Today we’d like to introduce you to Francisco Palomares.
Francisco Palomares has used art to overcome the socioeconomic obstacles of his East LA neighborhood since his youth. He converted these disadvantages into opportunities in which he saw each street as visual narratives emanating the challenges and beauty of an ever-changing environment. As a young artist, he studied the fundamentals of drawing and painting. Francisco’s practice would allow him to train at Ryman Arts and earn a Bachelor of Fine Arts from California State University, Long Beach. He later flew to Florence, Italy and Guangzhou, China to study art. After his travels, he relocated his studio PalomaresBLVD, to his neighborhood of Boyle Heights. In this space, Palomares paints the clashing streets and diverse BLVD’s of the city’s urban landscape. PalomaresBLVD invites the viewer to take a walk in the shoes of the artist to understand—through the complex images documented in his paintings—what it truly means to work, live, and play in the City of LA.
Can you give our readers some background on your art?
My artwork is a personal narrative about how I experience an urban city like Los Angeles. I work in all dry and wet mediums. I use graphite, color pencil, pastel, watercolor, oil, and acrylic. Starting last year I began including non-traditional art materials into my work like pieces of wood and photo collage. My background is in traditional drawing and painting techniques developed by the Old European Renaissance Masters. My work continues to hold on to those principals of light logic, composition, and drawing. With these techniques I depict the architecture, landscape, and people of Los Angeles. It is in documenting the everyday life of L.A do I examine issues of gentrification, food deserts, subcultures, and the pursuit of stardom.
Artists rarely, if ever pursue art for the money. Nonetheless, we all have bills and responsibilities and many aspiring artists are discouraged from pursuing art due to financial reasons. Any advice or thoughts you’d like to share with prospective artists?
Get an education or a trade then find a new job were you can balance art into your life.
What’s the best way for someone to check out your work and provide support?
You can view my latest work on my website PalomaresBlvd.com
On my website you can also purchase original artwork, prints, and other merch.
My social links Facebook, Instagram are PalomaresBLVD
Through the Fa4 Collective
Fa4collective.com
Contact Info:
- Website: Palomaresblvd.com
- Email: frnk.j.p@gmail.com
- Instagram: PalomaresBLVD
- Facebook: facebook.com/Palomaresblvd
- Other: Fa4collective.com
Image Credit:
Francisco Palomares, PalomaresBLVD
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