Movement Gestures

Akin to a dance accompanied by the sound of a well-loved piano

Juan A. Franco Ricardo. Untitled, 2022. Collage on Paper. [This chaotic arrangement of color, movement, and form may evoke a sense of speed, choreography and/or dizziness. Central on the composition is a vertical, rectangular block of dashing light and colors akin to a camera holding its aperture opening on a screaming crowd. Hanging from the top of this rectangle, paper and fabric carefully hang from a horizontal black bar. At the bottom of the rectangle, an almost-plinth pretends to hold the composition together.

Ramblings

It’s been a few years and too much has happened. Like the work above, the chaos of movement spins the body and soul in infinite directions. Yet, New York feels like home after three years of its energetic embrace. If anything, the city has instilled that I am not shy, rather I thrive in creative social situations — a dinner full of queers talking about experimental theatre on the Hudson River waterfront or an exhibition reception where reggaeton plays loudly in a rooftop near Central Park. There is a slow reveal happening that dangles from above. These figures, these dancers, dressed in shimmering white, muted brown, map blue and curtain red. In this gaggle, I feel at peace awaiting what’s to come, a lesson from a past self:

                                      I would want to feel confident
                                                    in choosing love, not simply
                                                    falling in
                                                                                              it 

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Studio

Juan A. Franco Ricardo. Sunrise (Collage for SRP 017), 2024. [A rich yellow sun-like background holds the shape on a wide arch. In its beam like structure, a black tassle creates a dark shadow against its surface. Below a cut-up bird-of-prey wing is displayed atop a cement plinth with four connections minus one that is severed. The sun rises with and without glory.]

Collaboration fosters creative and productive challenges. Luckily, I have the opportunity to create album artwork for my dear friend for their music moniker ciénaga and their series SMART RIDER PRINCIPLES. This process has yielded lovely results in invoking music into visual language through collage, scanning, drawing and digital design. While music has been integral throughout my practice, in the past few years, I have become more attuned to how music is made, developed basic djing skills and have connected with sound deeply. I hope 2025 brings more opportunities to collaborate with other artists across media, that would be a sweet idea.

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Scraps