Ya Mero (Almost there)

Ya Mero (Almost there) is a declaration of imminent arrival. Los Angeles-based artist Karla Diaz has made work about her life for over twenty years. Through painting, drawing, and performance, she documents life’s tragedies and triumphs, calling upon her own lived experiences and the stories of friends, family, and community. Her works evoke a sense of dream-like recollection, giving form to ephemeral emotions and remembrance.

 In-betweenness can be understood as both a state of being and a conceptual place. For those who navigate multiple cultures, groups, or identities, feeling a sense of belonging in any one place can often seem impossible. And yet, the possibility of passage and movement is always on the horizon. Hybridity and shapeshifting are second nature to anyone inhabiting liminal space. Diaz not only embodies this through her own lived experiences but endeavors to illustrate the intangible borders of this third space or temporal realm. Her works recall the hazy moments shortly before opening your eyes- a memory just out of reach.

Diaz uses vibrant washes of color in portraits and scenes layered with meaning. Her subjects shift from her family to herself or imaginary strangers, rendering all with simplified forms obscured through semi-transparent tones. The veils of color serve as proxies for emotion, suggesting the feelings and desires that may tint our own worldview. The artist has struggled with insomnia and grief, experiences well-known to many. And yet, the notion of “I’m almost there” is inherently optimistic, forecasting the protagonist’s appearance at an unknown destination. With anticipation, we await.

- Mia Lopez