Natalia Almonte
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Natalia Almonte was born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico. She holds both an MFA in Fine Arts from Parsons and an MA in Art History and the Art Market: Modern and Contemporary Art from Christie’s Education. While at Christie’s, Almonte received the Alumni Association Award for Contemporary Art Connoisseurship. The artist's solo, collaborative and group work has been exhibited in multiple galleries from Smack Mellon in NYC to Área: Lugar de Proyectos in Puerto Rico. This past February she was the artist-in-residence at the Spruce Residency in PA.
In 2018, Almonte co-founded the collective Paradoxluxe which began as a multimedia video collaboration that developed into a curatorial team currently organizing the second and third iterations of the traveling exhibition, WE ARE HERE TO SERVE YOU. The first show opened at the Aronson Galleries on 5th Avenue in February 2020. The project investigates the intangible similarities between Greece and Puerto Rico through the lens of two entities in debt, but not indebted to, imperial powers that already control their economies.
Almonte is interested in the emotional anatomy of the Puerto Rican and coined the term “melancolonia” to describe how colonialism infiltrates the body and psyche to the extent that you don’t understand when it controls you. “Chronic Islandism”, another term coined by the artist, addresses the cyclical exploitation and neglect masked by changing circumstances since the foundational motivations for maintaining colonial grips are the same. Through experimental audiovisual poetics, text, installation, and works on paper, Almonte reflects on the lack of trust in record-keeping that validates the consideration of the subjective testimonial as truth, since fact and fiction are blurred even through “official” standards. Although this all sounds devoid of hope, a chronic state of dissonance is actually a space of infinite possibilities.
 United Kingdom London I'm originally from Hong Kong. Having lived in multiple countries from a young age, I have come across people from all walks of life. These experiences, both good and bad, have influenced her culturally and personally. My work revolves around travel, diasporas, and the human condition. I combine my... |
 United Kingdom London Several weeks before the lockdown we had hiked up the Old Man of Storr on the Isle of Skye, to capture the sunrise. It was a very cold Feb morning we had left the car park in the dark when we reached the old man. Having taken shots of the Old man I turned around and this shot was directly behind me.... |
 United States of America Pawtucket As an emphasis was put on making your own protective mask at home during the pandemic, I began sewing fabric breasts into a protective helmet or shield. Once completed, I decided to push the concept further by making a protective body suit. In isolation, I used myself as a model. I began exploring t... |
 Germany Waldenbuch Blue chair figure study, from the series Alex and the blue chair, exploring body form and light in the interplay between a female model (Alex) and a shabby blue chair
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 China - Hong Kong / Macau Hong Kong The idea of Unpeeling started with one of the artist’s grandma’s after dinner habits - peeling oranges and share them with her family. The act of peeling oranges symbolizes sharing, connecting and healing. Peeling the orange reveal the vulnerable center, and metaphorically this action exposes the ar... |
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