illianna Maisonet

illyanna Maisonet, M.F.A.
(916) 470-4407
lsfmuralistal@aol.com
http://www.newsreview.com/sacramento/local/Calendar?oid=312947
http://www.illyanna.com
http://www.myspace.com/siya_nara
http://www.myspace.com/siyaclothing


I am the daughter of activists, migrant workers, struggling artists and musicians. Art has always been my way to escape and cope with the harsh realities that this world dramatically throws upon us. In my 26 years of life I still find inspiration out of destruction and pain and I'm still in search of a way to discount the labels and stereotypes that are placed upon me.

I was a graffiti artist and have always been a muralista. Graffiti is an art form, no matter how bad the conservatives and bourgeois of this country want to ignore the fact. It's the only art that can speak to youth all around the world and the only art they can relate to. It's the last form of political art and free speech that does not need a sanctuary to protect itself from those who disagree with its statement, meaning and point of view. Nor does it need a specific date of the year to exhibit itself amongst its viewers. My work is influenced and possesses the aesthetic of graffiti but it is clearly not graffiti, nor would I want anyone else to categorize it as such. The colours are bright, vibrant, alive and scream to grab your attention. My work is not sugarcoated, just like the attitude that I am burdened with.

I am grateful that I have had the opportunity to interact on a personal level with some of the more renowned muralists and painters of California from an early age, some of whom have had a tremendous impact on their and my communities. Not to mention a colossal impact on the route that I chose to take in life.

There are many who believe that involving community members in a long-term art making process can serve to help that community to reclaim the power to define its collective identity. It's important for me to be involved with my community by organizing, uplifting, educating and terminating gentrification. Helping many to believe art frees the soul and that the youth of America have the desire and need to express their own selves in a nonviolent manner.

Some artists won't label their artwork under a category, nor will I, but I know that it is my mission to create a socialized artistic expression and wipe out bourgeois individualism. By accomplishing the mission of creating a socialized artistic expression, all of these goals can be achieved.

I want to solely focus on what's important and that's building a community of artists that have been oppressed and overlooked way too long in this fish bowl we call..."The City of Trees."