Meet Galileo Gonzalez

Today we’d like to introduce you to Galileo Gonzalez.

Every artist has a unique story. Can you briefly walk us through yours?
I was born in East LA to Salvadorian parents, but grew up mainly in Bell, a city in Southeast, in a neighborhood that was mainly Lebanese and Palestinian. Just like most cities in the Southeast, growing up was rough, and I was exposed to violence that most would only see on TV. I’ve always had an interest in drawing, and at 7th grade, I decided I wanted to draw for a living. While most of NY peers fell off by having children in their teens or joining gangs, I stayed committed on wanting to become an artist.

After I graduated, I applied to Cerritos College in 2008, which is where I started to get to learn more about fine art, find my voice, and get to be around peers that loved to create. I give credit to Hagop Najarian, my professor, in being a huge influence and a great professor. I transferred to CSULB in 2014, which gave me a taste into what it’s like to be a full-time artist, and also helped me hone into what I want to create.

I graduated in May 2017, and have my BFA degree in Drawing and Painting. I now reside in San Antonio, TX and live with my GF, who is a full-time illustrator in her on right. Even though I’m a thousand miles away, my SoCal roots still run deep.

Please tell us about your art.
My art is centered on a few things: my upbringings, my heritage, and Hardcore Punk. I currently use my drawing skills to create flyers and logos for hardcore bands, and much of the elements on flyer-making that I’ve learned throughout the years have transferred over to my current practice. I consider my style crude and rough, as I feel that there’s more expression to it than something that’s clean and polished. Much of that comes from my Punk background, as well as being influenced by German Expressionism and Bay Area Figurative.

As or recently, I’ve been focused more on Salvadorian history, primarily the Civil War, as it’s the reason why my mom and grandmother arrived to California. While I’ve yet to create more work on it, I’ve been collecting lots of research on it, and learning much more about Salvadorian diaspora, and the erasure of my culture due to my parents wanting to survive and not look back.

We often hear from artists that being an artist can be lonely. Any advice for those looking to connect with other artists?
One thing I can recommend is to join or start a collective. I’ve been part of FA4 Collective since its inception, and it’s great because not only are you surrounded by peers who are as serious as you, but you learn from each other. It’s also a great way to foster community, as our individual connections have been a pathway for all of us to take part in something grand and be there for each other.

How or where can people see your work? How can people support your work?
My work can be viewed through my IG handle @gali_gonz, and can also be viewed on fa4collective.com.

Contact Info:

• Website: fa4collective.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gali_gonz
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/gali_gonz

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