About

About:

Spending a semester in Rome confirmed something I had long felt but never fully named — art is not simply something I do, it is a part of me. It is the outlet I return to, the language I rely on when words fall short, and the way I leave a trace of my existence behind. Whether it becomes a legacy or simply a record of what transpired in one life during our time, my hope is that the work carries something honest forward.

Born in Honduras and brought to the United States in 1986 at the age of ten, my life has been shaped by contrast. I began as an upper middle-class child in a developing country, then moved into a predominantly African American community in New Jersey, and later to upstate New York, where my family struggled to make ends meet. Those shifts — cultural, economic, emotional — formed the lens through which I see the world. My stories are told through the eyes and hands of someone shaped by many worlds at once.

In high school, I studied architecture and art, with two pieces selected for a national traveling exhibition across the United States. I later attended Pratt Institute in New York City to study architecture, and it was there — and later in Rome — that art deepened from passion into necessity.

Working in Manhattan, I witnessed September 11th from a rooftop on Canal Street in the Bowery. The experience profoundly altered me. I painted Crack of Light in response, but the weight of that day followed me into years of depression. In 2007, I was diagnosed with PTSD. Though I continued creating and exhibited at venues such as the Outsider’s Studio in upstate New York, I often lacked the strength to attend my own openings.

In 2009, my wife and I relocated to Greenville, South Carolina, with our newborn child, eventually settling in Taylors. By 2012, I had stepped away from art entirely, entering a three-year hiatus. Slowly, I returned — first with four paintings in 2016, then gradually reentering both architecture and art.

In 2019, I held my first solo exhibition at MHK Architecture and Planning. That show marked a turning point — my reemergence into the art community. Since then, I have exhibited throughout the greater Greenville area, including the Greer Center for the Arts and the Greenville Center for Creative Arts, and participated in national juried competitions, including one in San Francisco in 2023. In 2024, I exhibited in New York City at Art Expo New York and in Miami during Art Basel week and Red Dot Miami.

Now in my late forties, I feel something I have not felt before — grounded. Focused. In motion.

I am no longer circling the work. I am racing toward it.

 

“Riding through New York City on a motorcycle is as fun as swimming in the sea.”

Jose Romero

Artist

(917) 353-5703

Resume:

Cafe Batata, Northport, NY (summer 05') – exhibited 12 pieces for 2 months

Outsider Studio, Livingston Manor, NY (June 06') – exhibited 6 pieces for a month
Outsider Studio, Livingston Manor, NY (July 06') – exhibited 8 pieces for a month
Outsider Studio, Livingston Manor, NY (July 07') – exhibited 6 pieces for a month

Neuberger Museum, Purchase, NY (April 08') – exhibited 1 piece for a month

The Mac Worthington Gallery of Contemporary Art, Columbus, Ohio (June 11')

Published in "International Contemporary Artists - Vol. 1" (Oct. 2010)

Published in "International Contemporary Artists - Vol. 2" (Apr. 2011)

Published in "Anthology of Friends, Vol 11" - from Ovation TV Community (May 2011)

e_Published two digital pieces for a week each on www.ovationtv.com (July 2012)
e_Published in "Best of the Best" Mac Worthington Gallery of Contemporary Art (July 2012)