Meet Joan Zeta | Artist

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

Hi Joan, why did you pursue a creative career?
I decided to pursue an artistic career after spending a semester abroad in Europe when I was 19 and visiting countless museums. I realized that women throughout history have only mostly been portrayed as mothers, sluts, and virgins, no in-between or multi-dimensional. Then, the only portrayals of women of color that I saw were in Paul Gauguin’s artwork. The women he portrayed were underage girls he had sexual relationships with. Images of WOC like this enraged me, and I then decided to make art that came straight from the horse’s mouth. I also decided to become an artist because it is the only thing I don’t mind spending hours and hours working on. I feel euphoric when things are going right in the studio, and the work is coming together. Of course, when things go wrong, it’s the end of the world until the colors and composition are fixed. LOL.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I am a mixed media artist whose artwork reflects the beauty and harshness of living in Los Angeles and the current state of the world. I work with drawing, painting, collage, photography, printmaking, installations, and textile art. The materials I use are both traditional and everyday objects. Most of my works are surreal landscapes, portraits, and self-portraits. My artwork also addresses self-identity, femininity, mental health, and political issues. I also print my artwork on shirts and sweaters to make it more accessible and wearable.

I am excited to finish a series of prints and hopefully showcase them before the end of the year. I’ve also been working with TecnoLatinx on an art piece inspired by the Pachucas and the Zoot Suit Riots of the 1940s. I can’t wait to finish this piece!Getting to where I am professionally has not been easy. I feel depression and other health issues have held me back a lot. I have been going to therapy for a couple of years now, along with taking anti-depression medication. I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for art, my family, and my friends. Sales from my art have helped me pay for rent and bills and be able to seek medical treatment. I’ve learned the hard way that I need to take care of my body and brain in order to be able to create art. Unfortunately, I am not like those artists who can be self-destructive and still stay productive. The past years have taught me to slow down and be more mindful of how I treat myself. I want the world to know that despite struggling with mental health, I never gave up expressing myself through art.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
This is a funny question because my best friend from San Francisco is supposed to visit soon. I would take her hiking to Griffith Park, walk around all over Downtown LA, visit The Smell, Central Library, Little Tokyo, Chinatown, Self Help Graphics, eat in Thai Town, go to all the art museums, and shop at Latinx With Plants, Plus Bus, and Pop Hop in Highland Park. Go to Watts Towers and Art Space HP. I live next to Huntington Park, so we would visit Pacific Boulevard, buy a giant Jamaica agua fresca, and walk around.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I want to give a shout-out to Ni Santas, the art collective I am part of. If not for Ni Santas, I would’ve stopped making art and lost my way in the shuffle.

Website: joanzeta.com

Instagram: @joan_zeta

Twitter: @joanzeta

Image Credits
1st photo by Rogelio Valdez Perez. All others by Joan Zeta.