Jon Moreno

The cyclical nature of the human condition fascinates me. My art therefore, is focused on contrasting and connecting how we as individuals socialize with each other at various levels; connecting our life trajectory to ancestors who came before us, yet teasing out completely idiosyncratic moments that add to our personal psyche. By comparing different traditions and customs of my own culture against other global cultures and communities, I seek to illuminate that which we share, as well as that which makes our upbringings unique. Often I will exemplify an aspect most cultures share, such as eating a meal with others, to show how socialization in that particular setting is internalized, becoming part of our identity. Moving from the communal to the individual, and back into the social collective, I also study the social hierarchies individuals face within the spheres of society. To address such issues, my art often deals with social practice and interactive elements between myself as artist, my art, and the viewer or participant. Coupling these components with fundamentals in formal compositions and aesthetics, my art looks at recurrent themes of the singular as it pertains to our development in communities as well as our community’s effect on individuals.