10 Questions with Rocio G Montiel
Rocio G Montiel, also known as "RGM", is a Mexican artist who lives in Los Angeles, California. Passionate about art, her art translates stories, feelings, and emotions into compositions using multiple patterns and organic movements, full texture, and detail. She's a painter who excels in the use of color configurations and the art of transforming geometric and curvilinear forms in most of her artworks.
Her techniques include acrylic paints, oils, pencil, color pencil, charcoal, and ink. She's always experimenting and trying new styles, techniques, and mediums to add to her art; therefore, her portfolio is always evolving. Now, she is experimenting and creating digital artworks, trying different styles and mediums, making her portfolio diverse and unique.
Rocio received a B. A. in Political Science from the Autonomous University of Baja California in Mexico and in Public Administration. Always having a passion for art, she focused her career mostly on cultural affairs. Then, in 2020 she began her studies in Fine Arts at Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles in the Professional Certificate Program and started her journey as an artist in May 2020.
Her art has been selected for several juried physical and online exhibitions in the United States (Arizona, California, and New York) and internationally in London, Berlin and Greece. She was also invited to be part of the First Binational Meeting of Women Visual Artists: "Fincar Correspondencias" in Baja California in 2021, and she's a member of the Los Angeles Art Association (LAAA) since August 2020.
In December 2021, she was selected as the Grand Prize Winner of the New York International Fine Arts Competition.
Rocio G Montiel - Portrait
A Real Body | Project Description
"A REAL BODY" is a 2 volume digital art series that speaks about inner beauty and self-love—a project to put us beyond the eye and see further of the exterior of ourselves.
Beyond a body, shape, color, and size, our exterior does not define us or "make" us. The true beauty and essence of who we are come from the self-love that we have. It is self-love that ensures that we are well both on the outside and inside. Therefore, all beauty comes from within.
Vol. 1 presents a series of portraits where the female body is represented in its natural and real form. As a woman, we find ourselves in a society that expects us to "look" a certain way, dealing day by day with a constructed idea of how we are supposed to look, the stereotype of how the female body should be, and what is conceived as "perfect", which is unreal. The truth is that perfection does not exist; the truth and what's real is that each body is unique and has a strength and beauty that is unmatched and incomparable. The truth is to embrace, care and love who we are.
This second volume goes beyond including thirteen digital paintings of random male and female bodies. The art pieces represent how they think and feel about self-love, about how they found that love and acceptance.
The power to the beautiful lies not in the eyes of others. It comes from deep within you. Our exterior is already a piece of art and a statement. By opening up to self-love, you become more aware of how to nurture yourself. Our beauty is not exterior and is never dependent upon the approval of others.
MY BODY IS MY TEMPLE, Digital painting, 11x8.5 in, 2022 © Rocio G Montiel
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INTERVIEW
First of all, introduce yourself to our readers. Who are you, and how would you describe yourself as a person and an artist?
Hello all, I'm Rocio Montiel (Aka RGM); I was born in Mexico, currently living in Los Angeles, CA, and I'm an artist. What can I say about "Who I am as a person and artist?". Well, the first thing that comes to mind is complex. I consider myself as someone that feels too much and deep; therefore, I sometimes can be a very anxious and overthinker, but at the same time calm and joyful. I'm many things and I do believe my art is a translation of who I am, a translation of my stories, feelings, and thoughts; there's color in almost all my work, but also it can be dark and neutral.
I'm a constant person of change, I like to rediscover myself and my surroundings, and that's why my portfolio is also in constant evolution and transformation. Abstract plays a special and unique place in my practice, but I never close myself to learning from new techniques and styles.
If there is something I can add to this, is that I'm a person intrigued and moved by the things we can't see and play with reality; I'm intrigued by what is not there at simple sight; making reality something different, which is also translated in most of my work. So definitely, I'm a curious person, and imagination plays a big role in me.
You originally studied Political Science and only turned to art in 2020. Was it a sudden decision or something you had meant to do for a long time?
It was kind of both, I've always been drawing and painting for years, but before, it was more of a "hobby" and something I enjoyed doing for myself. I Always kept my artworks in the "dark" because I felt it was something so personal and intimate, but at the same time, I always had that "spark" of doing something more meaningful with my passions, but for some reason, that wasn't the moment.
Then 2020 came, and that year is when I took the big step and shared my work. That was a year full of challenges, like many of us, but before lockdown, I was already coming out from a dark and deep place. Because of that situation and other professional motives, I moved to Los Angeles, CA, from Yuma, AZ, in January to start a new chapter in my career and personal life. I'm always getting out of my comfort zones, and I try to challenge myself by doing new things the best I can't, so moving to Los Angeles was one of those big decisions that were a step that made me grow and positively changed my life, and then lockdown came because of COVID 19.
COVID was something that everybody endured in their own different way and how we could. It was a hard time for all in some way. In my case, I can say the lockdown period was something I needed and where I learned the most of it. It was a moment of self-reflection and hard conversations with myself, and healing. That's when I felt the most connected to myself, the inspiration to create was so intense it just flowed so smoothly and deep, so I painted and drew like never before. Now, it has become more than my outlet. I realized I couldn't, and I didn't want to stop creating. I felt inspired and let my fears go. For me, the idea of sharing my art was something I didn't consider, and that scared me, but all that changed because of this experience. It may sound repetitive, but it is the truth. Coming from dark moments, I learned and accepted my reality which made me realize what I want and need to do in order to feel complete and happy. That's why I could say it was sudden; the unexpected events of COVID-19 and lockdown put me in a place where I can't see myself without making art and being surrounded by it.
ALWAYS FORWARD, Digital painting, 11x8.5 in, 2022 © Rocio G Montiel
And what inspired you to pursue a career in art?
I realized that I couldn't be happy without making art, which moved me to pursue a career. It is unfulfilling and painful not to be doing what really makes your essence vibe and feel alive. The idea of living with the "What if" thought was pretty daunting. As I mentioned before, I came to the point in my life when I realized I couldn't continue making art just occasionally, there was something missing, and I realized it. The idea of sharing my art was something so exciting, that's why I had the motivation to share my art and send my work to galleries. The experience from the beginning was so welcoming and amazing. My work has been selected for different shows, and that was so encouraging. I just wanted to share my art with people and for them to know about my vision and what I wanted to say through my art; having my art be of interest to people was such an exciting feeling, one from which I feel so grateful.
Art is a way to connect and build communities, that's one of the biggest reasons I wanted to pursue my artistic career. It had made me grow as a person in ways I didn't imagine. Getting your art out there to the world is a whole different thing. It has been wonderful, but it hasn't been easy as well, I had some ups and downs during my creative process, sometimes hitting a wall with opportunities, but it's all part of it. I'm learning and training myself to take the best of all situations, and it's about learning. Overall, I can say is that I'm happy with my decision, for taking risks totally worth it.
You mostly work with paintings, mixing different styles and influences. What are your main sources of inspiration? And how did you come up with this style?
Abstraction has always been of my most interest, and many artists in that genre inspire me. It's an incredibly versatile style and also has seeped into contemporary art. What I love about abstract art is that it does not attempt to accurately depict visual reality. I enjoy playing with and rearranging colors, lines, and shapes to create images. I want my work to be surprising, playful, and provocative. I use constant shapes, colors, and forms to achieve this.
Some of my favorites are Kandinsky, Pollock, Malevich, Joan Mitchell, and Paul Klee. Their art is so unique and captivating, and I want to portray in my art feelings and emotions like they did in their own expression and intention. They are a source of inspiration and learning, but at the same time, a constant discovery process in art making. Each process is different and unique cause the objective is to try express internal feelings and thoughts. My practice constantly evolves, but I always intend to express clearly my feelings utilizing color and shapes; color plays a really important thing in my work, I use color to evoke a feeling, but at the same time, it has to be in synchronicity a make sense with the shapes.
Abstraction can be anything you want; that's the beauty of it as well, it can be an interpretation of what you see and what you feel.
THE POWER INSIDE ME, Digital painting, 11x8.5 in, 2022 © Rocio G Montiel
UNDER MY OWN GAZE, Digital painting, 11x8.5 in, 2022 © Rocio G Montiel
Let's talk about your project, "A Real Body". It embraces an empowering message, especially for women. Could you tell us more about it?
This project is about self-love and body positivity. This project came at a perfect moment when I got invited to be part of a beautiful and amazing exhibition where the theme was about the body, love, sexiness, and self-love, and I was dealing with some personal changes. I was so excited to be part of this project and collaborate with CRE8 because of the theme of this show, but at the same time, it gave me the inspiration to create something that challenged my practice and also challenged me so personally/emotionally where I was able to translate what I was going through on that moment.
With this project, I wanted to portray the pressure that we and society put on ourselves. As women, we find ourselves in a society that expects us to "look" a certain way, dealing day by day with a constructed idea of how we are supposed to look, the stereotype of how the female body should look, and what is considered "perfect", which the truth is that this idea is just unreal.
What is the perfect body? Perfection is subjective and means something different for everyone; each person sees what they want to see. The truth is that perfection does not exist; what's real is that each body is unique and has a strength and beauty that it's unmatched and incomparable. The only truth is we need to embrace, care and love who we are. We are sexy, powerful, and amazing just the way we are. That's why this first volume shows a portrait of a sexy and perfect body shape and continues with three more pieces where that same body is drawn in different angles and focused on specific parts of the body, showing that that "perfect" body that you see first is in reality not perfect, but it's still beautiful and sexy.
How much of your personal experience is reflected in this project? And how has it helped you and those around you have a less biased image of your bodies?
In volume 1, my personal experience is reflected 100%; the portraits are of myself. This was one of the most challenging projects I've done, and it took letting go of tabus and fears to make these pieces. The result was amazing and not just because of the artwork, but how I felt afterwards. More secure in my body, embracing who I am and my looks and also hugging all my flaws and accepting the way I am.
I wanted to explore that deep part of me and dig deep into my insecurities about how I conceive my body. I shamed my physical aspect, always being drawn by negative thoughts about myself, creating deep pressure on me. The constant narrative of "You have to be and look out there PERFECT in every sense and every way" constantly attacks your self-esteem and becomes so draining.
All this was a huge process for me, and it became more than just my feelings. If there is something I like to do in most of my art collections is to create a story from them, especially sharing people's stories and being inclusive with the theme. In reality, this is a collective feeling, and I wanted to express that feeling by adding the stories from 13 random people's thought portraits.
"A REAL BODY" Volume 2 is an art series that tells the story of 13 people that had experienced struggles with what matters. It is about representing inner beauty and self-love—a project to put us beyond the eye and see further the exterior of ourselves. Beyond a body, shape, color, and size, our exterior does not define us or "make" us. The true beauty and our essence come from the self-love that we have. It is self-love that ensures that we are well both on the outside and inside. Therefore, all beauty comes from within.
THE PREASSURE OF BEING ME, Digital painting, 11x8.5 in, 2022 © Rocio G Montiel
You recently started experimenting with digital art as well. What do you like about this technique? And how does your work change when it is conceived to be digital?
It opened me to another world. I like it because it challenges me all the time. It has been a great way to practice new techniques and styles of art. My main subject is abstraction, but with digital art, I've also been creating figurative art and animated art and did my first NFT art. It has many options for creating, is also easy to create art differently and faster. Also, digital art can be less challenging during the process of creation, for printing purposes, and be more accessible for new collectors.
I'm really excited every time I create digital art. So far, my portfolio has a really diverse variety of styles and mediums. When I do digital art, Procreate is the platform to go. It allows me to practice and experiment in a very efficient and fun way, and I believe it's an add-on to my painting and drawing practice. For sure, my art has evolved and constantly improving.
On that note, what do you think of the surge in digital exhibitions? Do you see them more as an opportunity or a threat?
I see them as an opportunity. Definitely, after COVID, everything changed and the art scene. I believe it gave and still does bring more opportunities for artists to showcase their work and to be seen by a bigger and international audience. Even galleries have a permanent website where they are showcasing exhibitions; this is a great way for artists to be seen. More people can access art events in different parts of the world and have a more broad vision of the art scene. They get to know new galleries, artists, and more. Likewise, for the galleries this is a great opportunity to market and gain a bigger audience of collectors and new collectors. It's a collective opportunity for artists, galleries, collectors, and the public in general.
The challenging part is our perspective on this; we can be skeptical because it is not the traditional way to access art, but we are in constant change, and the art scene is not the exception. Digital art and platforms are taking a big scene in the art world. Therefore, the best thing is to improve with it. More than a threat is an opportunity.
Do you have any exhibitions or new projects coming up? Any news you want to share with our readers?
I have a lot of projects in the work; more exhibitions, art collaborations, continuing with my art education, and more. But mostly, right now, my focus is to finish one of my abstract art collections titled "THE DESCENT OF THE GODS". This is a really unique and colorful project that speaks about the ancient mythological gods of the Hispanic culture; it's a very interesting project that has been taking me again through history and goes hand with the concept of identity. In order to know who you are, you need to take a look back at your history; culture plays a big role in what is part of us as a person, so I wanted to go deep and far into that. Some of the pieces had been in past exhibitions, but it is my objective to show the entire collection. I'm really looking forward to finishing this project and showcasing the full collection together.
Also, there's an upcoming abstract workshop I'm doing in collaboration with my friend and artist Mariana Cabral and the art organization CRE8 in Los Angeles, CA. This workshop is scheduled for January 2023, and it will be a 3-day class for art lovers and beginners to immerse into the abstract process and art. It's a very exciting project and a different workshop to do. We are working on the workshop's details but will soon share more information about it on my website and social media channels.
I EMBRACE WHO I AM, Digital painting, 11x8.5 in, 2022 © Rocio G Montiel
Finally, where do you see yourself five years from now?
I will be creating and sharing more art. It's hard sometimes for me to answer that question because life constantly surprises me all the time, but for sure, I know that wherever I'm at and in whichever situation, I'll continue creating and sharing my art. Definitely, in these next years, I'll love to have the opportunity to travel and share my art in different countries. Having the opportunity to continue learning and doing many residencies as possible, collaborating with artists around the world, and establishing my art studio in Europe.
