Fernando Martinez
/Fernando Martinez
http://tribeonedesigns.com // ig: @Tribe_one_art_usk
Solo Los Muertos Saben La Verdad!” (Only the Dead Know the Truth). As a Latino of Mexican and Puerto Rican descent, this statement encompasses the spirit of Fernando’s art. Fernando “TRIBE” states, “Death for Latinos is celebrated and embraced, we have an intimate relationship with death.” This is commonly expressed using the symbolism of the “Calavera” or “Sugar Skull”, which is one of the recurring themes in much of his work.
Born in East Los Angeles and raised in California’s San Fernando Valley, TRIBE first took notice of graffiti at about the age of twelve. At that time, the letterforms he had seen throughout the city became a constant vision in his head. TRIBE started writing his own graffiti on the streets of the San Fernando Valley, bus stop benches, grocery store shopping carts, and street signs throughout the city. He drew inspiration from graffiti writers such as RISK, SKILL, HEX, and SWAN. Through graffiti TRIBE has been able to create mixed media filled with intense color and vibrant patterns that are reflective of his heritage and culture.
TRIBE’s work celebrates a mixture of styles that characterize the comic art style of the 90s. He paints Calaveras on canvas, using contrasting as well as complementary colors by way of both enamel spray paint and acrylic brush paints or soft pastels. Using tie wire, he creates three dimensional sculptures of life size Calaveras. These Calaveras represent a perspective of the unknown; for him they are an emblem of what death may or may not be, and a glimpse for his viewers into what he envisions it would be like for skull and bones to come back to life. Tribe has been exhibited at the virtual exhibit “Fear in Technicolor” at the Anxious Tomato Online Gallery from Oct 1, 2021, through Oct 31st, 2021, at “Rewired” a George Mason and NOVA Juried Exhibition at the Gillespie Gallery in 2021, and at the Newhall Community Center Group Show, “Around the World Holiday Traditions” Nov 1, 2021- Jan 7th 2022. Tribe can be reached by email at Tribe@tribeonedesigns.com or from his website Tribeonedesigns.com
The "Vandal Kit" is the start of and a glimpse of a larger project. The Kit will contain a carefully curated array of tools often used by graffiti writers. The motivation behind creating this box is to expose the viewer to graffiti writers and their mediums. By extension this collection can be used to ignite a conversation about the necessity of providing public art spaces where socio-economiclly disadvantaged youth can grow and develop their skills in a safe and encouraging atmosphere.
