The ARTIST

VALERA

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Born in White Plains, NY

Lives & works in Fort Lauderdale, Florida

 An artist and photographer, I work in various mediums that transcend from physical to digital. As well as being experienced in styling, set designing, print making, and art handling.   

 My mixed media work begins with fragmented collage elements that build with small reliefs of illustration and paint. Carefully balancing the elements to not be quickly recognizable the work develops an unconscious impression on the viewer that isn't simply associated to common social/ visual language.

 Contrasting my mixed media work my photography's main focus is to capture the essence of the individual in front of my lens to their truest form. I aim to capture genuine and honest exposures. My roots in photography came from a documentary approach, having a lack of documentation in my youth to capturing life that I felt was beautiful and fleeting as a young queer teenager. My love of capturing these precious moments turned into a journey of discovering how I could unlock someone and capture them with purity. I desired a photograph to be real whether it was good, bad, or anything inbetween. To capture life in a raw and unfiltered approach.

CV

Work Experience

2009-2015 Apprenticeship with Francesco Lo Castro 

2015-2016 Sales Associate/ Assistant for Wentworth Art Gallery

2018 Art Handling for Young At Art Museum  

2019 Artist Assistant of Francesco Lo Castro For Rag & Bone Mural Installation

2021 Curator of  Art In Action & Artist Pop Up Events @ Shipwreckers Kava Bar

2021 Queer Parties Miami Photographer 

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Exhibitions

2015-Catharsis Exhibition- Jump The Shark 

2010 - Solo Show, I.W.A.N. The Bubble

2016 Catharsis Exhibition, March Show, Jump The Shark

2016 "PRE" Solo Show Jump The Shark in association with Inchoate Art Gallery

2016 Catharsis Exhibition, September Show, Jump The Shark

2021 Back Together Exhibition @ Arts Warehouse Delray Beach with Arts United 

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