ON VIEW
DENVER GARZA
Denver Garza combines the inventiveness of craft with the precision of drawing and vibrant painting to create a dynamic assemblage of shapes, patterns, and symbols that appear like mandalas and masks in depicting the many layers of our complex reality and various states of being.
His latest works are inspired by the illustrations of Hildegard von Bingen and Johann Joachim Becher on the concept of the cosmic egg.
“The concept of beginnings and endings have always fascinated me, whether in life or in the art making process. Their works draw me to reflect on how ideas tend to start, or perhaps build into something that soon will become recognizable but not yet fully formed, and is open to build across time.”
WORKS
Denver Garza has an academic background in Psychology with post graduate studies MA Clinical Psychology and an undergraduate degree from the University of Manila, and has previously worked as a mental health worker at a private psychiatric facility in pursuing Clinical Psychology.
Anchoring from his clinical experience, his process of mapping and constructing concepts of identity, coping mechanism and belief system translates in the structure, physicality and complexity of his works. Interwoven around the process of finding meaning and comfort in uncertainty, allowing play as means to be cognizant in pursuit of transformation.
Garza has presented solo exhibitions that tackle various topics such as societal expectations on developmental stages (Birthday Beliefs, 2017), awareness as catalyst to change (Keys to Eclipse, 2019), familial dynamics (Default Paradise, 2019), and exploration of defenses and vulnerability through personal encounters (Arena, 2019; Ghost and Host, AFP 2020). Aside from exhibitions, he also makes zines that serve as micro exhibitions, mostly collections of drawings, paintings, photos, and poetry. He is currently based in Bacoor, Cavite.