It’s not always easy to tell whats real and whats fabricated – Sergio Garcia

Sergio Garcia is a US-based artist who uses the unconventional as a theme for his work.  Sergio Garcia embraces painting as platform for self-expression, as well as a channel through which to explore the contemporary socio-political climate. The Texan based artist works primarily in print and sculpture, often using text and icons of childhood and adolescence. Garcia recreates these icons by engaging unusual materials; a common thread in the artists’ practice. Employing objects such as tricycles, Garcia reinvents them as fanciful vessels denying their functionality by morphing the frames into whimsical Dr Seuss like riddles, which he sees as a nostalgic nod to childhood whimsy.

Sergio Garcia dabbles in many artistic disciplines, but the core of his work is a desire to alienate his viewers from the familiar. Garcia takes mundane objects as a starting point and artfully manipulates them until they take on new meanings. 

The tricycles are probably Garcia’s most identifiable works; straightforward and successful, they are altered to include symbols like hearts and infinity signs, rendering them nonfunctional. These works create a playful relation between a child’s trike and symbols often drawn by children. The campy pairing is not conceptually dense, but charmingly simplistic, in keeping with the childhood references.

A sculpture of a small girl entitled No time to slow down, whose head has been replaced by another bubble-blowing hand is like a cross between a surrealist nightmare and an equally fabricated 1950s manikin display. The result is an unsettlingly funny vision that looks convincingly realistic while being as phony as Garcia’s artificial flowers.

In addition, Garcia’s paintings stake a claim for words as images, deliberately juxtaposing phrases that ironically contradict one another to evoke a controversial dialouge.  He has exhibited at countless galleries and fairs, including the SCOPE ART Fair, 941 Geary, Hal Sampes Gallery, and Gallery Lombardi.

“We, as humans, are naturally drawn to the unorthodox. I have always enjoyed the use of the unconventional as a base for my artwork. I enjoy creating art that people can relate to and that stimulates the creative subconscious. Not only to create an emotional relationship between art and viewer, but to conjure up questions of how and why. It is this desire to create a connection with the viewer that fuels my creativity.
My passion is creating a perfect balance of light and shadow. Light is the core of my artwork. Without light there is no art. Without art there is no life. Amen, brother.” – Sergio Garcia Statement

-Photo Source via sergiotheg.com and whitewallssf.com