The Holland Project’s Billboard Gallery showcases the work of exceptional emerging and established regional artists on billboards throughout Reno’s surface streets. Three new artists are installed every four weeks starting in January 2022. The February artists included Sara J Paschall, Nathaniel Benjamin, and Ricardo Rubalcaba Paredes.
FEBRUARY 2022 ARTISTS + WORKS
#1 Location: Wells Ave. & 2nd St.
Artist: Sara J Paschall
Artwork: We Have Always Been Here, digital, 2022
Instagram
Bio: Sara J Paschall is an indigenous artist based in Nevada.
Statement: I am trying my best to respect and share the language and feelings of my culture through my own style of art. Our Tribes will forever thrive in memory, spirit, and tenacity in our home of the Great Basin. The piece We Have Always Been Here depicts fierce Indigenous Great Basin Women holding a piece of what her tribe holds close to their hearts: a Wasisiw woman with their home lake Da’wa ‘aga, a Shoshone woman holding an Osa, and a Paiute woman holding her home lake Kooyooe Panunadu. Their hair is intertwined in a helix to show our connection to each other and our lands.
Location #2 Keystone Ave. & 2nd St.
Artist: Nathaniel Benjamin
Artwork: Biotech Ltd Promo 0222, digital, 2022
Website / Instagram
Bio: Nathaniel Benjamin earned his BFA with an emphasis in printmaking from the University of Nevada, Reno. Recently, he has expanded his art practice to include hand-printed apparel and mural painting. He is a founding member of Laika Press, a community printmaking space operating in Reno.
Statement: I approach printmaking through a surrealistic lens, examining the interaction between self and other. Raised mostly in the Midwest, my religious childhood inspired me to study mysticism and mythology, subjects that inform the mood of my work as well as its imagery. I use my art practice to examine how the technology we use shapes our sense of self. Taking inspiration from both the physical and digital worlds, I point out the grotesque nature of the evolving conflict between our bodies and the digital tools we use.
Location #3 4th St. & Valley Rd.
Artist: Ricardo Rubalcaba Paredes
Artwork: Yolteotl: Sol (left) & El Chillón y sus Sueńos de Coraje (right), acrylic on canvas, 2021
Instagram
Bio: I am an undergraduate student at the University of Nevada pursuing a BA with an emphasis in Digital Media and a minor in Latinx Studies. I feel a personal obligation to work for the equity of marginalized communities. As a first-generation Mexican American and college student, I see social transgression as fundamental for the prosperity and survival of marginalized peoples, beginning with an investment in education. In response to the unrequited ultimatums made by underserved Black and Brown communities, as it concerns their access to opportunities for building generational wealth and obtaining equity in the public sector, I produce artwork showcasing the nuances of BIPOC experiences (specifically within the American canon). After graduation I hope to pursue an MFA and Masters in Gender, Race, and Identities studies with the hopes of one day opening my own freelance studio to provide workshops and materials to underserved communities and become a professor in the respective fields.
Soy un estudiante de la Universidad de Nevada que busca obtener una licenciatura en Arte con un énfasis en Medios Digitales y una especialización en Estudios Latinas Siento una obligación personal para trabajar por la equidad de las comunidades marginadas. Como estudiante universitario y primera generación estadounidense, veo la transgresión social como fundamental para la prosperidad y supervivencia de los pueblos marginados, comenzando con una inversión en educación. En respuesta a los ultimátums no correspondidos hechos por las comunidades de color, en lo que respecta a su acceso a oportunidades para generar riqueza generacional y obtener equidad en el sector público, produzco obras de arte que muestran los matices de las experiencias de personas de color (específicamente dentro del canon estadounidense). Después de graduarme, espero obtener una Maestría en Arte y una Maestría en los estudios de Género, Raza e Identidades con la esperanza de algún día abrir mi propio estudio independiente para brindar talleres y materiales a las comunidades desatendidas y convertirme en profesor en los campos respetados.
Statement: In Nahuatl, the term “Yolteolt” (heart of god) describes the spiritual phenomenon of enlightenment achieved through creation/art. However, as an artist, I’ve come to understand it as a directive to mend the open wounds of my bruised flesh. Albeit disturbing, I ask you to look upon the inquired pain and recognize the privilege of (willful) ignorance. The pandemic has been my least pressing concern. I haven’t had the time to worry about it because the ash and sud stain picture frames of disheveled family portraits. And because my body still aches, and every day I woke up feeling like a stranger looking outside of themselves, because my body has been convoluted, not once but twice, when my “no’s” became another layer of foreplay.
And now, after all this time, despite having a roof over my head, I remain displaced. My brown skin is considered sickly like a plague that threatens to rattle the American organism ill because we came seeking freedom in the land of milk and honey because the American Institution has dissolved ours. I mourn you, México. For centuries white men have pillaged you, raping us. I can still feel his body heat, its stench lingers, and the guilt plunders. However, my ancestors built me resilient, and I’ve grown thickened skin like the bark of an Ahuehuete tree. They tried to bury me, but they didn’t know I was a seed.
So I give to my youngest, the heart of god as woven serapes and brilliant fabrics, and listen to how they speak. When you wrap yourself in them, place your ear against the intertwined fabric and hear them speak. “Tu poder esta en tu sangre. Heart of god, I extend thee to a golden child named Sol, may my tears endure the tests of cruelty to protect and guide you.” Together, we find comfort in our culture. The familiar odors and bitter tastes of spices grace our senses, and the visuals of vibrant colors and loud music brings us back to Yolteotl, a place of hope.
En náhuatl, el término Yolteolt (corazón de dios) describe el fenómeno espiritual de iluminación logrado a través de la creación/arte. Sin embargo, como artista, he llegado a entender a Yolteotl como una directiva para reparar las heridas abiertas de mi carne magullada. Aunque inquietante, les pido que miren el dolor indagado y reconozcan el privilegio de la ignorancia (voluntaria). La pandemia ha sido mi preocupación menos apremiante. No he tenido tiempo de preocuparme por eso. Porque el La ceniza y la espuma tiñen los marcos de los retratos familiares desaliñados. Y yo Porque mi cuerpo todavía me duele, y todos los días me despertaba sintiéndome como un extraño mirando fuera de sí mismo, porque mi cuerpo ha sido enrevesado, no una sino dos veces, cuando mis “no” se convirtieron en otra capa de juegos previos.
Y ahora, después de todo este tiempo, a pesar de tener un techo sobre mi cabeza, sigo desplazado. Mi piel morena es considerada enfermiza como una plaga que amenaza con sacudir el organismo americano enfermo porque vinimos buscando la libertad en la tierra de la leche y la miel porque la Institución Americana ha disuelto la nuestra. Te lloro, México. Durante siglos los hombres blancos te han saqueado, violándonos. Todavía puedo sentir el calor de su cuerpo, su hedor persiste y los saqueos de la culpa. Sin embargo, mis ancestros me hicieron resistente, y me ha crecido una piel engrosada como la corteza de un árbol de Ahuehuete. Intentaron enterrarme, pero no sabían que yo era una semilla.
Así que regalo a mis más jóvenes, el corazón de dios como sarapes tejidos y telas brillantes, escucha cómo hablan. Cuando te envuelvas en ellos, coloca tu oreja contra la tela entrelazada y escucha cómo hablan. “Tu poder esta en tu sangre. Corazón de dios, te extiendo a un niño dorado llamado Sol, que mis lágrimas soporten las pruebas de la crueldad para protegerte y guiarte.” Juntos, encontramos consuelo en nuestra cultura. Los olores familiares y amargos los sabores de las especias adornan nuestros sentidos, y las imágenes de colores vibrantes y la música a todo volumen nos devuelven a Yolteotl, un lugar de esperanza.
The HP Billboard Gallery was made possible by an Art Belongs Here Grant from the City of Reno Arts & Culture Commission and the National Endowment for the Arts, generous donations from supporters like Temple Builders LLC, Brooks Family Dental, and Sierra Hearing Center, as well as the support and guidance of our partners with the Wells Ave. Merchants Association and Lamar Outdoor Advertising. Thank you!