Today we’d like to introduce you to Andrea Del Rio.
Andrea, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Hello! I’m Andrea, and it all started when I ran a clandestine art class at recess in elementary school, where I helped my friends copy drawings from books I owned. That’s when I knew I’d be an artist.
Gathering all my art supplies and drawing for hours at my dining room table was the most entertaining for 7yr old Andrea. She’d be so proud that I recently had my first solo show at the Detroit Shipping Company. It was so fun to fully invest my time in painting and organizing a cohesive set of works, which went smoothly since I use lots of glitter, and it gets on everything. I think I see some on my keyboard now.
Today, I aim to magnify the appreciation of femininity in art through invented landscapes, whimsical portraiture, and all things shiny.
I draw inspiration from my thirsty houseplants, my solar-powered rainbow maker on a sunny morning, and my disco ball at sunset.
I’m from Peru and have lived in the US since 2005 and in Detroit since 2010; I’m a gallery educator at the Detroit Institute of Arts and faculty at the College for Creative Studies.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Artists have always been their most prominent critics, but perfectionism and anxiety are the most significant obstacles. Convincing yourself that it is ok not to do a perfect job at everything is hard. Especially as an immigrant who wants to make their efforts worthwhile in a country that lately has empowered racist beliefs.
It’s tough to embrace artistic freedom and let creativity take over when you’ve been worried about your legal standing and have not seen most of your family for 17 years.
Although representation matters and this is a critical discussion, I choose not to illustrate this part of my life, as art for me is an escape from the prosaic and a source of joy. In a way, it’s the best form of resistance.
Appreciate you sharing that. What more should we know about what you do?
My friendships, experiences, and emotional states are my favorite things to immortalize with paint. Joy isn’t taken as seriously in our everyday lives, and I hope to share it with all who take a moment and imagine themselves in my works of art.
My specialty is trying my best in the world we live in. Themes and subject matter are ever-evolving, and that’s ok because I never want to invent boundaries for my art, as I, too, am constantly changing, and you can’t separate a person from their art. No matter how hard they try with Picasso. Eye roll.
I’m most known for the glittering, shiny, and showy, mostly pink portraits and landscapes. I feel a calling to create feminine, ethereal, fantastical, and delicate works.
I’m proud of continuing to create; in this economy, it would be easy to give up. Honestly, besides my mostly sequin wardrobe, I don’t want much to set me apart; on the contrary, I long for a sense of belonging and community. Finding the crowd who embraces femininity, girliness, and dreams of owning Pink Princess Philodendrons is the dream.
Do you have any advice for those just starting out?
I am starting out, so I better take my advice. Keep going; everyone lives in their timeline, the success of others doesn’t mean your failure, don’t let fear paralyze you into inaction, and go to therapy (which I do).
I wish I knew there’d be a pandemic to wipe out happiness from the world for a while. I wish I knew just how influential personal relationships could be when it comes to artistic endeavors, and I wish I knew that everything turns out ok. Which I still hope for. Not to be bleak, but forced optimism isn’t ideal either.
The need to create will always be there, and it doesn’t matter if you haven’t painted in ten days or ten years; no one is stopping you from picking up where you left off. Don’t good friendships do the same?
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.artsy.
net/artist/andrea-del-rio/ works-for-sale - Instagram: https://www.
instagram.com/ delrioillustration/
