Meet Zelmira Rizo | Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Zelmira Rizo and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Zelmira, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?

For most of my life I did not think I would pursue art professionally. Although I constantly found myself drawing on anything I could get my hands on, and had other pointers along the way, I grew up viewing art as merely a hobby, after-school activity, or after-thought in comparison to more “serious” and “important” academic and professional endeavors. I thankfully broke out of this extremely limiting view and, through the arts, opened up into a world of expanded experiences, exciting possibilities and incredible people.

I am an artist because I finally feel in my skin and at home living and working in this capacity. And because I see art as a space with immense potential for building connection and healing—at a personal and collective level, and in a way that I believe is much needed today. I am passionate about exploring this potential and I see myself devoting my life to this work.

Please tell us more about your art. We’d love to hear what sets you apart from others, what you are most proud of or excited about. How did you get to where you are today professionally? Was it easy? If not, how did you overcome the challenges? What are the lessons you’ve learned along the way. What do you want the world to know about you or your brand and story?

Before ‘arriving’ at art as a profession, I studied biology, literature, architecture, yoga and different approaches to holistic healing. I worked at a museum, gallery, translated, wrote, and took odd jobs. Mid-2020, I left my part-time jobs and with my savings moved into a studio apartment in South Beach to seriously confront where and how I wanted to apply my time and energy—and whether it should be in art. I eventually committed to developing a body of work from my journals—where layered monochromatic text and drawings built an evolving visual record of ‘writing to unfold and re-write self,’ exploring language and the mind as environments. In 2022, I participated in my first residency at the Bakehouse Art Complex and exhibited this body of work for my first solo show titled “Sin Cabeza” at CENTRAL FINE, Miami Beach. I am now living in New York pursuing an MFA in Visual Arts at Columbia University’s School of the Arts.

I continue following my interests in the above-mentioned areas of study, asking and exploring many of the same questions, but I now also channel these questions through my work: I translate them into a visual language that I believe enables me to ask more eloquently and potently. And I build out ‘environments’ or ‘ecosystems’ (within a painting, body of work, exhibition) that I hope can support and inspire conversation and engagement. I am interested in art’s capacity to serve as a space that can touch and engage at a physical, mental, emotional and spiritual level. And that, at its best, can embrace, liberate, empower, and heal.

My art practice is centered in drawing and painting. I draw like I journal and like I move on my yoga mat. Drawing, to me, is drawing out (v.)—drawing out rhythms, pulses, information and images that otherwise remain stored in my body, blocked, unheard, unconscious, sedated, misunderstood. ‘Drawing out’ is creating space on paper or canvas for my body to speak and for me to listen. Built out from this practice, my ongoing body of work is titled “Body Talk.”

Over the last couple of years, I’ve come to trust my body and intuition more than I trust my mind as a source for knowledge and direction. I hope my work can, in some way, come to inspire interest in connecting with one’s body in new and more intimate ways—an effort I believe is crucial to developing a sensitivity and deeply-rooted sense of responsibility and respect towards all other bodies and environments we engage with, inhabit and build.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
The beach! is always my first stop. Living blocks or minutes away from the ocean and being constantly accompanied by the sun and clear skies is one of my favorite things about Miami. Music—the Bandshell in North Miami Beach is my favorite concert venue in the city, open-air, right by the ocean and hosting some of the best acts I’ve seen, including—Ground Up Music festival, the Rhythm Foundation programming, Hermanos Gutiérrez, Devendra Bandhart, Helado Negro, Mdou Moctar, Munir Hossn, Maye, Miami Bloco, and many many more. Unfortunately, some of my favorite spaces have closed and/or have changed in the recent years (i.e. Paradis Books & Bread)… but Lagniappe still has great live music and wine and new, exciting spaces like Dante’s Hifi have popped up. Luna Pasta e Dolci is my favorite pasta spot. For art, in my opinion, CENTRAL FINE has one of the most exciting gallery programs. I also enjoy going to the Rubell Museum, the ICA and PAMM.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I want to thank CENTRAL FINE and Diego Singh, in particular, for believing in my potential and offering me the opportunity and guidance I needed to jumpstart my professional art career. The Bakehouse Art Complex was also instrumental in these early stages, offering me my first residency and work space outside of my studio apartment. The Miami jazz community and yoga community have also accompanied me closely in this journey, filling me with energy, inspiration, and joy—and grounding me when I’ve needed it. The experiences and friendships that grew from these spaces have been incredibly supportive and inspiring. A special thanks to Marcelo Camacho, Alexandra Sarabia, Magela Herrera, José Delgado Zuñiga, Karina Gonzalez, and Nathalie Chybik.

Website: zelmirastudio.com

Instagram: zelmirastudio

Other: https://www.contemporaryartdaily.com/project/zelmira-rizo-patron-at-central-fine-miami-24619 https://www.centralfine.com/presentations#/zelmira-rizopatron-sin-cabeza

Image Credits

Personal Image, Image 1:
1-Image Credit: Pedro Wazzan
Additional Images:
2-Image Credit: Silvia Ros, Courtesy of the Artist and CENTRAL FINE
3- Image Credit: Courtesy of the Artist
4-Image Credit: Silvia Ros, Courtesy of the Artist and CENTRAL FINE
5-Image Credit: Brooke D’Avanzo
6-Image Credit: Brooke D’Avanzo
7-Image Credit: Brooke D’Avanzo
8-Image Credit: Courtesy of the Artist
9-Image Credit: Courtesy of the Artist