Chica Chicano: Florencia Guillen
By Interview by Selma Stern
Chica Chicano
I met Florencia Guillen in London at the Royal British Society of Sculptors, where she works as an advisor to Britain?s most celebrated sculptors. Needless to say, I was impressed: Guillen?s fluency in four languages (she studied media and communication in Mexico), her artistic academic past (diplomas from both Palazzo Spinelli in Florence, Italy, and London?s glamorous Goldsmiths College), the intellectual content of her art works (Guillen specializes in Chicano Art practice and theory) and her modesty obtained. With several successful video, film and new media art shows in London, Guillen is presently involved in the project Chucho y la Campeona with the recently opened Toilet Gallery. She will be showing La Campeona del Color, a video lasting approximately four minutes, Styles and Dreams, a drawing installation, and Chuchu y su Mona, a video of approximately 7 minutes that will be projected onto a wall.
Selma Stern: How did your studies at Goldsmiths College influence your art?
Florencia Guillen: Goldsmiths changed my approach towards art radically. I did a joined degree in fine art and art history, which encourages the students to contextualize their practice theoretically. The course is great, although it gets tricky to be able to produce work without getting wrapped up in theories that are parallel to your practice but not at the essence of it.
SS: And the city of London?
FG: More than London, what influenced my work was living in a city that has so many cultural layers and parallel realities, and this I think is a characteristic of most big cities in the world. In such a big city one can find bits and pieces of other places due to the [large immigrant] populations. London would not be as interesting to me without the immigrants it welcomes (most of the time). I might also say that my work would have been shaped in different ways if I were living in another city or in a smaller town. I guess it is all about my relationship with my reality that contextualizes my practice.
SS: How did you become involved with the Toilet Gallery and how did the idea of the project arise?
FG: The Toilet Gallery is a registered charity and all the decisions having to do with the selection of artists are made by the five trustees. When the founders opened the gallery they put an advertisement in AN magazine and I sent my proposal in because I am interested in showing my work in alternative spaces such as train stations, markets, shopping centers etc. They selected me and have since then been very helpful and approachable.
