RoCo's latest public art project features Precipitate (Rain), Evaporate (Sun), and Condense (Cloud) a recent tryptic by San Antonio-based, multi-media artist Suzy González. With this project the artist considers plant medicine, mental health, body awareness, and the continuous violence enacted upon people, animals, and the planet. The artist reminds us that we are not separate from nature, and asks us to consider: What lessons have we forgotten that she has to teach us? It’s time we make ambitious moves towards compassion and healing in this world of destruction.

Pictured here is a detail of Evaporate (Sun). The full public installation is installed outside RoCo and available to the public 24/7.

My enthusiasm towards decolonizing consumption and art creation is intertwined with remembering the lessons that the earth has to teach us. I work with natural plant materials like corn husks in conjunction with manipulated art supplies to consider identity, mixedness, and resistance. The corn husks represent the skin of the figures, recalling Mesoamerican beliefs that our very beings are created from maíz. This material use works to dismantle folk and fine art hierarchies. I call these “mestizx media” works, reclaiming the “mestizo” colonial caste label. I define mestizx media as when materials originate from the region(s) of the artist’s ancestors.

This triptych (Rain, Sun, Cloud) personifies the cyclical nature of water and our human relationship to the elements. It reflects waves of emotions, growth, and change that each person goes through in a day, a year, or a lifetime. The sun shines on the earth, evaporating bodies of water, and this might reflect nourishment or renewal. Then the water vapor forms into clouds through condensation, with feelings of fullness–perhaps satisfying or overwhelming. Finally, the water becomes so heavy that rainfall occurs through precipitation, signifying grief, release, or even joy. And then the process repeats. When we look at our climate today, we know that these processes can be elevated to treacherous levels, and that we are in need of balance. - S.G.

About the Artist

Suzy González is an artist, educator, writer, self-publisher, curator, and organizer based in Yanaguana, colonially named San Antonio, TX. She has had solo exhibits at Galería E.V.A., Spellerberg Projects, Presa House Gallery, Hello Studio, Palo Alto College, and two-person exhibits at Museo Eduardo Carrillo, Texas A&M University Corpus Christi, and the University of Connecticut. She recently completed murals with Texas A&M-San Antonio, the City of Logan, UT, the City of Pasadena, TX, San Antonio Museum of Art, and Centro San Antonio. She has attended residencies at Vermont Studio Center (VT), the Trelex Residency (Peru), The Wassaic Residency (NY), Starry Night Residency (NM), the Studios at MASS MoCA (MA), and Hello Studio (TX). Suzy publishes Xicana Vegan zine, co-organizes the San Anto Zine Fest, and is a part of Dos Xicanx, Breathe Collective, and the Water Writers Collective. She's an alum of the National Association of Latino Arts and Cultures Leadership Institute, the Intercultural Leadership Institute, and served as a mentor for the NYFA Immigrant Artist Mentoring Program. Suzy teaches in the Visual and New Media Arts Department at Our Lady of the Lake University in San Antonio, TX. She earned an MFA from the Rhode Island School of Design and a BFA from Texas State University.

Public Art at RoCo

RoCo’s public art program enlivens the East Avenue neighborhood with temporary, site-specific public sculptures and special projects. Support provided by The New York State Council on the Arts, Farash Foundation, Mary S. Mulligan Charitable Trust, The County of Monroe, Richard & Vicki Shwartz, Anne Havens, and Members of RoCo! This installation is presented in partnership with Christ Church and adjacent to the Cooney Family Garden.

The New York State Council on the Arts
The Farash Foundation
The County of Monroe
The Mary S. Mulligan Charitable Trust
The Gouvernet Arts Fund
The Foster Charitable Trust
The Lovenheim Trust
and over 1,000 Members!