Today we’d like to introduce you to Kristy Moreno.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
My journey to the ceramics field started with an early exposure to the art scene community growing up in Southern California. I was initially drawn to art making by way of learning about DIY culture and graffiti. Artists such as Margaret Kilgallen and popular art magazines that I had access to inspired me to pursue the arts. This led me to be involved with a community of artists engaged in illustrations, painting, and making zines. It wasn’t until I enrolled in a ceramics course in 2016 at my local community college when I found my central medium, clay. My introduction to this new medium connected me to a broader community of artists and the material itself brought a spiritual dimension to art-making that I had not experienced prior.
Clay was a spiritual act as it provided me with hours of meditative focus that brought upon a state of flow that grew my self-awareness. The exposure to a wide range of ceramic art inspired me to then pursue a bachelor’s degree in both printmaking and ceramics. Combining the DIY ethos of Southern California with my personal interest in social justice movements, I see how engaging with the art scene surrounding my community helped me find my voice in the ceramics field.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Back in 2014, a close relative of mine was incarcerated and given a 25 year sentence which resulted in me becoming depressed and unmotivated to continue with my education. I dropped out of community college and before you know it, two years had gone by. I kept working and making art but I felt that my practice was struggling. Something inside of me knew I wasn’t challenging myself or my work, so in 2016, I decided to go back to Santa Ana College and enroll in a ceramics class. I came into this three-dimensional medium with my two-dimensional techniques, and I hit a wall. I spent two years navigating through learning curves and developing a newly founded respect for clay. By 2018, I was ready to transfer out and pursue a bachelor of fine arts degree from Chico State University.
Since graduating from Chico State, I’ve been able to complete a two-year-long artist residency at The Archie Bray Foundation located in Helena, Montana which began in 2021. This residency would not have been possible had I not gone back to school after that rough patch and I’m thankful to have been able to grow and learn from these obstacles.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I make ceramic sculptures out of a necessity to connect with others and to communicate ideas and emotions that are difficult for me to process and share. I’ve developed a series of fictional characters with the intention of focusing on moments of joy experienced in communal spaces. My undergrad work was also community-based but executed with outwardly political imagery. These pieces were responses to the protests of 2020, but I know they lacked empathy in showing the full range of experiences that BIPOC communities can have. This work left an impact on me as I reflected on how makers have the power to shift our culture. I thought about how regurgitating scenes of trauma and violence was not the path I wanted to take, as portraying images of power and domination over one another was not creating the future I was trying to envision. We all have an innate need and desire for human connection, and when we learn how embracing others challenges patriarchy, we can then start community building.
My characters often wear hoop earrings with social justice movement slogans symbolizing strength, resistance, and cultural identity. These are hidden qualities that audiences may not notice right away when looking at the work, as what they might see first are the bright colors. The intention behind these pieces is for the audience to be empowered by these strong feminine personalities freely expressing their rage, joy, and curiosity that I sometimes struggle with expressing myself.
Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
Growing up, I always considered myself to be an introverted tomboy. As a kid, I loved riding my bike, playing sports, drawing and just loved to be outside. In high school, I was into collecting records, graffiti and watching live bands in Santa Ana whenever I could. I spent my time watching documentaries on art and music and gravitated towards musicians such as Poly Styrene, The Adicts and the cohorts of artists in the film Beautiful Losers.
Some of my first art pieces were cut out stencils that I would spray paint all over my bedroom walls. It was around this time that I realized just how much I loved making things and one day decided that I would start painting on canvases. I didn’t worry about having any formal training as a painter because I just knew that making art made me happy and helped me express myself in a different way. That was over 15 years ago, and I haven’t stopped making art since.
Contact Info:
- Website: Kristymorenoart.weebly.com
- Instagram: Kristy.moreno
