Rafael Bustillos
My work assesses the connection of the life of humans to the life of materials. My work is made with materials that are commonly used to build and to repair homes. In order to achieve the texture of my paintings, I mimic the process of material disintegration. I make large scale works that appear heavy but are light - - as a way to study how humans respond to illusions, as well as to study the agency of materiality. To me, illusions represent the energy that moves the created structure of human existence. My interest in studying behavior of humans began when I taught literacy to children and adolescents at the Culiacan, Sinaloa, Mexico reformatory center which was before I moved to the USA. In California, I provide psychotherapy services to various age groups, non-profit institutions, schools, and counseling centers. This led me to wonder “Do we exist to experience pain and suffering in order to gain the pleasure of existence?” In order to seek an answer to this question, my art practice explores the language of materiality. Materials speak a mute language. This silence helps me to seek answers to the suffering in human existence.
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