Featured Artist: Ivan Vazquez

January 10, 2018

Inspired by the connection between Hip Hop culture and Sade, my subject had to become a symbol of femininity. As an artist, I feel compelled to engage and contribute to the feminist movement. I created a street art campaign in Chicago to combat misogyny and gender inequality in today's society. My art initiative spread amongst cities nationwide and overseas. "Recognize the Queen within and them Queen's around you" is a title I focus on. The message challenges the masculinized version of words. The linear designs in the artwork symbolize the need for balance in the ever-changing new world.

Ivan Vazquez is a Mexican American visual artist born and based in Chicago Illinois. Ivan's work tells stories pertaining to humanistic, domestic, cultural, and social issues from an urban vantage point with heavy doses of hip-hop culture. Self-taught his work is Realism, Surrealism, Pop art, Portrait, and Modern abstract expressionism. An artist of the times Ivan's work itself controversial yet progressive questions social structure and the effects of it on modern day society. His work has been featured in sponsored shows/events ranging from the Jordan Brand, Don Julio Tequila, Mountain Dew, Red Bull Music Academy, The NBA, Pepsi Co., and Toyota. Ivan Vazquez has shown in Pop up's and Gallery's in most major cities in the country and abroad. He continues to push boundaries and work that creates a spark of positivity for our youth. Come take a look into the past, present, and most importantly the future with visuals from Ivan Vazquez's budding collection "Stakes Is Higher".

I've lost people really close to me due to the senseless violence Chicago is known for. My art is a way I grieve and at the same time heal"it's my way to pay tribute to them and empower/educate youth with positive and relate-able alternative lifestyles. I am a product of Chicago Hip Hop culture, and because of that, I am grateful to be alive.

My paintings are a reflection of how it feels and looks growing up in Chicago. My subjects are often very young. The visuals as personal as they are they are meant to empower, unify, inspire and, educate. There is a brutality, and a darkness in my work as well as a sense of serenity, promise, and deep love. My goal is to preserve and contribute to the culture and represent the misrepresented.