Jessica's identity

Interviewed in her storage studio at Islington area, London, Uk on 22/10/2011

Name: Jessica Suarez

Nationality: Chilean

Current Location: London - UK

Artistic role: visual artist/painter

Current work: freelance/translations and teaching art to children

Contact details: http://www.jessicasuarez.co.uk/

What is the meaning of being an emerging artist, What implications the term “emerging” has and how can the art market influence the artist’s career and life path? 

"Emerging artist" means a lot to me, it means I'm being accepted as an artist as a first impression...it is a nice word "artist"...now, about "emerging" it couldn't be more assertive!...I'm making my way.
As a meaning to society I think it shows a lot about the actual society-young people in special, their point of view and role in the world-. It shows that in the actual society we live in, Art is primordial and everyone is trying to express themselves not only in visual arts but in music and literature etc...is like the 2000 society is led by creative minds...I just love the fact that the "emerging artists" are just literally everywhere, in every corner!.

I think that yes it is indeed a term that is intimately if not created exclusively to the Art market. Is like high street clothing versus designer clothes. They just need to classify the products and in the end for the Art market we all are potential products.
For me, is more profound...because in a naive way I try to understand the world in another way, a nicer way... For me is very graphic, the meaning brings up many images of things and people, in this case an image of myself trying to emerge from a thick mud...as you get older your head gets deeper in the mud...some people realize they can’t fight any longer...I am 26 years old and I am still trying to throw my arms away and try and hold on to something or someone to pull me out...sadly enough I know that there’s just a few that really make it to surviving and therefore becoming “someone” ...in the world of arts...I think that sometimes is not just the factor of being physically fit or able to hold your breath what makes you reach out the mud...sometimes is a haphazard thing, good luck, someone who pulled you out from the mud... there’s good artist everywhere...under the mud and over it.

For me the term "emerging" affects the artist in a "bitter-sweet" way... What I mean to say holds the very same idea that I explained before...It all depends in the way the artist sees it and what the artist want in a certain chapter of their professional lives.

For me the term "emerging" can affect an artist psychologically. To put an example, imagine there is an artist who is aged 27, has put on exhibitions on his own and sold some paintings, he is called "emerging artist" by the art big names because he or she is new to the official world of art...it could be a bit difficult to try and fit on descriptions or feel genuinely comfortable wearing this tag...but I understand with no doubt that this term is for the official art business so you live with it or you just forget about the "official" art world.

Jessica's works