Opening: Friday, December 8 · 6 – 8pm PST
What brings you child-like joy? When was the last time you played? SketchOne commits to that joyful child-like state when creating his artwork. For him, creating art is an act of play and nurturing his inner-child.
Growing up, he created his own toys from everyday objects–he learned to express his creativity with discarded items that were destined for the garbage bin. Over time, he has developed his sculptural and artistic style drawing from his early years and heartened by the joy he sees in his own children.
Self-taught and a strong believer in accessibility in the arts, SketchOne is a must-see Los Angeles artist. He will feature in his first Solo Art Exhibition titled “Salvaged” this December at White’s.
About the Artist:
“SALVAGED” is titled for the artworks which are largely made up of salvaged materials that have been found on the street or discarded at home. The artist also views himself as being salvaged having arisen out of a troubled childhood and recovered form a disabling injury. Artwork has become his escape as well as his salvation in life, providing emotional healing and a financial lifeline to support his young family.
Born in El Salvador, Sketch One was moved to the United States at the age of 9 under TPS policy and the promise of a better future. Unfortunately a better future was not quite as imagined as his home struggled under the plight of drug and alcohol abuse, and he had to look after his younger sister. Putting his own childhood aside at the age of 11, he took on the role of parent for her until she turned 18.
Sketch One recalls struggling through school while always being drawn to the arts. He on multiple occasions asked his father to enroll him in a school with a well-known visual arts program to no avail. Undeterred, he absorbed the art found all around him at school scratched into his desks, scribbled in his yearbooks, and tagged on the walls. He went home each night and meticulously copied the graffiti style, mastering the creative typefaces and colorful designs of urban Los Angeles.
A lack of access to proper art supplies has never stopped his creativity. Sketch One’s earliest ventures in art drove him to make use of dried out and discarded markers which he learned to re-hydrate to create new unique hues and extend their usable life. He took everyday objects and started cutting them up and gluing them together in new and creative ways. This type of ingenuity is a signature of his art to this day as he sees ways he can make use of any waste to create art.
Years later and after starting a family of his own, a back injury left him unable to continue work. Restless and hopeless during his recovery his wife inspired him to return to the arts to pass the time as he healed. He attributes this time in his life to have altered his world and his outlook on the future. His art not only gave him an outlet while he healed and a financial lifeline for his family but, healed his inner child as well, making up for years of play lost.
Sketch One is committed to finding the bright side of every situation despite all the obstacles and all the difficulties that he has been through.His is very open with all of his past because he knows it all happens for a reason and all contributes to who he is and what he does. Passionate that the arts are accessible to everyone, he recently partnered with the Garage Board Shop to