Metamorphosis: The Evolution of Visions and DreamS

February 19 - July 30, 2023

The Dream and The Passion
By Gabriela Urtiaga, Chief Curator, MOLAA

The Museum of Latin American Art is pleased to present the first in-depth exhibition of the prolific Chicana artist Yolanda González. 

Metamorphosis: the Evolution of the Visions and Dreams is an invitation to explore the imagination and the practice of the renowned creator, who lives and works in Los Angeles. Here, we discover a compendium of some of her initial artworks in the 1980s and extend to her most recent production, where color, texture, and contemporary lyricism abound.

Yolanda González’s universe proposes a journey where images, ideas, and symbols transport the viewer to a dreamlike world of intimate spaces: the representation of the human figure and the dazzlement of new imaginaries. All of this is achieved through a constellation of evocations very close to the artist’s personal history but also in dialogue with other artistic and poetic influences of German Expressionism, the Japanese aesthetic, and the Chicano/a/x movement.

The artist reveals her fascination for the constantly intimate relationship between art and life through her paintings, drawings, sculptures, installations, and prints. It is there, in that inevitable and just as critical intersection, where the artwork invites the viewer to erase the limits. Where the elements of history, music, literature, and dance appear as metaphorical concepts of femininity, identity, representation, spirituality, and emotions interweave to create a profound sense of belonging to their surroundings and community. 

Yolanda González is a multidisciplinary artist committed to the present and, at the same time, an explorer of the past. Her work presents re-readings/new readings/new lectures of abstract and figurative art, mastery of color, line, and space, in a passionate narrative that beats just under the surface of ancestral, personal, and universal resonance.

Yolanda González (USA, 1964)

Yolanda González was born into a family whose artistic heritage dates back to 1877. Her world is one of curiosity, demonstrating her love of people and their surroundings. González’s travels in different countries, the bonds forged with individuals in those places, and the resulting transformative experiences are reflected in her art and her life. She is known for her strong, bold brush strokes of color and texture, intent on evoking imagination and emotion.

González studied at the Pasadena Art Center College of Design after winning a painting competition that awarded her a scholarship to the prestigious school. This led her to Self-Help Graphics, an involvement that lasted for years and resulted in her being sent to Spain and Scotland as a representative for exhibitions in those countries. Over the years, she has exhibited her works in solo and group exhibitions across the United States, throughout Europe, and in South Africa.

In 1998, she was an artist in residence in Ginza, Japan followed by a similar stint in Assisi, Italy during 1999. Among the many museums that have shown her work are the Armand Hammer Museum, The Geffen Contemporary at MOCA, the Japanese American National Museum and the Diego Rivera Museum in México City. Throughout the years, González has taught at Inner City Arts, Para Los Ninos, Plaza de La Raza, Crenshaw Christian Center, MOCA and AltaMed.

González has participated in exhibitions in Russia, Japan, Scotland, France, Spain, Italy, Africa, Alaska and throughout the USA. Museums that have shown her work include The Musee d'Aquitaine, Bordeaux, France; San Diego Contemporary Museum, California, USA; Armand Hammer Museum, California, USA; Temporary Contemporary Museum; Japanese American National Museum, California, USA; Chicago Museum, IL, USA; Santa Monica Museum, California, USA; Laguna Art Museum, California, USA; Diego Rivera Museum; Latino Museum; Corpus Christi Museum, Texas, USA; Museum of Monterey, California, USA; and  Snite Museum of Art, Indiana, USA.