ABOUT​

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"The ideas of semiotics and the study of symbols greatly inspired me, and spending years studying Taino, Yoruba, African and Asian aesthetics I found the sense of immediacy in the work. There is simple language in each, that conveys much deeper meaning." 

​​​​            Creating an art that encourages co-existence devoid of controversy

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​Born in North Carolina and raised in the New York area Jose started drawing at the age of six. Deemed a gifted student at an early age he would copy the works of DaVinci, Van Gogh and Cezzane to "find the secrets of painting".

Before finishing high school, he attended college drawing, painting and design classes at City Colleges throughout the Metro New York area through a gifted student program. and later attended The School of Visual Arts where he studied illustration and design with Richard Amsel.

In the 1970s, 80s and 90s he supported himself primarily through logo design creating and constructing bizarre interiors for the underground clubs such as Paradise Garage, The Loft, Kon Tiki, The Palladium, Mudd Club, Tiers Three, Roxy (1018) and Docks Disco in Manhattan, Brooklyn the Bronx New York and Newark New Jersey.

In the1970s and 80s lower Manhattan was a breeding ground of creativity. There was a movement to create a new visual language. It was there he met and worked alongside Kieth Haring where Jose was introduced to semiotics and the idea of creating an "immediate language". This had an immense impact on the way he looked at and created art. Almost daily interactions with Fred Braithewaite (Fab 5 Freddy) Angel Ortiz (L.A. II) added to conversations about the purpose of art.

The underground club scene was a sanctuary for creativity. The idea of a truly public art at the heart of the graffiti movement coupled with ideas of a "new wave" generation nourished Jose's work taking him outside traditional norms of painting refuting the trendy Pop and Commercial Gallery Art scene which led to a refusal to engage in the monetization of the corporate gallery culture.

By late 1990s the AIDS epidemic and heroin addiction ravaged the city and the loss of dozens of friends in the artistic community and throughout the "club scene" gave reason for Jose to essentially stop working.

     When his mother was diagnosed with cancer in 1995, he moved to Cleveland Ohio. The different environment brought about a new sense of the natural world and sparked a need to embark on serious academic study. He decided to return to school and study both Art History and Studio Art at Cleveland State University. He studied under Ken Nevadomi, George Mauersberger, Marvin Jones and Robert Thurmer. He started intensive study with Art Historians Dr. Kathy Curnow, Dr. Jan VanderMullen, Dr. John Hunter and Dr. David Garrif. The combined influence and teaching of these eight would move his work in new directions.While there he experimented and exhibited works on a very limited basis.

After the death of his mother to cancer Jose decided to return to New York and there along the walls of the Manhattan cityscape was proof that the movement to create a truly public art was still alive. It would be another few years before Jose would seriously pick up a pen. 

​​ In 2013 - 14, while working with Elise Som Design Studios, He experimented with furniture design. Now                      his drawings for custom furniture are sought by designers and clients for their ease of line and sensuous originality.

His personal works had not been shown publicly since 1999 and since 2018 has now been featured in private showings throughout the New York area.

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