August 11 - Oct 1

H-E-B Gallery @ 204 S. Austin

In his current body of work, Sin Estado, or “stateless,” Nicaraguan-American artist Quinn Antonio Briceño explores the blending of Americana with Latinx through paintings and collages.

Featured in the H-E-B Gallery, the new exhibition will be viewable and available for collection Aug. 11–Oct. 1 at  Rockport Center for the Arts (RCA). A public reception with Briceño will be held Aug. 18, from 5–7 p.m. at RCA to officially launch the show, which is free and open to the public.

“Growing up in two countries separated by thousands of miles and by differences in language and culture, I have always felt that I had to choose to fully embrace one and discard the other,” said Briceño. “By reflecting both worlds and creating a new space, those who feel they must discard a part of themselves can belong by trading isolation for acceptance, inclusion, appreciation, and empowerment.”

A St. Louis resident, Briceño has also been selected as the RCA Artist-in-Residence for 2023, working from a temporary studio during his seven-week-long stay in Rockport. While in residence, he will lead workshops for RCA members and at Rockport-Fulton High School, and participate in studio tours, meeting with patrons and discussing his artistic process and vision. Since 2012, RCA has invited one artist each year to take part in the program, a unique undertaking made possible through the generosity of an anonymous donor.

“Briceño’s collages and paintings are so full of life and energy,” said Elena Rodriguez, curator of exhibitions for Rockport Center for the Arts. “I am excited to see how he will translate the South Texas experience in his work.”

In addition to painting, Briceño remains very invested in the traditions of collage, allowing him to combine society’s scraps of discarded material with his own personal history to create a new environment, one that celebrates who he is, and by extension, his subjects.

“My work examines both my struggle with identity and shows how I came to be the person I am today. Yo soy Nicaragüense. Yo soy Estadounidense. It is my own personal histories and experiences that are the ingredients that create the guisado that is my artwork, and by focusing on those who are marginalized and forgotten, I hopefully create for them another seat at the table.”

Briceño graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 2017 from the San Francisco Art Institute, and a Master of Fine Arts in 2022 from the Sam Fox School of Design and Visual Art. He won the Ann Metzger National Biennial in 2019, was a finalist for the AXA Art Prize in 2021, and has been featured in numerous national and regional publications including All the Art, Friend of the Artist, New American Paintings, St. Louis Magazine, and Design St. Louis.