Meet Isaac Chaco” Ruelas | Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Isaac “Chaco” Ruelas and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Isaac “Chaco”, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
This is interesting because it took me a while to figure this out and there are some key factors that I hold on to in my process. First is make a decision and stick to it. As a creative person I can feel overwhelmed by the amount of ideas and curiosities that I can have in a single day. The thought of choosing something was really difficult. So I gave myself time to explore and reflect. In reflecting I am able to see patterns and consciously make a decisions about where I want to invest my time and money. That happened for me at about the age of 30.

The second thing is to commit. For myself I found that my life shifts every 5 years. So I decided to commit to the things I noticed are important to me for 2 seasons/10 years without quitting and/or doing something different. In my case specifically it was investing in my art, my activism, and my spiritual practices/leadership through a lens of entrepreneurship and sustainability.

From there I honestly make “to do” lists everyday of things that I need to do to accomplish the goals in those 3 areas of focus. As projects grow I have also found the importance of finding good collaborators/mentors with different strengths than myself. I could not be where I am today without my community. I am currently in year 5 and it’s been a wild ride so far. I am excited to see where I am when I hit the 10 year mark.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
As an artist I focus on a couple different areas. I do paintings, music and photography. Painting & Music is what I’ve been doing the longest. Started my practice as a child into my teens taking private & public classes learning as much as possible while building my craft. Although growing up the child of immigrants my parents encouraged my participation in the arts but did not believe that I could find a career doing it. My parents really wanted me to me to go college and build a “legitimate” career. So I graduated with a focus on Psychology and Entrepreneurships. I never stopped taking art and music classes in college which continued to build my understanding of both fields. I then went into the work force as a youth worker and believed that I could never actually have a career rooted in my art and music. In 2018 when I turned 30 I had an epiphany that my life is not meant to be a worker but instead to chase my dreams of being an artist and to impact the world through my work. Over the decade of working on my 20’s I started a 401K and ended up taking all that money out to quit and chase my dreams. A risky move that I knew was a necessary offering to save myself. It wasn’t easy that first year I could not find work and ran through my savings just to keep up with bills but I knew this is how I wanted to spend my time/life. This was my first major lesson which is, you have to invest in yourself and take the risk. The second is find a community and some mentors, they will come in handy. The third is trust yourself and the universe, as long as you are doing your best and setting your intentions with great care, I do believe things will work out.

Also COVID had a huge impact on me in that the first year I was cranking out work but halfway I became depressed because I am a very social person. That stopped me from creating almost any type of art. At this time I had to lean on my spiritual practices as a light being/light worker. This concept of light and tapping into my being while also wanting to move away from the illusion of daily living brought me film. I fell like film is so special in that it is literally trapping light for split second to capture the moments in its rawest forms. Thinking of film in such a romantic way is exactly what I needed at the time. I’ve dedicated myself to also practicing documentary photography since things began to open up from COVID. This also served as a great way to network within the art community. The photos ended up doubling up as 2 art projects, first in creating what I call “the photo albums” and also for an NFT project that consist of me photoshopping my character SadNopal69 onto the photos.

What I think people should know about my work is that if you are passionate about being Mexican or Native check my stuff out. You might enjoy it!

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Some of my favorite spots in the city are in NELA or DTLA. I live in Highland Park and love some of the spots here. My first spot is Nativo. There drinks are delicious and the food is so tasty. The bartenders are also super cool, the mezcal selection slaps and if you’re there at the right time you might get a Chikis. The second spot is La Cita in DTLA which is bar right across the street from Angels Flight. The vibes are always immaculate and the music is fire and great mezcal. My third favorite spot to show friends is Guelaguetza to introduce my homies to chapulinez (grasshoppers) and southern Mexico cuisine, plus their mezcal selection is also topnotch. If the budget allows my fourth favorite spot is Bar Amá in DTLA, they are a high end Mexican restaurant that I love to walk in and sit at the bar if it’s open. The food will blow your mind and of course the mescal is amazing.

To see some good art I always like to check out the homies galleries first at Tlaloc Studios, La Pau Gallery, Altura Gallery, Superchief, and Thinkspace. Of course I also enjoy the classics Hauser & Worth, The Broad, The Huntington Gardens and Library.

For dancing it depends what’s happening in the city. I have a number friends that are DJ’s so I always look to see where they are gonna be. DJ’s I look out for are QueMadre, Sapo. Dante, Hvmre, Dro Barlo, Chicano Playboy.

I am not a huge beach person since it always takes about an hour just to get to Santa Monica but my last favorite spot is Neptunes Net, ordering a platter and walking across the street to State Line beach for a beautiful afternoon. But you will have to bring your own mezcal lol!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Yes I believe it is important to show love to my community that’s supported my growth. That would be my family first and foremost my Mom Celia, Dad Esteban, Sister Stephanie and Brother Googy. Also my mentors Leo Esteves at Small Green Door, Valerie Batts & Terry Berman at VISIONS Inc. My business partner w/ MUNDO Gallery, Lazaro III Martinez. Beverage extraordinaire and great community builders at Aguas Locas Pablo, Oscar and fam. Isaias Cabral at SOMOS LOUD for continued support and advocacy. A great muse, collaborator and friend Lex Orozco-Cabral. The LA Latinx Art Scene like curator Anita Herrera and Galleries like La Pau, Altura, and Tlaloc w/ Ozzie Juarez. All of the amazing artist’s I’ve worked with to through shows; Loveyodreams, Lilfriendship, Leo Vela, Catdonuts, Guicho & Monica, Eric Mancha, Lola Delcamino, Kali Victoria, Hvmre, Nene and Oscuro team, Coyote Studios, Surral, Jay, Amy, Bee, Lou, and so many more.

Website: xacult.com

Instagram: @thisischaco69

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/isaacmruelas/

Twitter: @thisichaco69

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuYh2ur76u45qvVj4tIZ7ng @thisischaco69