Mercedes Cardenas lives and works in Chicago, Illinois. She received her BFA at American Academy of Art in 2017. She is currently enrolled in getting her MFA at the University of Chicago and will be graduating in Spring 2021. Her main focus is the representation of Mexican-American diaspora through personal memories with the use of oil paintings on canvas. She documents what she feels are important memories that symbolize Mexican-American Diaspora. Playing with time, and the ambiguous quality of memories, she creates her paintings with moments of confusion. Her work is an internal exploration of external experiences and she hopes to expand the conversation of diaspora and accessibility of it in the art world.
Her work has been shown at Bridgeport Art Center, Chicago, IL; Studio Oh!, Chicago, IL: Gallery Cafe, Chicago, IL; Illiasca, Chicago, IL; Epic Art House, Chicago, IL.
Image: Mercedes Cardenas, Birthday Party (2021). Oil Painting on Canvas. Dimensions 5ft x 7ft.
SPARK Microgrant
