Edmy Ortiz (told by Mayte Martínez '10)

     Edmy Ortiz was born and raised in the Dominican Republic, where she studied painting while earning a degree in architecture. In 2003, Edmy left her homeland for the United States. In Worcester, she first took a few art courses at the Worcester Art Museum. There, she became conscious of a major difference between Latin American and North American educational approach to art. The discipline in the Dominican Republic is stricter and more structured in order to allow the student to define themselves as an artist with more strength.

     When Edmy was learning about art in the Dominican Republic, she was pushed to master painting with acrylics, watercolor, and pastels before settling on oil paint. Edmy chose oils because she felt the colors were more intense, more able to capture the powerful colors of everyday life in Latin American culture. In America, by comparison, an art course usually begins and ends with the same medium. For example, in a drawing course, you will probably work with pencil and maybe some paint but more than likely the course will begin and end with charcoal.

Reprinted by permission of Edmy Ortiz © Edmy Ortiz

     In her work, Edmy is trying to break the stereotypes people have about Latin Americans and show the beauty and origins of traditions that we still preserve. One of the things that stood out to me in her work is the revelation of the simplicity of life and how Hispanics are not only living this simple life, they are content with it. For many people, especially Americans, it can be bizarre and surprising to see that some do not aspire to have the newest device, car or a lavish home. Many Hispanics, including those in the Dominican Republic, are comfortable living in their small homes and cultivating the land. They have no need for a flat screen television or internet and computers. I saw this when I went to my mother's small town in El Salvador and I was impressed to see Edmy's work grasp this concept and illustrate it so beautifully.

     Another feature of Edmy's work that I was drawn to was that the people in her work are faceless. When I asked Edmy why she chose to keep them unidentifiable, she had two answers: first, that without a face, the person was universal, allowing anybody to relate to the piece and not tie it down to a single individual. Second, her open-ended individuals are a channeling of her homeland. Edmy explained to me that in the Dominican Republic, Edmy saw a series of ceramic sculptures of women who are selling flowers who are faceless.

     Currently, Edmy is working on a series of paintings that relate to Spain for the Casa de España exhibit in the Dominican Republic. As a flamenco dancer herself, some of Edmy's pieces are about flamenco dance, while a few others are about Spanish bullfights.

Mayte Martínez's work is featured on the cover of this issue. Her biography appears here.