BIO
Hedy Torres (b. 1988) was born in Colima, Mexico to a family of seven. She is currently residing in Los Angeles CA.
She moved to the United States in 2006 and obtained a Green Card and General Education Diploma (GED) in 2009.
Torres worked various jobs in order to be able to afford her education, including work as a street vendor and an Uber driver. During her time as a street vendor, Hedy came face-to-face with the harsh reality of this hard and often dangerous occupation. This experience inspired the direction of her artwork to focus on street vendors: the unseen, hardworking and often forgotten people who truly make Los Angeles the multicultural city that we all enjoy.
Various personal experiences also prompted the topic of Hedy’s dissertation thesis –spotlighting the stories of undocumented immigrants in the U.S.
Hedy holds a MA with an emphasis on Painting and Drawing from California State University, Northridge.
Artist's Statement
Hedy Torres’s art pieces focus on spotlighting immigrants and street vendors – populations that have been historically alienated based on prejudices, labels, and stereotypes, people who must be treated with respect and acknowledged for their contribution to the economy, society and culture of the United States.
Soy, De Aquí y Allá (SDAYA) is a body of work that introduces her story as a Mexican immigrant by spotlighting stories of other immigrants predominantly those who work in street vending. These ongoing series of portraits focuses on elevating the stories of the subjects by showing them at work and is accompanied with storytelling components, bringing forward personal details about the subjects and the artist herself. The background of the art pieces serves as diary where Hedy engraves, draws, and carves on fresh paint the stories she gathers from interviews and her own personal experiences. Most of the portraits are created in un-stretched canvas to mimic the easy and light transportation street vendors have with their work materials.
Comida Rapida series is a love letter to Los Angeles, in which Torres strives to immortalize local restaurants and street vendors and evoke sentimental memories in people who live or visit the city. The colorful landscape-style artwork enhances the local establishments and brings out the colorful palette and history of Los Angeles.
CVV
EDUCATION
2018 Master of Arts, Painting, California State University, Northridge. Northridge, CA
2016 Bachelor of Arts, Painting and Drawing, California State University, Northridge. Northridge, CA
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
2018 – Present Senior Housing Coordinator, Brilliant Corners, Los Angeles, CA
2019 – 2022 Art Instructor, Tzedek America, Los Angeles, CA
SOLO EXHIBTIONS
2019 Invisible Hands: Eleven Million. Buena Park’s Fine Arts, Buena Park, CA
2018 Invisible Hands: Eleven Million. TIOH Arts & Culture, Los Angeles, CA
2017 Eleven Million. Sponsored by CSUN Galleries, Matador Credit Union, Art council. CSUN West Gallery, Northridge, CA
DUO EXHIBITION
2022 Formas De Familia: Daniela Garcia, Hedy Torres, Artbug Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2023 35 x 35 Bicentennial. Departamento de Asuntos Culturales, Los A ngeles, CA
2022 El Futuro es Queer Mercado. PRPGMX, Mexico City
2022 All Media 2022. Irvine Fine Art Center, Irvine, CA
2022 Como Frida. Tonalli Studio, East Los Angeles, CA
2022 Begin/ Again. Open Mind Art, Santa Monica, CA
2022 Divina Madre. Tonalli Studio, East Los Angeles, CA
2022 Come Together. Open Gallery, Long Beach, CA
2022 Amor Eterno. Tonalli Studio, East Los Angeles, CA
2022 Intergalactic Open. Shock Boxx, Hermosa Beach, CA
2021 35 x 35 Bicentennial. Departamento de Asuntos Culturales, Los Angeles, CA
2021 All Media 2021. Irvine Fine Art Center, Irvine, CA
2020 Brand 48 Works on Paper. Brand Library Art Galleries, Glendale, CA
2020 Don’t Touch Your Face. Shock Boxx, Hermosa Beach, CA
2020 Paint: Medium as Power in a Time of Crisis. Barret Art Center, Poughkeepsie, NY
2020 The Same Thing Every day. Moorpark College Art Gallery, Moorpark, CA
2019 The 35x35 Self & Identity. Centro Cultural Cinematografico, Los Angeles, CA
2019 Brand 47 Works on Paper. Brand Library Art Galleries, Glendale, CA
2019 Los Angeles Paint Itself. Angel City Brewery, Los Angeles, CA
2019 We Rise 2019. Online Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2019 33rd Annual La Luzapalooza Exhibition. La Luz de Jesus Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2019 LA Open 2019. TAG Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2018 2018 California Open Exhibition. TAG Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2018 Hear Our Voices. Avenue 50 Studio, Los Angeles, CA
2018 2018 CSUN Graduate Exhibition. CSUN Art Galleries, Northridge, CA
PUBLIC ART
2022 Streetscape DTLA: An opportunity to paint a mural outside the US Bank Tower Down Town, Los Angeles. Los Angeles, CA
2017 CSUN We Rice Mural: Spring semester collaboration with classmates working on Mural. Northridge, CA
COLLECTIONS
2021 More People Than You Know, “A Gift to The World.” Metro Art LA, Los Angeles, CA
2018 Working Progress. USU Student Art Collection, CSUN, Northridge, CA.
PUBLICATIONS
Orange County Breeze. (2019). Invisible Hands: Eleven Million by Hedy Torres | Orange County Breeze. [online] Available at: http://www.oc-breeze.com/2019/05/26/139266_invisible-hands-eleven-million-by-hedy-torres/ [Accessed 7 Nov. 2019].
Stories, L. (2019). Meet Hedy Torres - Voyage LA Magazine | LA City Guide. [online] Voyagela.com. Available at: http://voyagela.com/interview/meet-hedy-torres-hedy-torres-invisible-hands-eleven-million-east-la/ [Accessed 7 Nov. 2019].
Arts.tioh.org. (2019). Hedy Torres Invisible Hands: Eleven Million TIOH Arts and Culture. [online] Available at: https://arts.tioh.org/event/hedy-torresinvisible-hands-eleven-million/ [Accessed 7 Nov. 2019].
Martinez, C. (2017). Graduate Student Gives a Voice to Undocumented Students Through Artwork. [online] The Sundial. Available at: https://sundial.csun.edu/112040/arts-entertainment/graduate-student-gives-a-voice-to-undocumented-students-through-artwork/ [Accessed 7 Nov. 2019].
Barajas, J. (2017). Retratos de Resiliencia Destacan las Injusticias de Donald Trump al Revocar DACA | La Opinión. [online] La Opinión. Available at: https://laopinion.com/2018/05/04/retratos-de-resiliencia-destacan-las-injusticias-de-donald-trump-al-revocar-daca/ [Accessed 7 Nov. 2019].