ARTIST STATEMENT
One of my earliest memories as a child was the way death and religion played an important role in my family’s life. My parents were born in Mexico with traditional beliefs, and their beliefs made their way into my subconscious. The fact that many of those beliefs seemed to render no logical explanation has also influenced me. These unanswered questions find a home in my work, which evokes the mystery, fear and irony of those vivid memories of my past. I do not claim to understand these questions. I just paint and let them reveal themselves to me.
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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
I continue to be amazed and inspired by many artists both past and present, who have been successful in capturing the complexities of the human spirit. We run from those things that we cannot explain. These are the things that we must attempt to explain through art. All the beauty and tragedy that is life. The world between imagination and completion is an infinite one. It is a solitary journey, yet the many paths are full of wanderers who are also searching and eager to share their findings.

I am most influenced by the great amount of human suffering that has occurred throughout history and one’s undying faith in the after life. Often times I am subconsciously influenced by world attitudes or stories and also by the people I am closest to. I prefer to keep an open mind and let the subject matter take on a life of its own.

Diaz studio

Client List:
PBS, Warner Bros/Atlantic Records, Rolling Stone Magazine, Spin Magazine, MTV-2, Juxtapoz Magazine, Low Rider Magazine, Graphic Design USA, Garage Magazine, Shade Magazine, 3x3 Magazine, HM The Hard Music Magazine, Contemporary Chicana and Chicano Art Book Vol. and II, Arizona Journal of Hispanic Cultural Studies, New American Paintings, Equilibrium Magazine, Alter Ego, Versus Magazine, New American Paintings.

EXHIBITIONS:

2010
Yves Laroche Gallery, Montreal, Canada, June
Mondo Bizarro Gallery, Rome, Italy, November

2009
Perihelion Arts, Phoenix, AZ, March

2008
Billy Shire Fine Arts, Solo Exhibition, Culver City, CA, December
Arizona State Museum, Solo Exhibition, Tucson, AZ, September
Last Rites Gallery, Group Exhibition, New York, NY, April
DvA Gallery, Group Exhibition, Chicago, IL, April
Stolen Space Gallery, Touring Group Exhibition, London, England, April
Perihelion Arts, Phoenix, AZ, March
Mondo Bizzarro, Group Show, Rome, Italy, March

2007
Mesa Contemporary Art Museum, Solo Exhibition, Mesa, AZ
Hemphill Fine Arts, Group Exhibition, Washington D.C.
Henry Boxer Gallery, Outsider Art Fair, New York, NY
Fuse Gallery, Group Exhibition, New York, NY (Touring England and Japan)
Lautre Galerie, Sweet Calaveras, Montreal, QC

2006
Billy Shire Fine Arts, Solo Exhibition, Culver City, CA
Capro Nason and Pressure Printing, Group Exhibition, Santa Monica, CA
The Judson Studios, Group Exhibition, Los Angeles, CA
Henry Boxer Gallery, Outsider Art Fair, New York, NY

2005
Jonathan LeVine Gallery, Solo Exhibition, New York, NY
La Luz De Jesus Gallery, Solo Exhibition, Hollywood, CA
Mesa Contemporary Arts Center, Works From The Permanent Collection, Mesa, AZ
Tin Man Alley, Group Show, Philadelphia, PA
M Modern Gallery, Group Show, Palm Springs, CA
Self-Help Graphics Gallery, Group Show, Los Angeles, CA

      
 

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Permanent Collections and Archives:
Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art, Laguna Art Museum / Orange County Art Museum, Tucson Museum of Art, Shemer Art Center and Museum, New Mexico State University, San Antonio de Padua Catholic Church Sonora, Mexico, US Santa Barbara Library-Caridad Archive of Chicano Printmaking in California, Huntington Museum, The Gerald Buck Collections Self-Help Graphic's Traveling Exhibition Print Program, Mesa Contemporary Arts, Cirque du Soleil Collection

Public Art and Commissions:
Phoenix/Cave Creek Police Precinct Terrazzo Project, 2010
Phoenix Light Rail Project TPSS, 2012
Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport Terrazzo Project, 2013
Tucson Pima Arts Council Luminarias Del Pueblo (2 metal sculptures)
Tucson Pima Arts Council Ponies Del Pueblo
Historic Hotel Congress Proscenium Stage
Atlantic Records Multi-Platinum Band POD Album Artwork, Layout, and Direction
Six String Masterpieces: A Dimebag Darrell Art Tribute Hand-Painted Guitar for Charity
San Antonio De Padua Catholic Church Altarpieces

Personal Publications:
Triginta Uno Dies, Thirty-One Drawings In Thirty-One Days, Last Gasp Publishing
Mysterium Fidei, Last Gasp Publishing

Book Covers and Features:
Arizona Journal Of Hispanic Cultural Studies, Volume 2, 1998, University Of Arizona Press
Contemporary Chicana and Chicano Art Book Vol. and II, Bilingual Press
Triumph of Our Communities: Four Decades of Mexican American Art, Bilingual Press
Chicano Art for Our Millennium, Bilingual Press
Critical Mappings Of Arturo Islas's Fictions, Frederick Luis Aldama, Bilingual Press
The Captain of All These Men Of Death, Alejandro Morales, Bilingual Press
Metamorphosis Volume 1, 50 Surreal & Fantastic Artists, Beinart Publishing

Community Involvement:
Arizona Commission On The Arts Community Art And Marketing Lecture
Arizona State Museum Exhibition Mysterium Fidei Lecture
Mesa Contemporary Arts Exhibition Mysterium Fidei Lecture
University Of Arizona Student Art Lecture
City High School Student Art Lecture