Dawn Gonzales

Dawn Gonzales
Richmond, California, USA

STATEMENT

Every scrap of paper or fiber has value. I love thinking about where my materials have been, what lives they have touched, what stories they tell as I incorporate them into the many layers of my small-ish collages (4×6). I work small because I believe in access to art for all. The portability of mailable art means that more people can see it, be inspired by it, and share it giving the materials further meaning and another historical chapter.

I am amazed at how an analog gathering of images, colors, and materials inherently expresses one’s style, and message. It is no different for digital collage. While I love the textural layered results of combining found materials, scanning these items and editing them together in Adobe Photoshop / Illustrator grants me the freedom to articulate my vision with even more precision regarding scale and depth. My recent digital collages are a reflection of the liminal space where I find myself, caught between the dichotomies of ‘too much’ and ‘not enough’: culturally, physically, emotionally, and professionally. This work is about creating a sense of assurance in the viewer; an expression of the adage that two seemingly contradictory things can be true at once.

My work draws inspiration from the cultural messaging of the Chicano art movement, the colorful narrative collages of Canadian Artist Danielle Krysa, and the epistolary work of writer Nick Bantock.

BIO

Dawn Gonzales, one of two identical twin girls, was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico to a first-generation Mexican-American family. She’s a multi-faceted artist whose studio practice and professional journey as a creative director, designer, and art educator intersect to create a holistic creative life. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband, Tim, a film editor.

Dawn maintains a private studio practice that includes collage, illustration, and fiber arts. Her recent artistic focus has resulted in a series of digital collages exploring the concepts of self-identity within the realm of twin-ship, the echoes of generational trauma (cultural and global), and the duality of girlhood vs. womanhood as seen through the lens of a Mexican American woman embarking on the third quarter of her life.

Her artistic identity is characterized by a curious engagement with color, pop culture references, and community activism. Her work, created by layering bold marks, vintage children’s book illustrations, and catalog photography over flat ethereal backgrounds evokes a sense of surprise at the unexpected, tinged with notes of nostalgia and melancholia.

Dawn attended the University of Arizona, where she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts. Her work has appeared in Uppercase Magazine, as well as on platforms such as patternobserver.com, makeitindesign.com, makeartthatsells.com, and wgsn.com. Exhibitions include The Tiny Book Show: A Mobile Museum of Miniature Books, and Faculty Shows at The Richmond Art Center in Richmond, California.

ARTIST CONTACT

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dawngonzalesillustration.com

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