Alumni Art Exhibition 2021 - Edson Gersain Martinez
EDSON GERSAIN MARTINEZ
November 26, 2020, 2021
Mixed Media on Newspaper Clippings
20 x 20 inches
Dolores del Corazon, 2020
Mixed Media
20 x 20 inches
Land of the Brave, 2018
Oil on Canvas
24 x 30 inches
As a Brown male growing up in Los Angeles my experiences have been shaped by a series
of racially driven systematic practices. I am witness to the police state and the
overlapping of the prison industrial complex system, as primary authority. This has
led to the internalization of oppression, which has become psychologically manifested
as anger and hopelessness. I mix my reds and blues in hopes of bringing harmony in
between, wet on wet techniques allow me to layer the past with the present, bringing
my realities to the awareness of a society that misinterprets our existence. Relating
the past to the present through the process and craft embodied in the paintings, I
invite the viewer into a realm where both coexist, a time where we have linked to
our ancestors for guidance and understanding.
Edson Gersain Martinez holds a Bachelor of Arts in Studio Arts with a Minor in Chicana/o Studies from California State University Los Angeles. He has exhibited at Self Help Graphics & Art, UCLA, and many community events throughout Los Angeles. Using art as a tool Edson has been giving back to his community by running different art workshops for youth, including M.E.C.H.A’s and CAUSA’s 20th annual Raza youth conference at California State University Northridge. Most recently Edson has worked as a transformative education counselor at My Friend’s Place, a non-profit that serves homeless youth in the city of Hollywood. During his time at My Friend’s Place Martinez ran different art workshops using art as a means to heal, encourage self expression, and introducing youth to the benefits of art, all while providing them a safe space to be.
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