I was born in the magnificent Mexico City although my parents come from the northern State of Durango, which made us acquire ‘funny words’ when we were children. I guess that’s where my love of words came from.
I always wanted to be an artist… I remember my parents took me to this Juan Sordo Madaleno kind of building with a fantastic garden where I went for painting lessons. The place was full of light and colour, and I remember feeling extremely content.
My dad is an architect and he always wanted me to be one too. I was always good at drawing but I knew I wouldn’t be able to read an electrical installation plan for a building. I grew up going to empty buildings, climbing scaffoldings, getting into constructions cranes, skating on the perfectly polished concrete floors of the car parks and watching the bare structures of huge building sites. I guess that’s where my eye for ‘structural’ shapes comes from. I feel at ease and I find a profound beauty in the industrial, the urban.
I went to university, taking on graphic design as a route to escape the daunting ‘you are going to starve if you become an artist’. As a graphic designer I cultivated my love for typography which ultimately would become my preferred media of communication.
I also love languages (I speak three) so when I had the opportunity to study printmaking in London, I decided to work on what I knew and love most: words and its ‘building blocks’. If you asked me who has been the most influential figure in shaping me in my art, I would mention several people. Many have helped, but I can certainly say that I’m deeply grateful to the excellent education I got in Mexico.
I come from a long line of women educators. I have high regard for teachers and the hard work they do. What I love about my art is the language I chose, which is a way of saying something that couldn’t be expressed otherwise. Some say it through movement, some feel the urge to put their whirlwind of thoughts on paper. This is not to say that those urges are kind and easy to let go… artist like children, need to say something, but on a different way, sometimes it’s crystal clear, sometimes is something that resembles a baby trying to express what he only manages with guttural sounds I adore being in workshops, experiencing those magical moments where what one is doing goes well or unexpectedly you discover something new.
I love all the machines, presses, easels and little contraptions one finds in workshops. They are like an alchemist room. I detest filling application forms! The most difficult obstacle I had to overcome was fighting the cliché of being Latin, being Mexican and last but not least being a woman… All those stereotypes walk in front of you before you get to utter the first words.
I personally find impossible to have developed my artistic language without being in London, I have always felt an affinity with this country and its cultural vision and output. That’s the reason I chose to live here, it was always a conscious decision. From music to design then the art scene of the 90’s, I always considered that London was a perfect place to let ideas brew and come to life. The British public has been always critical, welcoming, challenging, never indifferent, I couldn’t expect more. What makes me really happy and unhappy? I love being in the workshop printing and experimenting… trying different shades of black (my favourite ink colour).
Sometimes the state of my bank account makes me unhappy or more than that anxious. Sounds cliché but I must say the people I most admire are my family & my partner. Is them who keep pestering me to keep going when I think there’s no way out… I thank all of them for telling me ‘just get on with it!’ If I could go back in time I would go to Henry the VIII’s court… Don’t ask why, it is an ongoing joke.
What song would I like to be played at my funeral? Probably John William’s Imperial March. My secret is I’m the anti-Latin, as a friend called me once… I’m terrible at dancing salsa, cumbia, merengue you name it… I love punk and drum and bass… none of which one dances with a partner or at Latin parties. How do I see my future? Well I wouldn’t mind having a patron. Artists’ work is paramount for the well being of society, expression and uniqueness are base building blocks.
I would appreciate if I got more support with funded projects and affordable spaces to work. As an artist, as everyone else, I have many dreams, but I’ll keep them to myself until they become a reality… ‘para que no se me cebe’ If you want to get to know more about me and my art check out my website: http://julietahadame.wordpress.com/
