CoralGables-June2018

Aurora Molina
Ideas on Art: “My dad is a painter, so becoming an artist, I had
to find my own identity. I found a voice in fibers and textiles,
which have been linked to women’s history, to quilting circles.
You can narrate the history of the world through textile trading.
I really got engaged in drawing with thread and painting with
thread. And with that, I travel around the world, work with artists
and learn about cultural heritage. I’ve done projects in India, Indonesia,
Morocco and Mexico. For the past three years, I’ve been
going to Europe. I’m seeing how colonization has informed other
cultures. For example, in Mexico, you get the hand embroidery
from the Spanish, when really their tradition was weaving.
Pictured with Seven Years of Dreams and Nightmares, 60
inches by 55 inches, fiber art, not for sale, similar pieces $9,000:
“This piece is about my first seven years adjusting and trying to
find comfort in a new place, after we arrived from Cuba. It started
with the doodles I made on the first pillow that I got here. Some
writings are in Spanish. I made those doodles into embroidery on
the pillow I used to sleep on. The spider-web part is the weaving
of the dreams, all the connectedness. The chain is crochet of the
days in those years – 365 times seven. The burlap is a reference to
the fabric you’d find in Cuba for coffee or sugar. I cried every day
when I first got here. This is about meeting the end to those years.
“All my work in the beginning was trying to detach from my
dad. His painting uses a lot of vibrant colors, it’s whimsical and
has magic realism. My early work was monochromatic. When I
went to Mexico and India, color started to come in, because color
there just hits you.”
BORN: Nueva Paz, Cuba in 1984.
EDUCATION/TEACHING: Coral Gables High
School. Miami-Dade College, Associates in Art
and Photography; Florida International University,
BFA; Spain’s Universidad Europea de Madrid,
Master in Contemporary art in 2009. Also teaches,
including workshops this summer at Bakehouse
Art Complex, Miami.
KNOWN FOR: Fiber art and soft sculpture, often
with cultural commentary.
IN CORAL GABLES: Intermittently since 2001.
Also lived in Spain and has done residencies in
Mexico, India, Indonesia, Morocco and other
nations.
WEBSITE: www.auroramolina.com.
LAST EXHIBIT: Group shows this summer
include Rocking Chair Sessions at Bakehouse,
Miami; Solo show The Decline of Rationality in
American Politics, Bernice Steinbaum Gallery,
Miami, 2018.
I found a voice
in fibers and
textiles, which
have been linked
to women’s
history...
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thecoralgablesmagazine.com