SAD GIRLS
Solo Exhibition
Art League Houston, Main Gallery. May 27 - Jul 23, 2022. Houston, TX.
Opening Reception: 6-8 PM, Friday, May 27, 2022 I Main Gallery
Artist Talk: 2:00 - 4:00 PM, Saturday, May 28, 2022 I Main Gallery
Photos above courtesy of Alex Barber and Art League Houston.
Art League Houston (ALH) presents Sad Girls, an installation of new works by Jasmine Zelaya in the Main Gallery. The title of the exhibition is a reference to Chola culture. The distinctive Chola style is characterized by dark, undulating hair, winged eyeliner, and dark lipstick; achieving a look that is both intimidating and vulnerable. The look and culture encompass a state of mind and a state of being that was welcoming to brown communities, especially one that women and girls could identify with at a time when there weren’t many avenues for brown communities and children of immigrants to feel control over their identity.
Zelaya’s parents emigrated from Honduras to the U.S. in the 1970’s, and her experience of growing up at odds between two cultures has influenced her work. Remembering her sister applying the maroon tube of L’oreal mascara in repeated, careful strokes, Zelaya says, “I was mesmerized by each application, which I eventually came to see as a ritualistic, intentional act. I am still intrigued by the idea that the outward manipulation of one's appearance can transform their state of being.”
The artist applies graphic floral patterns over the faces in her paintings and sculptures, masking the tensions that lie beneath the surface of one’s appearance, but also offering a kind of personal protection from the world. These floral elements also serve as symbols of not only a familial narrative (the women inher family are all named after flowers), but the contrast of the natural and artificial world, whose rhythmic application reminds the artist of the ritual in which we transform our outward appearance in order to navigate our lives and feel empowered.
For more information, please contact Houston Art League, jimmy@artleaguehouston.org