Felix Berroa
b. 1952
Unknown | 20th C.
Acrylic on Wood | 30" x 24"
The “head askew” is a stylistic element that has symbolistic meaning and origins in youth and the playful nature of innocent children.
Influenced by his experience and passion for printmaking, and by old masters like Durand and Rembrandt, Berroa creates little lines in all of his figures to emphasize, not only the faces, but also the bodies of the character.
His passions, humanistic concerns, and love for the female figure paired with children and the innocence of life, further create a body of work that vibrates through all cultures and relations.
Berroa uses vibrant yet subtle hues that saturate each image, as well as intricate line work that he says addresses the many sides of humanity.
Felix Berroa (born Felix Berroa, 1952) is a Dominican-American artist known for his rich cultural blending in art.
In 1981, Berroa immigrated to the United States from San Pedro de Marcoris and currently resides in Atlanta, Georgia.
Fascinated by the human figure, Berroa began drawing and carving when he was a child.
Painting to express his passion for life, death, and the dreams of all humans, Berroa states, “To truly understand an artist, it is not enough to solely appreciate his art technique. To do this it is necessary to ‘read him’ (the artist), through his lived experiences and the way in which these are reflected in his feeling within the art.”
Berroa’s rich and culturally diverse background has influenced his work especially in matters of human concern. Women and children, music, and dance, and the countryside of his hometown in San Pedro de Marcoris are common themes that appear throughout his paintings. Felix Berroa (born Felix Berroa, 1952) is a Dominican-American artist known for his rich cultural blending in art.
In 1981, Berroa immigrated to the United States from San Pedro de Marcoris and currently resides in Atlanta, Georgia.
Fascinated by the human figure, Berroa began drawing and carving when he was a child.
Painting to express his passion for life, death, and the dreams of all humans, Berroa states, “To truly understand an artist, it is not enough to solely appreciate his art technique. To do this it is necessary to ‘read him’ (the artist), through his lived experiences and the way in which these are reflected in his feeling within the art.”
Berroa’s rich and culturally diverse background has influenced his work especially in matters of human concern. Women and children, music and dance, and the countryside of his hometown in San Pedro de Marcoris are common themes that appear throughout his paintings.
Often referring to himself as a “storyteller,” Berroa’s paintings depict the protagonist character, interwoven with symbolism. Though he began making work that was more realistic, Berroa’s current practice abstracts his figures into dreamlike characters.
Berroa’s pieces in the MCMA exhibition, Afro-Vision, depict a few reoccurring themes and symbolic elements found in his body of work. Inspired by his love of the female figure, women and children are a common theme. Stereotypically labeled as the “weak ones” of society, Berroa works to illuminate them as not only tender and beautiful, but essential givers and receivers of life.
Women are winged with liberty and freedom or painted with several legs, symbolizing stability and the empowered nature of women.