Violeta Chouciño is a cook and visual artist who has an interest in tortillas. She organised a cooking workshop 'The 5 tortillas my grandma gave birth to' in april and on the 11th of May she will host a 'Boskeuken' during Vruchtbare Grond. On the menu? A Spanish tortilla dish!
We asked Violeta a few questions :
Where are you from and how does that affect your work?
I'm from Galiza, a nation without a state currently in Spanish territory, and my heritage and roots inspire most of my ideas to create. Identity is a big topic in my work and I like to theme my projects in relation to what is going on back home.
What’s your background?
I studied fine arts in a very conceptual art school (Pontevedra) that aligned with my interests and point of view, so I have a very conceptual approach to art. I like to say that my specialty is photography but I do a bunch of other things too (screenprint, installation, cooking, blabbering...). I'm currently finishing the Visual Arts Master in Sint Lucas Antwerpen.
How has your style changed over time?
I would say as my gaze and technical skills developed I also learned to embrace the light absurdity that lies in my work, I became more ambitious and less scared to play with different art mediums. If I could describe my current style in 3 words it would be political, contrasted and humorous. I personally think art style is not that much about developing your work in a certain way but learning how who you are is present in your work and therefore using it in your favor.
Do your other interests influence your art?
Obviously yes, I like cooking but mostly eating and that clearly influenced my latest work. I think in general it is quite hard to set limits between my interests, my personal life and my work are very much intertwined and I myself often can't tell them apart.