Carlos rolon dzine biography examples youtube

By Andrew M. An artist who works at the intersection of bling and the baroque, Carlos Rolon —whom you might know under the name Dzine —has for years made ornate artworks and installations that combine contemporary art strategies like the readymade with the "Kustom Kulture" and exuberant visuality of his Puerto Rican upbringing in Chicago. Perhaps best known for his over-the-top environments that encourage viewers to interact with elements of his childhood, Rolon who is represented by Paul Kasmin Gallery and Salon 94 has been exhibited in prominent venues as diverse as Miami's Bass Museum of Art and the Venice Biennale , in which he was one of five artists representing Ukraine.

To find out the origins of his work, we spoke to Rolon about his inspirations, the evolution of his artistic approach, and what's so great about being a Chicago artist these days. Though viewers may first be attracted by the flash and glamour of your work, your tricked-out cars and bejeweled bikes always allude to something more personal beneath the surface—often the collision between your American upbringing and your Puerto Rican heritage.

What led you to examine that culture clash in your art, and how does it continue to influence your work? Though I grew up in Chicago, my parents maintained a strong identity of Puerto Rican culture within the home. This was proudly instilled in me at a young age, but it provoked me to question identity and my personal surroundings. This is the same intimate relationship that I want the viewer to experience in my work.

One of the best examples of this is my project Imperial Nails, a recreation of my mother's bootleg salon that she ran out of my childhood home.

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I feel this specific project brought a very personal insight and awareness of my studio practice to the general public—people now realize where my incorporation of Kustom Kulture, faux luxury, and excessiveness comes from. I was raised with it; it surrounded me daily in the form of faux Venetian wallpaper, porcelain tchotchkes, ornate chandeliers, mirrors, and other objects that refer to upper-class culture.

This is the case for many first-generation immigrants from other cultures whose families emigrated to the United States, and it's considered part of the blue-collar diaspora. These sorts of objects placed within the home are used to impress, out necessity or ego, or simply for comfort. What continues to influence my work is my desire to have the public rethink the objects I present outside of their original setting—but most importantly to allow people to relate to the work firsthand who would never otherwise consider visiting a gallery or institution.