Life & Work with Alfred Timothy Camacho

Today we’d like to introduce you to Alfred Timothy Camacho.

Alfred, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
My name is Alfred Timothy Camacho, and I am a Filipino-American artist living in Long Beach, CA. I was born and raised in the Bay Area. I grew up in a small city called Hercules for most of my life. 

Ever since I was a kid, I had always dreamed about being an artist. It wasn’t until high school that I discovered my talent for drawing people. My high school art teacher, Ms. Schrampf, would assign us classwork to draw and paint the still-life she would set up for us in front of the class, but I would always get in trouble for drawing portraits of my friends. Although I was a very mischievous student, we somehow got very close with her during my time in high school. 

I still remember the time she encouraged me to bring my work to San Francisco for National Portfolio Day. So I went with my best friend, Sonny. I remember my heart sinking so badly that day. The representative for CCA (California College of the Arts) said that my portfolio needed a ton of work and that the art world is such a competitive place. It just made me feel like I needed to pursue a different field and give up, and honestly, I probably would have if it wasn’t for my art teacher, Ms. Schrampf, and my best friend, Sonny. They really believed in me from the very beginning, and I am very thankful for that. 

I did eventually decide to pursue fine arts in community college. I attended both Diablo Valley College in Pleasant Hill, CA, and Contra Costa College in San Pablo, CA. I was in community college for seven years, going back and forth with so many different majors and struggling to finish math, but I made it out! 

In 2020, I transferred to California State University, Long Beach, where I discovered my love for painting. I was originally planning to become an illustrator, but I fell in love with painting after taking a class with Siobhan McClure during my second semester of college. 

In 2023, I finally graduated CSU Long Beach with a Bachelors of Fine Art in Drawing and Painting and became a Getty Marrow Intern at Angels Gate Cultural Center for the summer. There, I was mentored by the amazing Cecelia Koger and learned so much about gallery administration and art preparation. It was a very short 10-week program, but now I have a better understanding of art spaces after my experience. 

Today, I am still painting. I paint portraits of my friends. I work as a server and help out at Open Gallery here in Long Beach as an art preparator whenever they need a hand. 

We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Not at all. My mom would always tell me it’s never too late to go into nursing or become a CLS when I was in college! I would always get mad and tell her that that is not what I want to do. But now that I graduated art school, finding an art job, let alone applying for grants and residencies, has been extremely difficult. Even finding a serving job has gotten a lot harder. Seeing a lot of my non-art friends buying new cars, houses, getting engaged, married, and going on vacations always makes me wonder when it’s going to be my turn. 

Now that I’m older, I finally understand that she was just looking out for me. Filipino parents love to lecture you with the whole “When I die…” speech. I’d always roll my eyes, but now I finally get it. 

There have been a lot of times where I feel like I’m behind in life, but I’m slowly realizing that I am right where I need to be. Being an artist is what I’ve always wanted for myself. Painting makes me happy. Being a part of the art community makes me happy. I don’t regret it at all. 

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I am a figurative artist focusing on my personal experiences and relationships that have shaped and impacted my identity. Portraiture is an essential aspect of my work as I am interested in connecting with people through their facial expressions and gestures. In self-portraits, the process of making my paintings creates a healing experience and allows me to reflect on relationships that have played a pivotal role throughout my life. 

The profound emotional impact that music can have on individuals inspires me as an artist. In my work, I seek to harness the evocative power of musical notes and lyrics to convey the complex relationship between the subject and background of my pieces. By visualizing songs as sheet music, I can bridge the gap between these two elements, creating a harmonious connection that allows the viewer to experience a visceral emotional response. Through this process, I encourage the viewer to interpret the song’s meaning within the context of my relationship with it as an artist, thereby creating a profoundly intimate and personal connection between the viewer, myself, and the artwork itself. 

As an acrylic painter, water is a vital element in my creative process, serving as a life-giving force and a means of creating bold and expressive mark-making. By using water to thin, blend, and drip my paint, I can imbue my work with fluidity and movement, creating an ever-changing canvas that evolves before the viewer’s eyes. In particular, linework is crucial in bringing to life the unique thoughts and visions that only I can see, allowing me to communicate my innermost thoughts and emotions through a series of intricate and highly personal strokes. Through my art, I seek to explore the dynamic interplay between water, paint, and the human psyche, creating a profound experience that resonates with audiences on a visceral level. 

Art has the power to bridge cultural divides and foster understanding, and I am excited to be a part of that movement. As an Asian American artist, I believe that my work has the potential to bring a unique perspective to the art community. By sharing my experiences and the experiences of those around me through my paintings, I hope to contribute to a more diverse and inclusive artistic landscape. 

What does success mean to you?
Success is finishing a painting and feeling a sense of accomplishment and fulfillment. Success is painting when you don’t want to. Success is the result of your dedication and willingness to recognize your own efforts. 

Contact Info:

• Website: https://alfredtimothy.squarespace.com/
• Instagram: instagram.com/alfredtimothy.art