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Rossana Romero: Narratives, Being Selfish, and Having No Fear

By July 22, 2022August 1st, 2022No Comments


Photo: Happy Hinds

Rossana Romero is an emerging visual artist, working primarily in oils, acrylic and silicone. Her work reflects themes of family, intimate details of her personal life and relationships, with a focus on portraits. She has had a consistent affection for using saturated vibrant colors. Drawing inspiration from autobiographical works from artists Kehinde Wiley, Beatriz Gonzales, and Gabriel Marquez Garcia. Rossana began to learn painting, sculpting, and figuring herself out as a multimedia artist. At the young age of 15, when she began to realize she enjoyed making art, she started to experiment with painting and photography. Since then, she has been in several contests, art shows, festivals, zines, and has assisted artists who have helped her evolve into the impressive artisan that she is today.

I sat down with Rossana on Zoom at 8PM on a Friday.

Happy: What made you start making art?

Rossana: I started making art when I was a kid. I always feel really repetitive answering this question because there’s just so many parts to it. But I started making art intentionally in high school because my high school teachers really pushed me to do it. It wasn’t something that I realized I wanted to do until they told me I was good at it. I wasn’t really good at anything else.

Happy: I’m sure you were good at a lot of things.

Rossana: But I really thrived in art, so that was a plus, and I’m okay with that. I can’t imagine doing anything else, honestly. But I think that I started really understanding art and wanting to make art because I would go to therapy as a kid and they would do art therapy with me, and that was, like, my understanding of expressing myself, which makes sense because a lot of my work is me speaking on my personal narrative. I don’t really talk about my own personal stories unless I’m using my work. So those are some of the ways that I started as an artist.

Happy: That’s amazing. You can definitely tell that there’s a lot of storytelling in your work, especially even in the artwork behind you. You can literally see that it’s a whole story and like you said, a narrative. You can tell there are so many details going into this one artwork, it’s incredible. So who is your biggest inspiration as an artist?

Rossana: I know we’ve talked about this before, but I have several people that inspire me. I’d say inspiration wise, someone that I look to to get inspired when I’m having an artist block would be this author who I really loved reading his books, and I tried to make my work a lot like his. His name is Gabriel Garcia Marquez. He’s a Colombian author, and he writes a lot about true stories. But the voice in his books is always very fictional and surreal, and it feels like a dream almost, which is how I want my paintings to feel to other people, so that it sparks conversations because I wanted to feel like it’s not real. Even though all the stories are real and they’re real things and real time. So he’s definitely someone that inspires me as an artist. And then I would say, in the present day, Kehinde Wiley inspires me with his portraits and how he uses people around him. He really seeks out certain people and certain styles to create a narrative on what he’s trying to say in his stories and his series. I like the way that he allows the people that he wants to paint pick their pose. He uses Renaissance poses for his paintings, which is really cool. So I really have a lot more [inspirations]. But those are my first two that I think of.

Happy: Those inspirations for you make so much sense. So much sense. I feel like with all of your artworks… It’s like you are creating kind of a world of your own, but at the same time, you can tell that there’s a lot of reality behind your concepts and what you’re trying to convey. Is there anyone whose opinion you ask for when you want a second opinion on your work?

Rossana: Yeah. I said this to you before. I don’t care. I don’t care about people’s opinions on my work at all because I’m making work for myself. In school, that’s really difficult, obviously, because teachers really hover on ideas and style. I just don’t care about what people have to say visually. But I do enjoy and I’m open to advice with everything else. But at the end or almost to the end of my paintings, I normally allow my sister to see them. Not that I want her opinion, because I normally don’t. But I can have a good back and forth with her. A lot of my work is very personal, and my sister knows me the best. But she’s also really honest. So I like to see what kind of conversation sparks with her, especially because she has a lot of knowledge on art. So I do look to my sister to see what conversation my painting sparks, but not really for her opinion. It’s mostly just because I trust her.

Happy: That’s amazing. I feel like that says so much about your sisterhood and the amount of, like you said, the trust you have between each other.

Rossana: Yeah. I mean, most of the people that I paint are my siblings or my cousins or my family members, so it’s very family oriented.


Photo: Happy Hinds

Happy: That is so beautiful. Aside from your obvious skill and technique, what is one thing that making your art has taught you about yourself?

Rossana: A lot of patience. And a lot of forgiving my mistakes and failures. I feel like the art world, and myself as an artist in my art process has taught me that it’s okay to start over, it’s okay to fail, and just to have patience and forgiveness on all the steps that I make. Because everything is able to do over again, and it’s okay to mess up. I think we hold our work very preciously when in reality, we don’t have to finish this piece if we’re over it, and we don’t have to rush it just because people want that frequent stuff. It’s okay to fuck up.

Happy: I think that’s such an important lesson to learn. I feel like learning that brings a lot of happiness.

Rossana: Yeah. It’s so much easier to just have no expectations.

Happy: I’m so glad that you’re thinking that way. How do you feel the process of being an artist over the years has changed, if at all?

Rossana: It’s definitely changed with technology, because now we have a very different audience that we have to perform for. There’s just different paths on being an artist now [with technology]; some are easier and some are harder. But, obviously, technology has made a really big impact in the world. For artists, it made so many new routes for people to become artists. There’s less of this hierarchy gap. Before, without technology, art was very classist. There was so much white supremacy in the art world, and there still is. But now, with technology, I think that there’s just different ways that more people can become artists and enter into the art world. Whether it’s easier or harder… there’s just new routes now for artists, with technology.

Happy: I completely agree with that. I think it also opened up so many more opportunities for people who wouldn’t necessarily have as many opportunities without it.

Rossana: Totally.


Photo: Happy Hinds


Photo: Happy Hinds

Happy: I’m very excited about that. So as an artist, especially with your level of talent, how does being called a content creator make you feel?

Rossana: I don’t mind being called a content creator. I just don’t think I’m enough of a content creator. When I imagine a content creator, I imagine a lot of intention and lights, you know what I mean? Like cameras and a lot of blueprints to really figure it out. I’m imagining this world where I just don’t do enough of that. And I do wish I could because it would obviously bring so many more opportunities. But I don’t see myself as one of those people because I’m not putting all that work in. So I feel like if I was doing more, then I could see myself in that way. But I get what your question is, too, because technically anyone that’s putting any type of visually, aesthetically pleasing thing on the Internet is a content creator. And I don’t mind that. I don’t mind it at all. I like to look at my social media presence or my platforms, even my website. I look at it as a work in its own, and it’s fun.

Rossana: It’s kind of like Myspace when we used to code our backgrounds and stuff. That sh*t is fun. It’s so satisfying to have that be another form of art. But I don’t think I’m doing as much as what a content creator is to me.

Happy: What is something that you used to be afraid of that you have now been able to overcome?

Rossana: I don’t think I’m really afraid of stuff. But I do feel like I gave myself a lot of limitations when I was younger because I didn’t think that people gave a sh*t about what what I wanted to make. So I think that a lot of my work before now, I made for the views or the viewers. Not for social media, but for what I thought people would like. I think that’s a fear in itself because it’s a fear of not being able to be fully vulnerable with your work just because you’re afraid people aren’t going to f*ck with it. Now, I’m not really tied to that feeling, because I don’t care. I just make what I make. I feel like I’m not afraid anymore of like, just fucking up and like trying things and experimenting and like not getting it right and stuff.

Rossana: I’m not afraid to start over anymore, which is refreshing. I’m just not afraid of people perceiving me anymore. I know that no one cares at this point. No one cares. And if they do care, it’s not my issue. It’s not my problem. So I don’t know if it’s a fear or not, but I definitely let go of the idea of people pleasing with my work.

Happy: Yeah, I think that’s great. You also see that so much in your work. You’re just embracing your own style and kind of just going with your own intuition.

Rossana: I hope so, because I personally feel like I’m making my work for me. I’ve been trying not to go to galleries or museums or anything like that lady lately. I really want to tap into my own stuff and not mimic just because I’m like, ‘oh, that looks super sick. I want to try it too.’ But then I’ll make something, and a few months or a week or a year later, I’ll be like, ‘oh, someone did similar sh*t.’ And not like, ‘oh, they’re copying me.’ But we just all share such similar ideas it just happens.


Photo: Happy Hinds


Photo: Happy Hinds


Photo: Happy Hinds

Happy: I’m very excited about that. So as an artist, especially with your level of talent, how does being called a content creator make you feel?

Rossana: I don’t mind being called a content creator. I just don’t think I’m enough of a content creator. When I imagine a content creator, I imagine a lot of intention and lights, you know what I mean? Like cameras and a lot of blueprints to really figure it out. I’m imagining this world where I just don’t do enough of that. And I do wish I could because it would obviously bring so many more opportunities. But I don’t see myself as one of those people because I’m not putting all that work in. So I feel like if I was doing more, then I could see myself in that way. But I get what your question is, too, because technically anyone that’s putting any type of visually, aesthetically pleasing thing on the Internet is a content creator. And I don’t mind that. I don’t mind it at all. I like to look at my social media presence or my platforms, even my website. I look at it as a work in its own, and it’s fun.

Rossana: It’s kind of like Myspace when we used to code our backgrounds and stuff. That sh*t is fun. It’s so satisfying to have that be another form of art. But I don’t think I’m doing as much as what a content creator is to me.

Happy: What is something that you used to be afraid of that you have now been able to overcome?

Rossana: I don’t think I’m really afraid of stuff. But I do feel like I gave myself a lot of limitations when I was younger because I didn’t think that people gave a sh*t about what what I wanted to make. So I think that a lot of my work before now, I made for the views or the viewers. Not for social media, but for what I thought people would like. I think that’s a fear in itself because it’s a fear of not being able to be fully vulnerable with your work just because you’re afraid people aren’t going to f*ck with it. Now, I’m not really tied to that feeling, because I don’t care. I just make what I make. I feel like I’m not afraid anymore of like, just fucking up and like trying things and experimenting and like not getting it right and stuff.

Rossana: I’m not afraid to start over anymore, which is refreshing. I’m just not afraid of people perceiving me anymore. I know that no one cares at this point. No one cares. And if they do care, it’s not my issue. It’s not my problem. So I don’t know if it’s a fear or not, but I definitely let go of the idea of people pleasing with my work.

Happy: Yeah, I think that’s great. You also see that so much in your work. You’re just embracing your own style and kind of just going with your own intuition.

Rossana: I hope so, because I personally feel like I’m making my work for me. I’ve been trying not to go to galleries or museums or anything like that lady lately. I really want to tap into my own stuff and not mimic just because I’m like, ‘oh, that looks super sick. I want to try it too.’ But then I’ll make something, and a few months or a week or a year later, I’ll be like, ‘oh, someone did similar sh*t.’ And not like, ‘oh, they’re copying me.’ But we just all share such similar ideas it just happens.


Photo: Happy Hinds

Happy: What’s something you would tell your 20 year old self?

Rossana: I would tell her to do things, not for others, but for herself. I’d tell her to just be hella selfish and to just do what makes her happy. It’s okay to be selfish and it’s okay to choose you. That’s what I would say.

Happy: That’s really smart. I definitely wish I knew that at 20. So I agree.

Rossana: No one ever says selfish is a good thing.

Happy: I know, but they should because it is.

Rossana: They really should.

Happy: So as your legacy, what is the message that you hope your art will communicate?

Rossana: I hope my art sparks a conversation on the duality that is Latin America and Europe and the Western hemisphere. Sparking this conversation on history. Specifically the history that has caused so much pain and violence into Latin America From Europe and from the United States. Not even in the sense of like to blame them, more so to be able to rebuild ourselves as the diaspora. There’s just so much that you lose history wise that they don’t teach you and you never get told and you never get taught and it always just becomes like a myth. I want to be able to spark that conversation again so that people do take the time to learn that history. It’s important that we don’t repeat our steps and repeat what happened before. So that’s what I’m hoping, is for my work to be that conversation starter in our history, basically.

happyhinds

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