Alejandro Rizzo Nervo
Photography, 2019. Practicing Artist
During Nuit Rose, my work was vandalized. It made my work more valid by having it responded to it in this way - I felt like this was a sign that I am doing the right thing in my work.
Why did you choose to attend OCAD U?
To explore my creative practice. There is more access in Canada than in Venezuela in terms of creative freedom and technology.
Please briefly describe your current job/practice.
I am currently working on a series of images that reflect Venezuelan heritage and comment on the social-political and economic issues that have been taking place for the past 20+ years.
How did you get started in your career?
My work began as an attempt of expressing different traumas and situations that I grew up in. This pushed me into this political frame of mind. The OCAD U Career Launcher program has helped with the exposure of my works. The Artscape Youngplace Career Launcher Group Show helped people know my works. My position as a Collections Assistant through the iArts Career Launcher helped me to get experience as an archivist, in preservation and art collection. As a team of 3: one Junior Collections Manager/Auctions Coordinator and two Collections Assistants, we were able to curate an auction and produce the publication for it. I’m very grateful for the opportunity to have work experience in my field right after graduation.
Another Career Launcher I participated in was Nuit Rose. I’ve been able to exhibit work in professional spaces and that has led to incredible conversations. During Nuit Rose, my work was vandalized. Because my work is political, it garners many negative reactions, but this is the first time that my work was vandalized. In the end, I saw this as beneficial to my practice. It made my work more valid by having people responding to it in this way. It also validated why I create. I felt like this was a sign that I am doing the right thing in try work.
What were your policies regarding internships, volunteering, and paid work?
I believe that having at least one volunteer experience will be beneficial for practice and professional development as this will change the way you perceive situations. Internships are great because they are a gateway to show your talent and skills. Paid work is very rewarding. It is the most rewarding experience to be able to get paid to do the thing you love. You can then invest the money you make into improving your skills.
What do you enjoy most about your work? What is the most challenging aspect of your work?
I enjoy the process of making, specifically collage and masking through the use of perspectives, angles, colours. I enjoy having the ability to create a scene that never existed or transform an experience into a visual explanation.
The most challenging aspect is that the themes I explore are a foreign topic to Canada. This means that the work I create has to be explicit enough for the right crowd to understand it. It’s also important to keep in mind that you can’t make art for everyone.
What skills or relationships developed at OCAD U helped you participate in your field? Is there anything you would have done differently?
I have found it very beneficial to connect with folks and do more networking through the OCAD U Talent Network. I found out about most student benefits in my last year of school and I wished I had seen this out sooner. I also wish that I was more present at gallery openings. Academically, - I did everything I wanted to do at OCAD.
What are the key responsibilities you maintain for your practice?
Intense research. Cleanliness. I require a clean working environment. While working, I wear gloves, especially when printing. I have to be incredibly organized to maintain my process of collage as each work involves over 100 small images that go into it.
What are your personal and professional goals for the coming years?
I am interested in continuing my studies at York University in the hybrid MBA/MFA program. I would like to continue working in the Arts in education, as a programming, or in arts administration. I would also like to work on more collections, preservation and dealing with fragile works of art. Eventually, I want to be a professor and teach classes like Techniques of a Camera, Photoshop, Art History, etc.
