Artist Interview: Marianela de la Hoz

Mejor que la liposuccion (Better than Lipsuction), c.2008. Egg tempera on board. 4 x 2.3 inches
Born in Mexico and currently residing in San Diego Marianela de la Hoz is absolutely one of my favorite artists, period. I first came across her meticulous work at an exhibition of contemporary Mexican work at the Cultural Institute of Mexico years ago, and have been a fan ever since. We asked her our usual questions:

DC: Who or what has been your biggest influence as an artist?

Since I was a little girl my maternal grandfather introduce me to the arts, we used to enjoy many art books and I fell in love with Leonardo and the Flemish painters, then I discover Goya and there I found the most appealing images for my own aesthetics. His etchings, full of dark imaginary and dark humor have been my biggest influence.

DC: What are some of the challenges or mistakes that you have experienced as an artist and what did you learn from it?

One of the toughest challenges in life was deciding to leave my career as a Graphic designer and dedicate my life, body and soul to painting. I studied Graphic Design at the Universidad Autonoma Metropolitana in Mexico City and I work as a graphic designer for 14 years, I was successful, earn good money and yet something was missing; it was not until my second child was born, almost 18 years ago, that I had enough clarity to convince myself of something I had always known but was afraid to accept. I wanted to dedicate myself to art and in painting I found the deep meaning of my whole existence, that passion surrounded me completely.

DC: Do you use a method for pricing your artwork?

My artwork is not easy to price because of the very small formats.

The first time I had an exhibition in Mexico City , the gallery owner set the prices and I trusted his knowledge about the art market, the collectors and my pieces, when I arrived 8 years ago to San Diego something similar happened when David Zapf the owner of the gallery I began working with did the same.

After building my own market, I have been able to set prices calculating the hours I dedicate to each painting, egg tempera requires a lot of time to be finished, I could not fix prices taking the size as a variable because of my very small formats

DC: Have you done any of the art fairs? If so, does your work do better at the fairs or at the gallery shows?

I have done several, Scope, Bridge, Pulse, Artamericas, the NY Affordable Art Fair. I would say that though I have sold in some of the fairs, my principal sales have been in my hometown galleries, first Mexico City and second San Diego.

DC: What advise would you give to emerging artists?

To always be honest and true to their believes and voice, betraying this principles in the pursuit of fame and money would not be soul satisfying. To work hard, use discipline everyday, inspiration is fine but daily work is the one that moves a true artist to a solid body of work, Don't trust excessive EGOS , and last to have an iron stomach to stand destructive criticism or excessive praises

DC: Who is your favorite DC area artist?

I don't know if he is local, I know that Conner Gallery represents him, Erik Sandberg

DC: Anything coming up in the near future for you?

Last March 25th I had the opening for my solo show "Mise en scene" at the Noel-Baza Gallery, San Diego CA.

Marianela shows with some of the top galleries around the nation and would probably make a great fit in a DC area gallery. If you want to get in touch with her, drop me a note.