who wrote it to describe the love he sees in us, that's why it's my favourite painting of all, and one of the most representative of my artistic career.
What is art for you? What part does it play in your life? Do you make a living from art?
For some time now, whenever I talk about art with my fellow artists this same question always comes up, but lately I've found a definition that feels fairly complete to me, because I feel that art is an answer to my sensitivities as a person, it's the means of expression of my unconscious self, which I can then interpret with my reason, it's the visible part of the invisible, the tangible part of feeling.
In my life art is the means to show the world as I see it, emotions as I feel them, and even more importantly, it's my interpretation of life, because with it I share every moment I walk through, every detail I live. The relationship I share with art and its virtues is so complete for me that it has allowed me to live comfortably off its fruits, little by little I've been able to build a career and a pictorial language to hold my own in the market.
What are your sources of inspiration? Do you identify with any other artist?
For 4 years now my main source of inspiration has been pretty clear, it's my girlfriend Jureilys, because since she arrived I feel my artworks took another direction, turning a more beautiful colour, her support is always the pillar that makes me want to grow and be better every day. Some time ago I identified a little with Salvador Dalí but as time has gone by I've let go of wanting to resemble another artist, I take a feature from each one that helps me mature, but there isn't a single one who's my only model to follow.
Right now there are two artists whose presence is fundamental, they actively help me day after day, and I owe my current growth and knowledge to them, one is my brother since we were kids, Miguel Rojas, we've always shared our dreams, fulfilling each of them little by little, for me he's one of the best artists around today, and I know time will prove me right on that. Besides being a great artist he's my pillar for every idea, change and direction I take in my life as a painter. On the other hand I also have a great artist who has actively influenced my artwork, my teacher Bruno García, an already established figure in the arts here in Venezuela, a recognised and talented painter, he is fundamentally an inspiration to me, he has taken a great deal of his own time to help me and guide me, his daily presence in my studio has given me enough faith to project my dreams to another level, and his unconditional help has allowed me to be certain that art is more than a feeling, it's a great way of life.
In your creative process, do you have any habit, practice or quirk that's peculiar or curious?
Of course, to be able to start painting I always have to meet several requirements, having a full glass of water, the air conditioning on and good music in the background, that's the setting where I work most efficiently, I've also noticed, because of my leaning towards theatre, that while I paint I tend to be a bit theatrical, because I really enjoy painting and acting at the same time, only when I'm completely alone with the canvas.
Have you had any exhibition recently, what can you tell us? Do you have a project in mind?
The last exhibition I opened is called El Taller: Exposición Final de una Convivencia, on 26 November 2015, together with my artist brother Miguel Rojas, under the tutelage of the master Bruno García, at the Ateneo Rubén Ismael Padilla, Punto Fijo, Venezuela.
It's a wonderful experience of learning as artists alongside Bruno, where drawing predominates. That concept is taken as the first big unit of study and everything in this stage of living together and the show El Taller is built on it. Going back to the study of the great masters of the Italian Renaissance, Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, Sandro Botticelli, among others. From that subject each relevant topic was broken down and developed, the line and its values, hatching, chiaroscuro, working with graphite and paint on supports such as canvas, wood and paper. The anatomy of the human body is clearly the main element in the study pieces, although we also worked with everyday objects.
The tasks carried out over the course of the studio involved practising with the quick stroke, observing and resolving an object in its context through line, analytical interpretation of volume by means of chiaroscuro, composition of space with elements taken from various sources, resolving the figure-ground problem, preparing raw supports for drawing, among others.
Coming up, as I do every year, I'm working on a new concept to bring together the artworks I'll make in 2016, for now I'm developing the idea, the only thing I know for sure is that the show will be called Magnánima Destiempo.
Could you recommend us:
An artist: Miguel Rojas.
An artwork: Lilith sobre azul by Miguel Rojas.
A book: The Sorrows of Young Werther by Wolfgang von Goethe.
A film: Interstellar.
Thank you very much.
We invite you to visit Daniel Zarraga's gallery on Artelista.
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