Today we’d like to introduce you to Juan Alberto Negroni.
Juan, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I was born in Puerto Rico in 1979, the third of four siblings… (Laura, Juan Antonio, Me and Iván). I came from a low-mid class family and went to public school all my life. As a kid, I did what every kid did when I was going up. I threw rocks, ride my bicycle and washed cars to make a few bucks.
I grew up in a neighborhood surrounded by projects… must of my friends where poor. Still, I had a wonderful childhood. Even during the roughest times, my Mom (Tere) and my Dad (Tato) provided my siblings and me with everything we needed. We had a roof, food and a colorful supply of great music and stories. My Dad introduced me to boleros from Puerto Rican and Mexican singers, Salsa and Brazilian music from Sergio Mendes, Roberto Carlos and many others. My Mom showed me The Carpenters and Johnny Mathis and The Stones… what more could I ask for?
They insisted in teaching me to be honest, grateful and hard worker. They lived afraid of everything and because of that, I learn to be fearless. While they did their best to protect me from everything, I did my best to stay at risk. I hung out with the wrong crew and for many years even when I was going to school and later to college, I drove my car against the traffic metaphorically speaking. It is imperative to point out that since I was in elementary school my Mom always took me to as many art classes as she could. Art classes was the only solid element outside my household.
Against all the odds, I graduated from the School of Fine Arts and Design of Puerto Rico, did my fist Masters in Education with a Major in Art History. While at the same time I worked endlessly to find my way and my place in the art world. I adapted and re-adapted, I mutated and did the best I could to fit and have a prosper and proper art career. But in between jobs, it was really had to find or understand what I wanted to say. For many years I had nothing to say with my practice.
In 2015 I decided to move from PR. Find another place, “better opportunities.” By then it was not just me. I had gotten married and my sense of responsibility was quickly transforming. This is when I applied to many universities and all kinds of jobs all around US. After sending and receiving so many documents, recommendation letters and interviews I accepted Southern Methodist University’s offer for a free ride into their MFA in Studio Arts program.
It was then when all I have told here started making sense. My life became my practice. My experience, my heritage, my parent’s sacrifices. Every kiss and every fistfight. The color of my sister’s skin, each car I washed, every drop of saltwater from every beach I bathe in, the garden my parents proudly nursed… my identity. Here I understood what it meant to be Puerto Rican, to be the Caribbean. Be a part of something bigger than me. I understood how I fitted in history. Here my work took shape and I found meaning. It was away from home, where I understood what home was. And this has been my greatest achievement. A proud and painful achievement.
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?
The art world is never a smooth road. There are so many myths attached to the profession that even today are hard to break. The art market is very unstable and unpredictable, while the art education is always difficult since none art school usually have art classes because it is required.
We’d love to hear more about your art.
My work encircles the details of myself growing in a mid-lower class family. Going out or traveling was not an option for us since my father’s income was the only money we had. My mom was in charge of the house, me and my siblings. So they made sure our house was a nice place to coexist and a peaceful place where we could enjoy and live in as much harmony as we could. Everything had to be shared… Spaces and corners inside the house acquired special importance and had become more and more meaningful with time. This is something I started understanding when I moved to my own place.
As we learned to cherish every object, me, as a creative child understood the value of each one of these items, its shape and its placing in the house. I explore my identity as a brother, as a son, as a Puerto Rican and so on by remembering and paying homage to the place I grew up in.
In Puerto Rico’s/Caribbean’s weather, cross ventilation is super important, especially in small homes. The Miami window place an important role in our everyday life. It wasn’t only for ventilation, it helped with hanging the clothes to dry and it was also a communication system between neighbors. We would have a conversation, we would trade toys or share yesterday’s leftovers through the window.
In my work, even when abstract, there are glimpses of corners, tabletops, vases, glassware, Miami windows, amongst other household elements. Also we can see maps and birds-eye views pieces of land, islands… My work sometimes puts the viewer as far as possible from the garden while in other instances, place them inside it.
Recently, I have also started analyzing and researching events and socio-political conditions that formed and shaped Puerto Ricans, Caribbeans and Latin Americans oneness. Colonialism, the Atlantic Slave trade and cultural heritage are new elements attached to my practice. Even though I come from a printmaking background, I mostly work with acrylic paint, watercolor, gouache and ink, which gives me a sense of not being a hundred percent in control of the medium. Still, the way I compose my images is tightly related to printmaking, especially to the traditional silkscreen posters from mid-century to the ’70s.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
Last year I was approached by NorthPark Mall to do a site-specific piece which covered the barricade of a storefront. Having my Mom flight from Puerto Rico and see her tears of joy when she stood in front of my piece became the proudest moment in my career.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.juanalbertonegroni.com
- Phone: 787-310-7987
- Email: negroni4@yahoo.com
- Instagram: _n_e_g_r_o_n_i_
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