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 If someone asks me directly, “What does this piece mean?” My response is often: “I don’t know. What does it mean to you?” - Luis Rodriguez 

I have been accused of having limited emotional real estate. However, I do have a rich inner world that I am attempting to share via my work. And it is work; painting, sculpting, and the like, does not come easy to me. Each piece is often a push beyond my technical abilities. 

And I am often dumbfounded by, and in awe of, the apparent ease my contemporaries demonstrate in the execution of their works.

To clarify, I have no problem communicating as I am often verbose. However, I do have trouble articulating how I feel. 

So non-verbal communication, in this case attempts at artistic expression, are the only ways I find solace (however fleeting). 

Therefore, “art” has become a necessary therapeutic tool in helping to navigate the world around me. 

- LR

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Luis is a local historian, media specialist, eco tour guide, and pizza delivery guy. Born in Puerto Rico, he grew up in Brooklyn, New York (In the Hasidic area - whereby, as a child, Luis often wondered if he was Jewish himself.). At a young age, his family moved to Florida. Luis was excited and fantasized that he would not even have to attend school!  Perhaps he would linger about the beach with Tropic Ana in the front yard, and hang out with Mickey in the backyard. He was gravely disappointed for it was Ocala they had moved to, a city smack dab in the center of the state. Ocala had no beaches, but plenty of citrus fields, horse farms, and its share of denizens who cast a skeptical eye at a northerner from New York. Later, Luis would reflect on his feelings of disconnectedness; He was never able to really speak Spanish, knew little of his personal heritage, and was constantly reminded by his peers that he was an outsider. 

But at least he could draw… (Although, strangely, he failed drawing class TWICE in college.)

Much later, after a stint of being an aimless roustabout, while attending film school in Melbourne, Florida, Luis became enamored with the works of Frida Kahlo and Francis Bacon and decided to teach himself how to paint. It was far more difficult than he had anticipated. He longed to portray the raw human emotion present in their respective works, but was wildly unsuccessful. Luckily, He was also exposed to the works of Pieter Bruegel and realized that perhaps a more nuanced approach could be taken. Luis probed for his own voice. And the search, thus far, has been rewarding in its own way.

His main subject in his art currently (which is sometimes peppered with historical and/or literary references) would probably be best described by the word "melancholy."

The subjects of his paintings often have the look of longing on their faces.  

They appear both nostalgic for a fading past, and pensive about a future that always seems just out of reach.

So, in sharing his work, Luis hopes to both provide a glimpse into his inner world, 

and perhaps help the viewer reflect back wistfully on their own "inner" life as well.