Rafa Esparza

rafa esparza
Born
Rafael Esparza

1981 (age 44–45)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
EducationUniversity of California, Los Angeles
Known forPerformance Art
Notable workde la Calle (2019), staring at the sun (2019-2020)
AwardsPérez Prize (2022), Latinx Arts Fellowship, Mellon Foundation (2021), Lucas Artist Fellowship (2020), Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation Award (2017), Art Matters Foundation Grant (2014), California Community Foundation Fellowship for Visual Artists (2014)

Rafael Esparza (born 1981 in Pasadena, California), is a multidisciplinary performance artist who works and lives in Los Angeles.

Early life and education

Esparza was born and raised in Los Angeles, California, and is the son of Mexican immigrants from Durango, Mexico. He learnt to hand-make adobe bricks in 2014 after learning from his father.

He attended East Los Angeles College where he discovered the group Asco. Esparza later attended UCLA where he was influenced by works of Ron Athey.

Work and career

Close-up view of "Sitting in Chrome" exhibition, 2023

Esparza presented his solo exhibition, Staring at the Sun at MASS MoCA, North Adams, Massachusetts.

In 2013, Esparza performed chino, indio, negro with Sebastian Hernandez at Perform Chinatown 2013 near the site of the Chinese Massacre of 1871 in response to that event. Esparza performed El Hoyo with his brother, Beto Esparza, and fellow artist Nick Duran that same year.

He performed in Dorian Wood's "O" video.

Esparza buried various objects including corn cobs, a mailbox with a bullet hole through it, a recliner with a cactus planted in its seat, and two black folding chairs as part of the exhibition Made in L.A. 2016: a, the, though, only.

Esparza also collaborated with artist Cassils and 80 other artists to form In Plain Sight which aimed towards justice of immigration.

Esparza was included in the 2017 Whitney Biennial.

In 2015, Esparza performed Red Summer where he walked nearby a police academy firing range with a target on his back and fell to the ground everytime a bullet was heard for 12 hours.

In 2018, Esparza's performed his first solo mueseum presentation titled, de la Calle at the Institute of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles.

From January 20 - March 3, 2018, at the Commonwealth and Council Gallery, Esparza, in collaboration with Beatriz Cortez, had an exhibition named Pasado mañana which directly translates to "the day after tomorrow".

On September 21, 2019, Esparza performed bust: indestructible columns alongside sculptor Timo Fahler. Esparza incased himself waist-deep into a concrete cylinder and chiseled the concrete to free himself while wearing a black blazer and tie resembling an abolitionist orator.

In 2021, Esparza presented al Tempo at the Jeffrey Deitch Gallery which showcases an intimate scene two Latino gay men at a bar.

In 2021, Esparza's work, Yosi con Abuelita, which featured activist Yosimar Reyes with his grandmother was displayed at San Jose Museum of Art.

Esparza performed at the Art Basel Miami with a performance, titled Corpo RanfLA: Terra Cruiser in 2022 where he invited people to ride and mount him.

Style

Collections

Esparza's work has been showcased and included in many public art institutions including:

Awards

Esparza is the recipient of the 2022 Pérez Prize, the 2021 Latinx Arts Fellowship, Mellon Foundation, the 2020 Lucas Artist Fellowship, the Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation Award in 2017, and California Community Foundation Fellowship for Visual Artists in 2014.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Artist Rafa Esparza is using 5,000 adobe bricks to make a building-inside-a-building in Hollywood". LA Times. 2015-07-23. Retrieved 2015-10-05.
  2. ↑ "United States Artists » rafa esparza". Retrieved 2023-10-18.
  3. 1 2 "Rafa Esparza: staring at the sun | MASS MoCA". massmoca.org. 2018-11-09. Retrieved 2023-08-04.
  4. ↑ Nichols, James (9 April 2014). "Dorian Wood, Queer Artist, Premieres 'O' (VIDEO)". Retrieved 18 August 2026.
  5. ↑ Esparza, Erin Christovale and Rafa (2016-07-11). "Things Left Behind: Black Screen 16:9". The Brooklyn Rail. Retrieved 2019-05-14.
  6. ↑ "Cassils: Artwork: In Plain Sight". www.cassils.net. Retrieved 2023-08-04.
  7. ↑ Pogrebin, Robin (2016-11-17). "Here Comes the Whitney Biennial, Reflecting the Tumult of the Times". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2019-05-14.
  8. ↑ Tewksbury, Drew (3 May 2017). "Performance Artist Rafa Esparza Is Fighting Invisibility, One Brick at a Time". Archived from the original on 21 November 2023. Retrieved 18 August 2026.
  9. ↑ "Rafa Esparza De La Calle". Institute of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles. Retrieved 2019-04-01.
  10. 1 2 3 "Commonwealth and Council / Pasado mañana". Commonwealth and Council. 20 January 2018. Retrieved 2022-07-28.
  11. ↑ Gutiérrez, Raquel (2019-09-27). "Performing Across from the White House, Artist Rafa Esparza Chips Away at the Myths of Democracy". ARTnews.com. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  12. ↑ Amadour, Ricky. "Review: Shattered Glass at Jeffrey Deitch Gallery". California Art Review. Retrieved 2023-04-17.
  13. ↑ "Evergreen: Art from the Collection | San José Museum of Art". San Jose Museum of Art. 2022-07-22. Retrieved 2024-11-11.
  14. ↑ O'Leary, Erin (2023-02-25). "Interview with rafa esparza". Carla. Retrieved 2023-11-21.
  15. ↑ "Xican-a.o.x. Body • Pérez Art Museum Miami". Pérez Art Museum Miami. Retrieved 2024-09-18.
  16. ↑ Durón, Maximilíano (2022-03-14). "Artist rafa esparza Wins Pérez Art Museum's $50,000 Prize". ARTnews.com. Retrieved 2024-09-18.
  17. ↑ "Pérez Art Museum Miami Announces rafa esparza as Recipient of 2022 Pérez Prize at Ninth Annual Art of the Party • Pérez Art Museum Miami". Pérez Art Museum Miami. Retrieved 2024-09-18.