By: Mary Padiernos, George Moreno & Jasmin Finney-Tillman
ABOUT THE ARTIST
“I want the viewer to walk away with their own connections
from my work. Art affects people in different ways. I want people to
engage with my work and form their own opinions.”
Photo by: Colleen Gutwein O'Neil
The Newark Artist: Photo Documentary Project, 2018
Josephine Barreiro (AKA J131, for her street art name), is based in Newark, NJ. She has
been an art educator for over 25 years and an art professor at Kean University for over 15 years.
Barreiro’s work has been featured in many galleries across the country such as The Fountain
Street Fine Arts Gallery (Firmingham, MA), Joyce Gordon Gallery (Oakland, CA), Pen and
Brush and Wilmer Jennings Gallery (New York, NY).
Josephine Barreiro earned both her M.A and MFA from New Jersey City University in
Jersey city, NJ. She also holds a BFA from the well-known School of Visual Arts in NYC. Most
notably she has been featured on PBS, and has exhibited her work at Kean’s Human Rights
Institute. All of these accomplishments are a fraction of Barreiro’s work.
Barreiro is most known for her expressive colorful work as well as her Black and White
pieces. Artwork with her iconic image titled, Rat Bastard is one of the most recognized. You can find paintings, pins, tote bags and many other items available for purchase on her online shop.
Her online store is available: https://j131.bigcartel.com/
Artist J. Barreiro
This interview was conducted via email.
How did you come to join the Neo-Latino Collective? How does your work fit into its objectives?
My friend, the late Raúl Villarreal, founded the group in 2003. He asked me to submit work back then and I have been exhibiting with them ever since. The Neo-Latino Collective is dedicated to the understanding and expression of the contemporary Latinx experience in the United States. As a group, we examine identity and cultural heritage, intrinsic connections and shared values. We give voice to the Latinx narrative through our artistic and theoretical contributions. Being Hispanic, (Spain), I bring forth my culture and my voice to this colorful talented group of artists.
What influenced you to choose a certain medium?
I work with spray paint, soft body acrylic paint and oil sticks. I love the flow of acrylics and spray paint as well as the quick drying time. Oil sticks add another level of texture to my color pieces.
Artist J. Barreiro Alley Cat - work in progress
Can you tell us about any artistic influences you might have? Specific artists? Have they changed over time?
My personal influences come from my surroundings, present and past experiences, music and poetry. My favorite artists include: Pablo Picasso, Jean Dubuffet, Wifredo Lam, Joan Miro, Jackson Pollock, Jean Michel Basquiat.
Jean Michel Basqiuat from The Guardian: "File:Jean Dubuffet, 1960
(cropped).jpg" by Paolo Monti is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2017/sep/03/jean-michel-basquiat-retrospective-barbi can
Absolutely, sometimes you just walk into a gallery or pass some really great street art and are wowed by what’s in front of you. I take all that excitement, energy and emotion back with me into the studio.
Has your geographic location played an influence on your artwork?
I was born and raised in Newark, NJ, a gritty urban city that has so many cultural layers. Urban landscapes are always evolving, diverse and full of life and energy. The urban environment definitely inspires my work. As a child I spent my summers in Spain visiting my grandparents. I was fortunate to be immersed in such a beautiful culture two months out of the year. Spain has quite a different pace of life than what I was used to back home.
Has the coronavirus given you new ideas or inspiration to portray?
During this surreal and chaotic time, I have been vigilant with my sketchbooks, drawing new ideas and working through my emotions and daily stress. During the height of the pandemic many artists took to the streets to express their concerns about the pandemic, politics and social injustice. It was during this time that I came up with several images that I pasted-up around the city of Newark, SOHO and the Lower East Side in NYC. I posted my street art to express my thoughts and communicate my visual stories to the public. As artists, it is our duty to speak-out against unacceptable norms of society.
Did you train as an artist, or are you self-taught? If you went to school, what classes/subjects/teachers were the most helpful?
The high school I attended had a horrible art program. I found out about a program in NYC for high school students. I begged my parents to attend. They enrolled me in F.I.T’s (FASHION INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, NYC) Saturday live program. I attended every Saturday from 9am-1pm one class per semester. I took drawing, painting, and fashion related courses. I attended from my sophomore to senior years. During that time, I developed my portfolio for my college acceptance.
I received my undergraduate education at the School of Visual Arts (BFA); courses included advertising design, graphic arts, photography, sculpture, art history, painting, drawing, figure drawing, history of animation and many more. After my BFA I completed two graduate programs at New Jersey City University- for a Masters in Art Education (M.A.) and a terminal degree- the Master of Fine Arts (MFA) my focus was painting and drawing. Courses included painting, drawing, conceptual thinking, multicultural studies, art history to name a few.
Does your work speak to current social and political issues?
Yes, some of my pieces speak to current social and political issues our country has been dealing with such as the pandemic, the BLM movement, and many other social injustices. It's important that artists alert our communities to engage thoughtfully and take steps toward social progress.
What do you want your audience to feel or think after looking at your art?
I want the viewer to walk away with their own connections from my work. Art affects people in different ways. I want people to engage with my work and form their own opinions.
How has your style changed over the years?
My black and white pieces were more textural in the past, now the paint is applied flat and clean. A few years ago I started to cut my own stencils to create background patterns as opposed to painting the patterns with a brush. My color works have become more refined, less fragmented with clean lines and crisp color application. I still love using a bold color palette. My work has become more stylized over the years and I really like the direction it is going.
What do you think is your responsibility as an artist?
Nina Simone: said, “An artist's duty, as far as I'm concerned, is to reflect the times. I think that is true of painters, sculptors, poets, musicians. As far as I'm concerned, it's their choice, but I CHOOSE to reflect the times and situations in which I find myself. That, to me, is my duty.”
Art should connect with people's emotions. It can be personal and universal simultaneously. As an artist, I have strong emotional responses to our world. Because of this sensitivity I am able to express these responses with paint, monochromatic gestural drawing, or color. I try to render the atmosphere of a place or the memory of a feeling. Being so sensitive can sometimes become a burden.
Best piece of advice you can give to future artists/creatives?
Be you! Be authentic and do what makes you happy. Don’t compete with anyone. The only person you have to impress is yourself because you can’t please everyone. Keep going in the face of rejection, stay positive, commitment is everything and be proactive about building your own artistic community through artist friends and mentors. It’s important to have something else that you enjoy doing to achieve financial stability. I have been a public school art educator for 27 years as well as an adjunct fine arts professor. I enjoy teaching and having jobs with the kind of schedules that allow me to travel and work on my own art.
How much schooling did you do?
Too much! (Laughter) This is funny because my two loves are animals and art. I wanted to be a veterinarian but didn’t want the big loans and being in school forever. Instead, I pursued an art career thinking I would only study for four years but I just kept going and going earning an undergraduate degree and two graduate degrees!
Would you recommend young artists to gain art degrees?
Yes I would. There are benefits from obtaining an art degree including making important connections with professors who are established artists. A degree can mature your creative efforts. Taking a variety of art courses also introduces you to a range of art related careers.
Would you work with the Neo Latino Collective again?
Yes of course, I am an active member in the group. We continue to work and plan our ambitious projects.
Woman. Acrylic, oil stick and spray paint.
Cat Devouring Bird 2018. Acrylic, spray paint & oil stick on canvas.
Wow! The vibrant colors and the artist’s ideal perception of a bird and a cat is eye-catching. In this painting, art can easily be appreciated. With the use of the acrylic spray paint, the colors almost jump up at you especially with Josephine’s choice to use primary colors. With the black stripes near the cat’s chin and on top of its eye, viewers can assume that it’s a tabby cat and that she was very specific about what kind of cat she wanted to portray. Its eyes are not the same, one eye is in a circular form and the other is a three-dimensional shape that appears to be a cone. The bird is a sunshine yellow and has pointy edged features all around. When asked what her inspiration was behind this painting, she said her environment, memories, and Spanish culture. She explains that she was always inspired by Picasso and his work and took interest in Cat Devouring Bird 1939. Barreiro decided to create her own which was displayed in two different versions, one that had a full body painting of the cat and the other that drew more attention to the killing of the bird.
The Black & White Series: Sign of the Times. Acrylic, spray paint and paper on wood panel.
George M.’s Analysis of Alone #2
The artist mentions this in her interview with chaletmomma (https://www.chaletmomma.com/musings/2018/4/13/arresting-art), “I approach both of these pieces by painting multiple sheets of paper white then let them dry. Once dry I fill each sheet with patterns and repetitive lines using acrylic black paint and black spray paint. Once the patterns are dry on the sheet I tear and rip them into interesting shapes, working on my composition and gluing them into place on the wood panel.’’
At first glance one sees a humanoid being crouched in a position of sadness. This humanoid figure has three fingers with two hands and legs with two toes. The figure has his head buried in his long arms indicating sadness or depression. However if one sees deeper what could a humanoid be sad about? In the back we see the same black stars as in Rat Bastard. However in the top we see dots indicating the figure is being watched. To the right there are similar dots indicating a wall. The bottom is filled with all of these designs to show all of these interpretations. The figure seems to be in a room feeling trapped even while being depressed and possibly watched. The question is why?
J131 Sign of the Times - Wheat Paste 2021 J131 Rat Bastard - Wheat Paste 2019
The Black & White Series: Rat Bastard. Spray paint, acrylic and paper on wood.
George M.’s Analysis of Rat Bastard.
In the same interview with chaletmomma, Barreiro explains that, “My figures are painted as animal and human form and they are always faceless unlike my color paintings that have faces. In my black and white pieces I want the gestural lines to express the emotion in the piece, The figures are drawn out on sheets of white acrylic painted paper. The black fluid gestural lines that outline the figure give it its expressive qualities.”
It is a collage. It is wood painted with paper and aerosol. At first glance, the viewer sees a white rat with no face. By the title one could say that she loathes rats. However, with so many rats featured in her artwork we could say this is not the case. In the work we also see black stars in the back. The black stars may symbolize either depression or despair. Since the white rat has no face nor nose it symbolizes that either the artist does not want to confront either the fear or disgust of Rats. Below the rat we see a hole with either a door or a bridge. It is up to each person to decide. To the right of the rat we see a net. The artist either feels trapped or it’s simply the rat trying to climb and get through. The colors to me, black, white, and grey, symbolize depression and despair. Black and white to the world is commonly expressed as duality. Good and bad, yin and yang; however, there is none of that here. There is only black, white and gray.
References
https://www.instagram.com/J131/
https://www.newarkartsphotodoc.com/josephine-barreiro/0h0fy3d0snu9tujp3af5zi3rn3peqh J131’s candid photos.
https://www.josephinebarreiro.com/
https://neolatinocollective.com/josephine-barreriro
J131’s biography.
https://villagegreennj.com/arts/visiones-de-identidad-a-latinx-perspective-west-orange-arts-cente r-hosts-hybrid-art-exhibit-celebration-of-hispanic-culture/
http://www.lipsnewark.com/calendar/2015/12/4/the-significant-gesture-artist-josephine-barreiro The Significant Gesture: The Black and White Series December 2015 Solo Exhibition https://www.puffinculturalforum.org/event/daily-featured-artwork-josephine-barreiros-el-toro/* http://uptowngrandcentral.org/art-as-activism
https://www.chaletmomma.com/musings/2018/4/13/arresting-art
J131’s interview and explanation of her Black and White series; quotes and photos of the artwork from here.
https://www.proartsjerseycity.org/the-empowering/
One of the events that J131 was featured in recently.
https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2017/sep/03/jean-michel-basquiat-retrospective-barbi can
Photo credit for Jean Michel Basqiuat.
Photo credit J.Barreiro: Art work images and portraits