Today we’d like to introduce you to Cynthia Giron.
Cynthia, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I’ve always had an interest in art, ever since I was a little. As a child of two immigrants, my parents immigrated from El Salvador, I felt like I was in between two cultures that I didn’t belong to either one completely. Drawing was a way of finding myself as a child. It was a place of freedom where I could create anything I could dream up, it was also a place where I always had fun.
I grew up in Houston, TX, and after high school, I attended Houston Community college before transferring to the University of Saint Thomas, it was there I solidified my choice to study art. I earned my BA in Studio Arts in 2015, and decided I wanted to apply to graduate school, to get my MFA, I knew that if I was serious about art I would need more time to develop myself as an artist. Which is how I landed here, in Denton! A few of my professors knew faculty at UNT and encouraged me to apply to UNT. I got accepted in 2016 and I started my first semester of grad school in the Spring of 2017.
Currently, I am at the halfway point of my MFA career. I am excited about the new body of work I have developed and look forward to my MFA Thesis Exhibition next year in the Fall of 2019. My work has changed so much since I started grad school, it was made my look inward and explore the reasons why I make art. It made me realize how I reflect myself and my experiences as a woman of color in work. Art, like always, has been a way to find my identity as a person and as an artist. While living here I’ve had the opportunity to participate in various shows and have been able to connect with a great and supportive community.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It has definitely not been an easy road. My parents came from a very poor country and didn’t have the opportunities to study, so all my experiences with higher education were new to them and me. It wasn’t easy to navigate all the things that come with college. Going into academia is great, but it comes with its own problems. Not only financial problems but feeling like an outsider at times. As a minority and a woman, it’s easy to see that there weren’t many others like me in universities. Even though it was a challenge to navigate, it made me want to work harder. To make my family proud, as a first generation American and first generation college student I wanted to show to everyone that had a similar upbringing, that it is possible to make it. To overcome the hardships and land at the same level as more fortunate students.
Please tell us about Cynthia Giron.
My business is my art. I make paintings, drawings and books mostly. My medium of choice is paper, it is the surface I most enjoy. I think my work is definitely known for being bright and colorful. I create creatures, things or inhibitors of spaces in between, they fall on the border of abstraction and recognizable shapes, they relate to the feeling of duality I have felt. The paintings also reflect childhood nostalgia and the freedom and fun that has always been there for me. I like my work to cultivate that fun, and boldness, I want to make the viewer be drawn to my work because of their personality.
I think what I am most proud of, is getting this far, I am the first person in my family to go to graduate school. I am also proud of the work I am making. I love seeing peoples reactions when they see my paintings. I think what sets me apart from others is that I am as colorful as my work, my art is a reflection of me so it only makes sense I have bright colorful hair. I change my hair color often, always bright like my work. Another thing that sets me apart is that my upbringing is different from most other artists, I earned my place and everything I have so, my hope is that it shows to other kids, that anything is possible if you keep trying.
Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
I think my favorite childhood memory is just spending time with my family, on Friday’s we would all help my mom clean the house and then we would order pizza and watch a movie, it was a weekly tradition. It was a night we would all be home, so its a memory I look back on fondly.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.cynthiagiron.com
- Phone: 832-786-0818
- Email: gironcj0922@gmail.com
- Instagram: @cynthiagironartist
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