About
Carlos Flores is an interdisciplinary artist, lone-wolf activist, reverse-banditry organizer, and hacker-space maker based in Chicago. His work varies from painting and ceramics to collaborative installations and performances that explore how material methodology and linguistics engender identity. Themes of autofiction, autoconstrucción, queerness, alienation, and celebration are ingrained in his work.
For last two years, he has been investing his efforts in rigging up predatory efforts by real estate investors targeting vulnerable populations in working-class neighborhoods. Currently, he's working on launching a startup—that is both a business and a critical artwork—to take on the growing problem of displacement in Little Village and to fund a community art center.
b. Guadalajara, México
l. Chicago, Illinois
Education
2018 –
Visual Arts Certificate Program, University of Chicago Graham School
2016 –
Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Arts, University of Illinois at Chicago
Work Experience
2018 - Present
Operations Coordinator, Chicago Art Department, Chicago, IL
2016 – 2019
Museum Operations, Adler Planetarium, Chicago, IL
2014 – 2016
Studio Lab Assistant, School of Art and Art History, UIC, Chicago, IL
2013 – 2014
Visual Arts Instructor, Brighton Park Neighborhood Council, Chicago, IL
Residencies / Fellowships
2017 –
Ox-Bow School of Art Fall Residency, Saugatuck, MI
The Center Program; Hyde Park Art Center, Chicago, IL
2016 –
Luminarts Visual Arts Fellow, Chicago, IL
LAUNCH Invitational Residency, Chicago Artists Coalition
Achievements / Awards
2017
Full Scholarship, The Center Program, Hyde Park Art Center
Fall Artists' Residency Stipend Award, Ox-Bow, Saugatuck, MI
2016 – 2017
Education Advisory Group member for the Chicago Artists Coalition
2016 –
UIC Faculty Award for Art, School of Art and Art History, University of Illinois at Chicago
Talent Tuition Award, School of Art and Art History, University of Illinois at Chicago
2015 –
Talent Tuition Award, School of Art and Art History, University of Illinois at Chicago
Exhibitions / Artist Talks
2019 –
Made In the Fab Lab, Link, Polsky Exchange, Chicago IL
Post Practice, Chicago Art Department, Chicago IL
Solo Exhibition *TBD, Chicago Art Department, Chicago IL
2017 –
Front & Center, Hyde Park Art Center, Chicago, IL
2016 –
Project Zero Waste, Hostel Earphoria, Chicago, IL
Villarte, 11th annual Arts Festival, Chicago, IL
Luminarts Visual Arts Competition Exhibition, Union League Club of Chicago
As Little Defined As Anything Else, University of Illinois at Chicago
2014 –
Introspection: Anatomy of the Interior, GBU, Chicago, IL
Curatorial Projects
2016 –
Celebrating Comunidad, Cultura y Familia: Past and Present, Villarte Annual Exhibitions, Chicago, IL
Senior Thesis Exhibition Curatorial Committee, University of Illinois at Chicago
2014 –
Introspection: Anatomy of the Interior, GBU, show co-curator
Bibliography / Mentions
2016 –
As Little Defined As Anything Else, Senior Project Thesis Catalogue, University of Illinois at Chicago
VIVELOHOY: Vida, arte y tradición en La Villita: 11 November 2016. http://www.vivelohoy.com/entretenimiento/8740700/vida-arte-y-tradicion-en-la-villita
La Raza: Adónde ir y qué hacer en Chicago y suburbios : 4 November 2016. http://laraza.com/2016/11/02/adonde-ir-y-que-hacer-en-chicago-y-suburbios-4/