Yvette Mayorga

Geary is pleased to present Chicago-based artist Yvette Mayorga’s first solo exhibition in New York City, A Part of US. In her paintings and sculpture, Mayorga tempts with a saccharine and cloyingly sweet presentation of cake-like canvases at surface level. Using acrylic paint piped onto stretched surfaces, Mayorga’s work offers sobering revelations about the contradictions inherent in the notion of the “American Dream”.

In the essay accompanying A Part of US, Emmanuel Ortega points to the link between the history of the flamboyant style of French Rococo and Mayorga’s commentary on consumption and the American dream:

The ethics of beholding los pasteles de Mayorga rest in the ways in which sentimentality is denied via her work; in her own words, “I'm interested in having the viewer think that they're going to experience something […] sensory or decadent, but then, through being attracted to the colors, to the smell, they discover that the work is about something else, something more profound, something darker.” If one is not attentive, Mayorga’s work may unfold like a seductive ornate medusa, instead of a much necessary call to action. The formal lushness of rococo aesthetics is a tool for the artist to entice the viewer to scrutinize their complacency in these systems of oppression.

In A Part of US, Mayorga presents a number of acrylic piped works for the first time, along with a small selection of ceramic sculptures and a large swath of wallpaper designed by the artist. With the help and influence of Rococo historical artifacts, Mayorga draws comparisons to the United States’ proud history of consumerism and waste, while many people go without, and continue to fight for a seat at the table. Mayorga asks the question with her work, how many times must history repeat itself?

Yvette Mayorga is a Chicago-based artist who navigates the intersection of feminism, immigration, and post-colonialism. A first-generation Mexican-American, she works with subject matter specific to personal accounts of border crossing and border politics within the United States. Recent projects include solo exhibitions at Roman Susan Gallery (Chicago), and a solo presentation in collaboration with the Chicago Artists Coalition at Expo Chicago in 2017. Recent fellowships and residencies include a Maker Grant from the Chicago Artists Coalition (2018), a Fountainhead Residency (2017), Acre Artist Residency (2017), and a Bolt Residency at the Chicago Artists Coalition (2016). Mayorga holds an MFA in Fiber & Material Studies from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago and a BFA in Painting from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.