ABOUT THE ARTIST

Jose R. Urbina ( b. 1981 )

José is a Guatemalan born visual artist, living and working in Charlotte North Carolina. Per the artist: “I was 3 years old when my father was killed as a result of car jacking. By age 7 my mom remarried and we immigrated from Guatemala to New York. All of these sudden changes in circumstance led me to feel disconnected and lost. In this new place, so far from my loved ones , my culture, and my language. I relied on my drawing abilities to connect with others, both my fellow classmates and school staff.” His drawings earned him a scholarship to an arts after school program where he was exposed to a several artistic media and techniques. He then devoted half of his last two years of high school to a vocational arts program which helped him develop his portfolio for art school. He was then accepted to and attended The School of The Art Institute of Chicago. Since then he has continued to build his art practice and began developing his current body of work. He has used all of the techniques, knowledge and experiences he has acquired in the last 23 years to create his current series.

Education: The School Of The Art Institute Of Chicago, Chicago IL.

Work:

2020: Completion of P_001 (The first work of the Perspectiva series).

2021: Completion of P_002, P_003

2022: Completion of P_004 P_005

Exhibitions:

ArtPop street gallery billboard, Norwalk CA

OBRA Collective gallery group show , Charlotte NC

ArtPop inspiration project Lowes home improvement window, Charlotte NC

VozEs Expression “Here to Stay”el arte del inmigrante, Charlotte NC

Press:

Telemundo interview March 25, 2022