All images: Ignacio Rivera, from the “Lupita” series, 2016

Lupita

Ignacio Rivera’s Lupita uses the medium of photography to record the life of Lupita Olivia, an alter ego through which the artist explores cultural difference and gender identity. “As I am walking through the path of self-discovery,” says Rivera, “I am learning to be more vulnerable, more open-minded, and more understanding. I’m learning to be confident as a woman and as an individual who is surviving within the gender-binary system.” These images reveal the evolution of a gender-fluid individual navigating the intersection between private life and public space.

ARTIST BIO:
Ignacio Rivera Jr. (b. 1989) was raised in the sunny hills of East Los Angeles and is now a photo-based artist that resides in the Southwest suburbs of Atlanta. He received his BFA in Studio Arts with a concentration in Photography. His work has been featured in the Georgia State Research Conference and also in recent ART PAPERS publications and auctions. Ignacio’s work confronts the issues of identity crisis within himself and the world-at-large, whether it’s his abstract self-portraits in urban spaces or his journey through gender-fluidity breaking the barriers and redefining the norms. Ignacio is currently working on new content for the Lupita Project and it is set to be released this coming fall.