Pedro Troncoso,b. 1996 La Romana, Dominican Republic.

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Regardless of art being passively present as a kid, I ended up studying aviation. While dealing with this stereotypical decision, my honesty, intuition, and spontaneity from childhood were deteriorating. Since I quit aviation and moved to the U.S, my work questions cultural roles, stereotypes, and identity uncertainties. I explore in a fantasy world fused with realism whatever remains of us as we “grow up” and adapt to society. Incorporating the only toy remaining in adulthood: imagination.

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Mainly from childhood memories, the stories take place in oil/acrylic paintings with either self- portraiture or imagined alter egos. I usually place them in dark intimate interior spaces, where ironically, we mentally deal with the external real-world anxieties such as acceptance, gender, ethnicity, and self-image. Spontaneously juxtaposing contradictory scenarios through a realism that might morph into nonsense, reminds me that our identity is distorted and threatened by social standards as we age. Almost pushing us to wear artificial masks in order to fit within ‘the norm’ and expectations. Which repeatedly makes me wonder: what does it even mean to be my real self at this point?