THE HOME I NEVER KNEW: NI DE AQUÍ, NI DE ALLÁ
June 7 - November 1, 2024
Greenville Museum of Art | West Wing & Commons Galleries
Briana Sosa-Trejo
“Inherently, I know my roots, who I am, where I live, and the society I was born into. However, knowing the facts is not the same as feeling like I belong.”
Creating Life
2022
graphite
Is this Reality?
2022
acrylic
ARTIST STATEMENT
My name is Briana Sosa-Trejo. I am a Mexican artist born and raised in the U.S. in Western North Carolina. Since I could lift a pencil, I have expressed my emotions, life, and pains through my artwork. It is the only safe place where I am able to share my story as a young Latinx artist just trying to make it through a world that will never stop feeling foreign. While my cultural roots are a big part of my life and identity, I can only hope to keep them alive in a land that tries to strip me of them at all chances it can. I am grateful for my family for teaching me about my culture and keeping it alive. I only hope to continue to do so through my works. For my first piece, I want to showcase the part of my culture that focuses on creating, specifically tied to arts with yarn, such as crochet. Artistry is very important to my background as I grew up seeing my mother and grandmother create ornate pieces with just a hook and yarn. Their dedication to the craft is not common, but it is important to keep it alive nonetheless as to not forget tradition. I view their dedication, the hours that it takes to create a small piece, as something beautiful that shouldn’t be lost, even if we are in a different country than where the tradition started. My second piece tells the story of not belonging. Inherently, I know my roots, who I am, where I live, and the society I was born into. However, knowing the facts is not the same as feeling like I belong. The mirror, and going through it, represents trying to figure out if what I see is the same as what I actually am. The colors, slightly faded and a myriad of hues on the face, represents the distortion of reality and how one’s self has slipped, becoming a mixture of everything but fading at the same time. It is tiring trying to figure out one’s identity, even more so when one does not quite fit into any, but carries them all the same.
DECLARACIÓN DEL ARTISTA
Mi nombre es Briana Sosa-Trejo. Soy una artista mexicana que nació y creció en los Estados Unidos, en Carolina del Norte occidental. Desde que pude sostener un lápiz, he expresado mis emociones, vida y dolores a través de mi trabajo artístico. Es el único espacio seguro en el que puedo compartir mi historia como artista latino/a joven que solo intenta sobrevivir un mundo que nunca dejará de sentirse extranjero. Aunque mis raíces culturales son una parte importante de mi vida e identidad, solo puedo esperar mantenerlas vivas en una tierra que intenta arrancármelas cada vez que puede. Estoy agradecida por mi familia que me enseñó sobre mi cultura y mantenerla viva. Solo espero seguir haciéndolo a través de mis obras. Para mi primera pieza, quiero presentar la parte de mi cultura que se centra en crear, específicamente ligada a las artes con estambre, como el crochet. La habilidad artística es muy importante en mi historia porque crecí viendo a mi madre y abuela crear piezas elaboradas solo con un gancho y un estambre. Su dedicación al oficio no es común, pero es importante mantenerla viva para no olvidar la tradición. Veo su dedicación, las horas que tarda crear una pieza pequeña, como algo hermoso que no se debería perder, incluso si estamos en un país distinto del país en donde empezó la tradición. Mi segunda pieza está contando la historia de no pertenecer. Intrínsecamente, conozco mis raíces, quién soy, dónde vivo y la sociedad en la que nací. Sin embargo, saber los hechos no es lo mismo que sentir que perteneces. El espejo, y pasar por él, representa el intentar descifrar si lo que veo es lo mismo que soy en realidad. Los colores, ligeramente desteñidos, y un sinnúmero de tonalidades en la cara representan la distorsión de la realidad y cómo el yo se ha escurrido, volviéndose una mezcla de todo lo que se desvanece al mismo tiempo. Cansa tratar de descifrar la propia identidad, incluso más cuando uno no entra en ninguna, sino que las lleva todas al mismo tiempo.
ARTWORK ANALYSIS
Briana Sosa-Trejo’s piece titled Creating Life is a graphite drawing depicting fiber art. With the yarn wrapped around one hand and the textile in the other, Sosa-Trejo captures a crocheter in the middle of creating a stitch. The dramatic lighting casts a dark shadow on the hands and arms holding up the flat fabric. With only a suggestion of creases in the fabric, the texture is very smooth, suggesting that she utilized a method of smudging and smoothing in the drawing to create this texture: quite a contrast to the anticipated holey and patterned crochet. This unexpected texture could be a reference to the importance of the tradition of crochet in the artist’s family, the unassuming fabric an opportunity for the viewer to fill in the space with any pattern or texture in their imagination. Their mother and grandmother create intricate pieces that look as if they could not have possibly been produced from such humble tools, much like how the smooth fabric portrayed in this drawing does not seem to be made from the yarn in the hands of the crocheter. So, this piece is an appreciation for the skill and patience the artist’s mother and grandmother have and how it informs her own artistic practice. Sosa-Trejo is cementing their place as an artist among generations of other artists in their family while also paying tribute to the dedication of her inspirations.