Tara Esperanza

I had a chance to speak with Oakland, California-based artist Tara Esperanza about her beautiful succulent paintings and her love for showcasing their distinct personalities.

Number Three, acrylic painting by Tara Esperanza

Tell me about your background.

I grew up in Massachusetts and I have been an artist all my life. I was pretty serious about art from a very young age. I started studio classes in middle school and was very fortunate to attend a high school with a strong arts program. I spent extra time in the studio and was building a portfolio for college at 16/17 years old. I graduated from UMass Dartmouth Cum Laude with a Bachelors of Fine Art and a focus on painting. I also studied plein air painting at Pont Aven School of Art in France. After college, I moved to Santa Fe, New Mexico. At the time I was drawn to the southwest culture, the big sky, the light, and landscape. I lived there 13 years until I moved to Oakland, California in 2008 where I still live.  

What is your preferred medium and what do you enjoy about it?

Acrylic on canvas. I have been painting primarily with acrylic since college. I mix all of the colors that I apply to my canvas and I really like painting with the palette knife. I do use brushes as well, but I tend to mix colors with the palette knife and layer colors this way as I paint. Acrylic dries quickly enough for me to control the colors and build up the image by layering. I also use a gel medium that allows for me to develop the layers in a translucent way. Therefore, the underlying colors can still show through instead of just painting over them. 

Valour 1982, acrylic painting by Tara Esperanza

What ideas do you explore in your work?

I am currently focused on painting succulents. I really love the plant personalities and showcasing their diversity. There is an enormous variety of succulents and I feel very connected to them. Succulents live in community and like to be close to one another. They support one another and hold each other up. They thrive in tight spaces and live in harmony with abundant variety. Succulents are resilient and incredibly forgiving. I see how extraordinary and beautiful they are and I aim to share that with the viewer through my intimate perspective.

Share a little bit about your process - how do you get started on a new painting?

I am a monogamous painter. I always have been. I feel like I am in a very close relationship with each painting and it takes all my attention. I only work on 1 painting at any time. 

I am always finding inspiration and the research never stops. I walk a lot and I am a long distance runner. I am always noticing plants and there are also many that I revisit often in my neighborhood from time to time. I visit my plant friends to see them grow and change throughout the seasons. I photograph often and keep a library of images. Sometimes an urge to paint a particular plant is sudden. Other times, I find an image that I am feeling inspired to paint at that time from my library. 

Whatever I am attracted to, I will visually dive in to find an interesting composition and expression. From there, I draw out a sketch before building the canvas. The image also dictates the size of the canvas. I tend to create larger paintings as the plants are big in life to me and I want them to be seen in a big way.

Can you talk a bit about the evolution of your practice and style - the succulents are so distinctive and bold because of both their size of the paintings and the vibrancy of colours. Were you doing something else before you arrived at the work you are doing now?

Sisters, acrylic painting by Tara Esperanza

Before painting succulents, I had been working on a series of paintings inspired by my travels through Mexico titled “Las Ventanas a Mexico” (The Windows to Mexico). Mexican traditions of art, family, music, and religion that remain so strong throughout their lives have shaped that collection of paintings. The paintings in that series are realistic imagery, but the overall image is abstract. They are not of one setting but a composition of images/moments captured in my mind while traveling. The paintings are vibrant in color as a reflection of colorful Mexico. I aim to share the magic of Mexico that I have experienced through my travels in my work. I have been fortunate to have opportunities that have taken me many places. I believe that traveling to foreign countries is a great way to not only learn about the world, but also to learn more about oneself. Travelling fosters a medium to build human connections by learning about how other people live their lives. When we break away from our daily norms and step into another culture, we allow ourselves to have a greater understanding of ourselves. Travelling also allows us to be fully present and live in the moment. Even if the place one travels to has limitations due to language or cultural barriers, it is still an opportunity to build mental resilience. I see this as an opportunity to develop new skills that last a lifetime and open up communication with others different from ourselves. Travelling brings humanity together and makes us happier and more empathic as a result. I always have had a travel bug, an adventurous spirit, and an affinity to share it. Though I am not currently painting about Mexico, I have since developed Esperanza Art and Culture Tour to Oaxaca. That keeps my affection and art attention on Mexico.

Succulents #4, acrylic painting by Tara Esperanza

My current body of work continues to be colorful. Succulents are very colorful and expressive in nature. I really relate to the plant personalities and I hope that the viewer takes a moment to be present and connect with the plants as well. I want the viewer to travel in their minds to a place of peace, balance, beauty, and comfort through connecting with my paintings. I aim to offer an intimate perspective and an awareness of what succulents offer. I see the common thread in my bodies of work being nature, perspective, balance, culture, and color.

Which artists do you look to for inspiration? 

This is hard to answer. I guess all of the artists that I admire inspire me one way or another. I can honestly say that when I was younger, I was inspired by art history and what I could learn from the masters. I traveled to Europe to soak up art and art history. I also studied abroad in France. I lived in the town that Gauguin lived in. I admire him for his use of color and unwillingness to conform. I love Cezanne’s rich landscapes, Rodolfo Morales for his story telling and shifting perspectives. Frida Kahlo for her badassery, talent, and phenomenal ability to balance beauty and pain. Of course Matisse, Van Gogh, and Picasso too. Nowadays I am looking more toward living artists, making history in the moment, as well as artists that create work very different from my own. I am inspired by success stories of artists. Mostly of artists having amazing opportunities. For example, when they meet that moment where their art career is taken to the next level, whether it be diving in full time and making a living solely on art, or it be a super successful exhibit, collaboration, or project. Whatever it is, if it’s grand, I am inspired.

California Sunset, acrylic painting by Tara Esperanza

Which artists do you enjoy at the moment?

There are so many amazing artists out there. Especially ones that we have access to on Instagram. First is my husband, Raciel Esperanza. He is an outstanding artist and thinker.  Mark Bradford blows my mind. I love his use of materials and how he builds and then deconstructs the surface to reveal what is beneath. And the immense size of his paintings create a feeling of being a tiny organism looking out at the expansive universe. I saw his work at The Broad in January 2020. It was my birthday present to myself and it was an amazing time just before the pandemic hit. I also saw Kara Walker’s exhibit at the Broad Museum and it blew my mind. Her silhouettes are bold and powerful depictions of the ugly darkside of racism, history, and humanity. Though the content is very adult, dark, and brutal, the type of imagery is storybook and childlike. Black and White. Immense contrast. Laurie Kaplowitz was my junior year of college painting professor. She taught me a great deal and I still look up to her and her work. Her layering technique, symbolism, and patterns are always interesting. Anna Valdez is a painter that creates lush interiors from objects in her studio. I have been to her studio and it was literally like stepping into her paintings. She has also painted the wallpaper to display her paintings on. She makes her colors from pigment and they are bold and abundant. Lastly, Jet Martinez, Jessica Hess, Erik Parra, Erin Loree, Xiao Wang, & Seth Armstrong to name a few more.  

Everything’s Coming Up Roses, acrylic painting by Tara Esperanza

What is your studio like?

My studio is in my house. I have a big bay window and side windows. I love that my animals always hang with me when I work. My walls are covered in images of plants that I have painted and show cards of artists that I love. It works really well for me. In addition to being a painter, I own a small business, so my schedule is very full. Sometimes I work late at night or early morning. It’s great to have the option to squeeze in short sessions. I also love waking up and spending time with my painting first thing. I guess I love it being the last thing I see in a day, as well as the first thing I see to start a day. 

What is the most memorable thing someone has said about your work?

Wow! Am I allowed to have 3 answers to 1 question? Recently I had a solo exhibition and I received some really moving messages from strangers as well as loved ones. 

One woman wrote, “I looked at your gallery pictures. I never wanted to be rich until I saw them. Way beyond me due to being unemployed for 9 months but oh, they are so beautiful! I love the blue toned ones. I haven’t seen art that I thought was worth buying until now. And of course I’m poor. But at least I saw your art online and it’s beautiful!”. I was so moved by her message! 

Green and Purple, acrylic painting by Tara Esperanza

Another said “OMG I just discovered your work thanks to my friend Silvia and I am speechless and so moved. What an incredible artist you are. We are both crazy about succulents and I swear I could never have imagined that anything other than nature could give it justice and you did…”  Again, I was so incredibly touched by this response. These are the most meaningful messages. I felt so much gratitude for their support. 

The last memorable thing I want to share is that oftentimes people tell me that since seeing my paintings, they look at succulents differently. More carefully. They think of me and they pay closer attention to the plants. They find themselves noticing more succulents and looking deeper into the plants. That is exactly what I aim to do with my paintings, so that is a success. It is an absolute delight to hear people connecting with my work in nature. It’s not always about selling art that makes the art/work successful. When people share how they connect with my work and it brings them joy, it brings me joy.  

What are you working on now? What’s on your horizon?

I just recently finished a solo show and immediately had a group show open after that. An exhibit called 2020 RE:VISION  is up until Jan 2021. I am really looking forward to the new year to see how I show & grow, and what art opportunities 2021 delivers. I am also planning to guide another Art and Culture Tour to Oaxaca in October, so that is really exciting. 

You can follow Tara on Instagram at @TaraEsperanza