Francisco Letelier

Lives and works in Los Angeles, CA

Artist statement

Francisco Letelier In a collection that preserves essential botanical, geographic and cultural memory my work crosses formats and scale. Narratives are told using painted representations, found objects and plant and mineral specimens. Crafted details use metaphor in themes that seek reconciliation and explore boundaries. As a land-based artist, whether in cities or wilderness, sourcing materials is central to meaning and authenticity in my practice. The natural elements in these works imbue them with millions of years of slow time. Juxtaposed natural elements create dialogues and prompt curiosity and investigation. Wild-gathered materials, ancestral crafts and contemporary methods merge to both create and preserve cultural signifiers. Carefully examined historical legacies enable me to communicate through the materials themselves. In layers of embedded meaning, I attempt to cross borders of aesthetic and cultural perception and re-imagine cultural forms. Red, white, and blue ribbons, embossed aluminum cans, computer boards, and knapped obsidian tell compelling stories. Stitched burlap, blue bottle glass, and hand-loomed textiles carry deep understandings. My narratives seek fields of discovery and the possibilities between abstraction and realism, images and words. In this work, tides have been checked and mountains climbed. Geologic surveys and rock saws are some of the tools in my studio, contributing to an ongoing practice of archive and memory. Connecting global...

Artwork