“La Canción Verde” refers to the song of Puerto Rico's native frog, el Coquí. It’s also the name of a popular children's fiction novel written by Doris Troutman Plenn. Pepe Coqui, a tiny tree frog, travels from his home in a Puerto Rican sugar cane field to New York City to see the world of many colors he has heard about. His adventures lead him to find the real power of his singing voice but ultimately ends up realizing that he’s missing an important part of who he is. After many years, he returns from New York's tough weather to his beautiful Puerto Rico. As he feels the warmth of the night, he hears the song of other coquís welcoming him back home. He feels complete again for the years to come. 

I’m that little frog that hasn’t returned home. I left my people, landscapes and beloved traditions 8 years ago to pursue my studies as an artist. I didn’t realize it at 19  but I left a large part of what made me who I am. Living in New York and making these pieces for the last four months has allowed me to re-discover the beauty and richness of my own culture, of my own history. I started this body of work with the intention of only making paintings of my family. My mother was the first one, my grandparents came next, then my aunt. I continued to make portraits that displayed a truth of who my family were. Yes, a truth, because none of us are merely one thing. Painting them brought me to portray the stories they told me growing up, which was the most gratifying and entertaining thing I’ve ever done. 

Asking so much about my family's past got me determined to continue to find snippets of who I am by looking more deeply at my people’s history. The research for new references led me to discover incredibly interesting people that loved Puerto Rico just as much as I do. Including botanical illustrations by Agustin Stahl from 1833, reinterpreting Francisco Oller’s work and coming across an unforgettable moment of victory from Marisol Malaret, the first Caribbean Miss Universe.  All icons that represented PR at some point in time through their discipline. Every piece in this show speaks about a part of Puerto Rico’s rich history. Through these works, I want to bring light, not only to my dear family but to the complexities of our traditions, our heroes, our resourcefulness, our servitude and our relentless ambition.

Larissa De Jesús Negrón 

Press Release for ESO PASA

Eso Pasa, the title of Larissa De Jesús Negrón’s first solo exhibition with Nicodim, refers to a fleeting feeling—the phrase, roughly translated to English means, “that happens”. Also used to refer to moments in life that are temporary, mundane, and everyday, the words encourage a mentality of impermanence similar to the idiom, this too shall pass. Though eso pasa can be translated many ways and used in myriad circumstances, for De Jesús Negrón, the words are a reminder to stay present. As she was producing this body of work, the phrase became a mantra: a meditation on healing through remaining grounded in each passing moment in her studio. 

The intimacy of domestic, interior spaces unites each piece in this body of work. By elevating the seemingly prosaic elements of daily existence, De Jesús Negrón takes a personal journey into the present. Slowing down is a healing process that reminds the artist to take a deeper look at her surroundings, encouraging her to think less, and instead explore her other sensorial experiences. In so doing, De Jesús Negrón employs a new painting strategy composed of quick, short brush strokes to suggest the speed with which she often moves through the world. These marks blur viewers’ perception of the pieces, and her subjects turn into mere glimpses in time. 

In ¿Cuándo seré suficiente? (When will I be enough?), these brush strokes double as wood grain on a windowsill that frames a faintly visible human form, distorted underneath water and panes of broken glass. Here, a body floats amongst relics of everyday life—money, rings, scraps of food, a women’s razor—all representing the performative expectations of success and femininity that the subject must contend with. A distressed face comes into focus inside this portal, questioning, as the title suggests, the physical and emotional ways these expectations consume her daily life. The figure, trapped though she is within the frame, stands in for the artist herself, who so frequently feels consumed by thoughts of the past and desires for the future. 

Las bellas no sufren (Pretty ones don’t suffer), is the artist’s first experimentation with textile. In this case, De Jesús Negrón paints a blemished, strained face on a round polyester rug, using her now-recognizable spray paint technique. This reference to domesticity physically centers viewers in the exhibition, marking the importance of one’s interior life. Returning to notions of the home was integral to the process of creating these works. In looking to the minutiae of her physical space, the artist uncovered new

DISTRAÍDA: LARISSA DE JESÚS NEGRÓN

10 MAR - 31 MAR 2023

Guts Gallery is excited to present ‘Distraída’, a solo exhibition by Larissa De Jesus Negron which explores the permanent state of distraction that we seem to find ourselves in everyday.

The loss of presence is a theme that pervades the entirety of ‘Distraída’. In her daily life, De Jesús Negrón explains that she often finds herself wrapped up in what spiritual writer Eckhart Tolle calls ‘psychological time.’ For De Jesús Negrón, one does not simply live in the here and now. Instead, at any moment, one could be telescoping between past, present and future simultaneously. De Jesús Negrón describes finding herself gripped by instances where she becomes “obsessed with” moments of the past and instances where she can’t stop herself from mulling over “future scenarios” that have not yet and may never yet occur. ‘Distraida’ showcases De Jesús Negrón’s use of painting as a way to reconcile and work through the often chaotic jumble of modern, psychological life. Throughout the show, De Jesús Negrón depicts the drama of an unfiltered mind as ideas, images, potential situations and past memories race through it. The result is a show full of introspective, psychological landscapes and absurd, neo-surreal dioramas; De Jesús Negrón’s unquiet mind has been turned inside out and revealed to the viewer.

The natural world is also an overarching theme within the works in ‘Distraída’. De Jesús Negrón finds that when the noise of internal self-doubt and uncertainty reaches an intolerable pitch, she can look to nature to re-ground herself. She explains that the “chaotic, unpredictable yet perfect order” of the natural world never ceases to bring her “peace of mind in the midst of anxiety and confusion.” For De Jesús Negrón, nature reminds her that we, as humans, are part of something greater. In a world that constantly tries to sever and conceal our inextricable ties to the natural world, De Jesús Negrón recognises that it is essential to stop and acknowledge our place in the larger ecosystem. This ‘retethering’ to nature is exemplified throughout the works within ‘Distraída.’ Whether it be turbulent seas, cool flowing rivers, lunging snakes or a solitary fly; the natural world is a constant, irrefutable presence in all of De Jesús Negrón’s work. 

UVNT Art Fair celebrates its seventh edition from 23 to 26 February of 2023 at the COAM headquarters in Madrid. A space to explore the freshest languages, integrate different aesthetic codes and find new trends in the art world. A fair where to find emerging artists, mid-career artists and among them some big names of the international contemporary scene.

After six editions, the fair has matured and evolved and, in February 2023, it will open its doors to continue to position itself as an essential date in Madrid's art week. More than thirty national and international galleries will be present to reflect, as they do every year, current artistic trends and to continue to maintain the freshness and innovation that have been part of its DNA since its beginnings.

I’m so happy to be doing a month long residency in Mexico City!

Some of the work produced during this residency will be showcased in a solo presentation in the beginning of February, more info on that soon.

Brought to me by the lovely team at REGULARNORMAL Gallery.

Join me on May 8th for the opening of my second solo exhibition in New York. Real Pain Gallery will be showing recent work by Larissa De Jesús Negrón in their newly opened New York location, More Pain Gallery, previously known as Untitled Gallery.

“Relampago Caribeño”, an exhibition bringing Caribbean artists of different generations to portray the spectrum of the caribbean aesthetic. This exhibition looks to broaden the idea of the caribbean and latinx experience reflected in their work.

Curated by Sabroso Projects

Proud to be showing work in the West coast next to these incredible artists.

Curated by Daniel Alejandro Trejo