1910 south blvd, suite 130
Charlotte, NC 28203
704.334.7302
tony hernandez
tony hernandez was born in atlanta in 1964 and has been painting professionally since 1988. while he is a southern artist, his works are far from the region. his subject matter delves into the lives of children of the holocaust, as well as those who struggled through the great depression, especially in the ghettos of the bronx where his grandparents lived. he is haunted by photographs of these children, often being consumed by the images until he puts pigment to canvas. hernandez conveys the worlds that children create for themselves when they feel powerless by the fallacies of adults. with effervescence and symbolism, his paintings of preadolescent children wrestle with two themes: powerlessness and imagination. this tango creates a realm where the "mind of wonder" is tangible.
"the painting starts with an emotion, then translating ideas to drawings using a personal visual vocabulary and symbolism developed over the last 38 years. i look through hundreds of images on subjects i am working on, from drawings on the walls of auschwitz to the kabbalah. i’m always haunted by photographs of children who perished in the holocaust. children during the great depression, especially in the bronx where my great grandparents moved at that time and the lower east side were my great grandfather had a grocery store.
i paint symbols (children) for emotional connection to deliver a definable psychological impact without a conceptual agenda. a symbolism to give viewers entry into a world of transcendence from historical travesties. resulting in a large measure of despair and abandonment.
creating a moment of haunting beauty frozen in time with no before or after.“