Hello All,
I would like to give an update of my life for all who may be wondering. Today is September 13th, 2023, and this same day just one year ago I was in a completely different place, physically, mentally, and spiritually. But I will take it back one more year before this day, last year, and start the story there, an even more confusing time for young Tony Torres.
September 2021:
I finished my undergraduate studies at the University of Wisconsin, receiving a Bachelors in Fine Arts as well as a Bachelors in Science in Environmental Studies. Like many artists leaving college, I had no damn clue what to do, so I move home because I missed my family, friends, and the Bay Area in general like crazy. I got a job as the Gallery Assistant at ACCI Gallery in Berkeley, California. I thought working in the art world was what I wanted, but I did not realize that a job in a gallery could be so mentally draining as an artist myself. At the time I had started working out of my first studio in the Bay Area, and I had my work represented in a gallery, 4th Street Fine Art. In my crazy head, something still wasn't sitting right. I wanted more, and I felt as though I was holding myself back working in the gallery. I told myself I would complete my full year at the job, but come September, I would move to city with a bigger art community. I would use money I saved over the last year to fully devote the next 365 days to making art in Los Angeles, California.
September 2022:
I arrived in Hollywood, California and I set two goals for myself: 1. To have a solo show in the heart of Los Angeles and 2. Get into one of the best graduate schools in the country to receive a Masters in Fine Arts.
I have completed my journey in Los Angeles, California, meeting too many beautiful and influential people.
I have also completed both my goals.
I had my first Solo Show in July 2023, titled "Rituals"
I got into the graduate school of my dreams, The Rhode Island School of Design, where I will be studying printmaking for the next two years.
I look in the mirror these days and can't really believe it.
I drove from my studio in Los Angeles to my new apartment in Rhode Island with my dad, someone who I have had a To this day, I vividly remember standing handcuffed to a wall after being caught spray painting in 2017. In that very moment, I told myself something had to change. I was lost and lacked guidance. At that same time, both I and others around me knew the power of my art. I had the same drive to create then that I do in the present moment. I knew what I was doing wasn't wrong, it was just the improper method to fully display my ideas.
This second goal is because I plan to teach printmaking, specifically lithography. Lithography provided a very safe space for me in my early art years of undergraduate study, and I give endless thanks to my instructors Barry Carlsen and Master Printer Andy Rubin. I strive to be like them some day. Lithography also taught me patience and process, two things I was lacking in my art practice. As the art world continues to modernize, I will look backwards in time and seek to preserve techniques that got us to where we are.
I have completed my journey in Los Angeles, California.