Tamara Torres

Tamara Torres’s vision is to produce art that is both a personal expression of her identity as an Afro-Caribbean feminist and a common expression of universal mental striving and trepidation. Her painted mindscapes are non-denominational in conception but have a religiosity within each, a mental cry for sanctuary from any darkness that has surfaced from unwelcome encounters. Her paintings illustrate imaginary worlds the viewer can swim in, generating a continuous sentiment of truth for the viewer whether peaceful or perilous. All of her techniques are in the service of art that is aesthetically and emotionally suffused with a truth that the viewer cannot change. Symbols often seen in Tamara's artwork, such as the cross, remain a steadfast reminder of internal human strength and endurance she carries with her from personal rememberings; an inner strength that has helped Torres move forward through surroundings that were remote, uncaring. The "shadowman" in her art, in turn represents those we may move beyond in life but never leave in spirit. They collectively represent individuals unseen in our day-to-day lives, but who remain a presence within us, bearing witness to past adversity, trauma, attacks on the spirit, fears, and injustices that we have survived. We all harbor shadowmen, hidden in plain sight. The shadowman is a regular presence in Tamara's emotional abstract mindscapes, finding light amidst darkness as does the viewer.

Tamara Torres says "Abstraction has always been a way to use my voice when words have escaped me. Using a specific color palette that connects with my emotions and creating collages has helped me create these conversations with imaginary worlds that have light in them and change perspectives. As a child or adult, when you are surrounded with harsh circumstances and changing perspectives, finding light is for me the only way to move forward positively. Music is important to me and my art. I listen to all sorts of music, from classical to hip hop. The surrounding creative output, art, music and poetry has always fueled my thoughts. Absorbing all this, I create from a place of truth, not worried if it makes sense initially. I want to rattle the cultural cages of my heritage through my conception for art, breaking stereotypes and unspoken taboos about Afro-Carribean LatinX women and the spaces we belong, the ways we are simplistically portrayed in mass media, which serves to confine us.”

Tamara Torres is an interdisciplinary Afro-Caribbean feminist artist, community activist, and mother based in Trenton, New Jersey. Torre's artistic work is varied and presented in multiple mediums such as collaged narrative, “mindscape” abstract paintings, and performance. Her artistic practice knits together advocacy for women's rights, racial equity, and her own autobiographical experience. Producing vigorous conceptual paintings, Tamara has exhibited her art in New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, London, Edinburgh and Rome. In March 2022, she was selected to be an art ambassador for the 2022 International Women's Day Art Connects Women – International Exhibition in Dubai, United Arab Emirates