By Marvella Muro

Pavel Acevedo is Self Help Graphics' first artist in residence under the new program Beyond the Press, initiating in mid-January 2020. He hadn't quite settled in when the pandemic hit, and Self Help Graphics’ doors, as did the world's, closed.  

March 2020 feels like a lifetime ago, and it's no surprise that Pavel, as a prolific artist, is preparing to transform and fill the gallery with a culmination of visually enchanted creatures for his culminating exhibition, The Shell in the Clouds, opening Friday, December 10. The exhibition will remain on view through February 18, 2022.

Although Pavel was not new to the SHG and the building, the residency allowed him to acquaint himself with the space, high ceilings, and odd noises. It placed him at the center of a creative hub and all the motion and movement that comes with it. He opened his studio doors to multiple communities, led demonstrations, and learned much from his time in the serigraph studios, as with students from Mendez High School and SHG youth. Pavel's residency was a reciprocity of ideas, creativity, and growth despite the challenges, and the exhibition will undoubtedly reflect this. 

Marvella: I'll begin with somewhat of a loaded question. Thinking back to the beginning of the residency, the sudden halt, and looking now at the work you have created here, what comes to mind?

Pavel: That it’s been a complex process and has explored more intricate ways to create images than ever before, also working in a studio has connected every work to each other.

Marvella: I have to ask how this global pandemic, the protests, and all the events of these past two years affected your work?

Pavel: The images created in this series of prints are a celebration of the rebelliousness that is part of ourselves. I’ve been part of protests since I lived in Oaxaca and seeing them in the US is inspiring how that energy it’s endless. Protests cross borders and inspire others. 

Marvella: You were familiar with SHG before, and you've worked in the space for about a year. How has the physical space and community influenced your work? 

Pavel: I feel in the right place that allows me to grow as an artist. By creating intricate carving images, it’s a representation of the amount of work and care that happens in SHG to facilitate space for the community and for artists that echoes out of the physical space.

Marvella: You worked on two separate editions with Dewey Tafoya, the Master Printer. Can you talk about your experience in the Serigraph studio? 

Pavel: It was my first time working in a color serigraph and working with Master printer Dewey was a great experience because he broke down the process and made it more enjoyable, also I learned more about the serigraph process.

Marvella: Do you feel the residency allowed you to push or explore new approaches to your work? If yes, how so?

Pavel: Yes, to collaborate with others through the process, take a space of being vulnerable while creating my artwork. Explore the idea of color in my work, being part of a community that values artists.

Marvella: During the residency, you taught virtually at Mendez High School as part of our Creative Lab program and did a collaborative artwork with the Artivists interns. Can you share some highlights?

Pavel: It was a challenge since it was a virtual class with Mendez. I felt sometimes that I couldn’t see much of what was happening in the class through everyone’s devices but after the program finished, I got to see the results and they were outstanding. Everyone took their own time, it was a new way of learning and adapting.

Learn more about the exhibition on our website at www.selfhelpgraphics.com/exhibitions.  Follow Pavel on Instagram @pavel_acevdo and Twitter @redynegro.

Marvella Muro is Self Help Graphics & Art’s Director of Artistic Programs and Education.