FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – When you walk into Andrea Cano Torres art studio, you’re greeted with the smell of freshly burned sage and large colorful paintings on the wall, each an expression of her identity.
Torres was born in Fresno, but throughout her childhood she spent time living in Mexico in Los Reyes, Michoacán.
For her, growing up in both the U.S. and Mexico came with its joys and its challenges all of which are represented in her art.
“Life is super painful at times, you know,” said Torres. “I always have things in my paintings that poke, but they’re so beautiful to look at and as a first-gen kiddo, we experience chains and bloodstains. There is a heaviness of being the translator, being the financial person, and being the head of household.”
But the burdens of being a first-generation queer Chicana artist, turned into blessings. And when asked to showcase her latest work inside of Moto Delicatessen and Bodega for Hispanic Heritage month she knew it was a good fit.
“They asked me if I was willing to show and I thought don’t know, like I haven’t shown in years, but I had shown these pieces in Sacramento and I thought to be able to show them in my hometown would be super rad,” said Torres. “I’m a fan of this restaurant, I worked at Fresno High for years in the past, so everything meshed really well together.”
The series titled “Homecoming” is now on display, inspired by the act of returning home to yourself and searching for identity.
Motivated by raw art and her brother, these three paintings were challenging, as she stayed away from her usual colorful pallet and instead used monochromatic techniques.
“My brother’s been incarcerated most of his life, so when he would get out, he would show me how to shade with like toilet paper and he showed me how to do like realistic eyes and all in like pencil and pad, and I wanted to let’s go back to that,” said Torres. “So I said let’s see what that would feel like and I painted things that remind me of growing up either in Mexico or here in the U.S that brings me a lot of comfort and peace.”
The first painting in this series is a self-portrait surrounded by broken chains that represent the generational cycles she had to break. It also includes a butterfly to represent migration, and the jaguar as strength.
The entire series showcasing items that ground her and provide comfort along with familiarity. Like the molcajete, a traditional Mexican stone, which for her represents grounding and is also a sentimental item in her home because it belonged to her grandmother.
“They’re definitely like the most personal pieces I’ve ever done,” said Torres. I’ve been painting for quite some time, and I do a lot of commercial murals and work with clients. But now that I’m working on my master’s and my portfolio, I really was like, okay, what do I want to paint, what do I want to focus on.”
Andrea is now pursuing a master’s degree in studio art at Fresno State University.
Her work focuses on rebirth, motherhood and play— while acknowledging generational trauma and embracing her Chicana identity.
