Jose Palacios: Opening Closed Doors
Palacios, Jose. Untitled. 2020, Digital painting.
"I wanted to share it I guess and that’s why I started the Instagram account. At first, I started it anonymously so nobody knew who I was. I put it out there. Added a few friends that are part of the art scene. People just kind of liked it. I felt like it was a good reaction, and I just kept doing it. I was making 4 or 5 drawings a day. I got really into it almost like music… When I first got into music, I would play guitar for 5 or 6 hours a day, and practice and practice, and I kind of just... found that same joy in doing that with visual artwork." -Jose Palacios
I had the chance to meet the man behind the Instagram account, artist, musician, and DJ, Jose Palacios. In early January, I sat down at my desk to meet with him over zoom on a particularly sunny winter afternoon. I was greeted with a warm smile from a guy with dark rimmed glasses and long curly brown hair parted to the side. A couple of shiny turntables sparkled on his desk in the background.
I had heard about an interesting technique that Jose uses to arrange his digital paintings and drawings, applying his knowledge of music production techniques to “mix” or arrange his abstract art. I was excited to find out more about his series of work shared on @opencloseddoors as I have been a fan for a while.
Jose has been sharing work on Instagram every couple of days for several years. He uses an iPad to make digital works, and colored pencils, gouache, acrylic, and oil paints for his works on paper. His images play with line, shape, space and color: the formal elements of painting itself.
Palacios, Jose. Untitled. 2020, Digital painting.
This is an untitled digital painting posted on Sept 22 2020. A carefully placed thin white line dips and darts around the surface, loosely connecting a group of floating colorful forms. The forms are made with several different paint brushes and pens, varying in sizes and levels of translucency. There is space left between each of the forms, they stand in a semi-circle formation around the middle section. The freehand creative brushstrokes and carefully placed warm and cool vibrant colors hovering in the floating forms create a sense of excitement and ambiguity. In the middle of the floating forms, we see some black, chunky, lines blending and melding with swatches of pastel toned digital oil paint. Upon closer inspection, the middle form appears to be made up of a group of brushstrokes that have been duplicated twice using a clone tool and then edited, and merged into the piece. The overall use of blush and teal toned colors in the background and within some of the forms, creates a peaceful and calm vibe throughout the otherwise lively piece.
Jose’s first foray into visual art was when he started doing a bit of graphic design and photography in the early 2000’s, making posters for events, concerts and DJ sets. His long time passion has always been music. At age 13, he began learning guitar and writing songs. His main goal at that age was to put out records. He’s been successful in the local music industry as one of the founding members of the indie rock group, My Dad Vs. Yours, which released three albums from 2003-2012.
Jose is also known for spinning at local events as DJ Sweet Cheeks. He and his friend DJ Hobo founded "Kitchen Party,” a monthly dance party that has been popular with Ottawa's pub and club lovers for many years. He has actively contributed to Ottawa's DJ scene for more than a decade.
Palacios, Jose. Untitled. 2021, Digital painting.
He explained how creating poster designs for events and casually drawing on the notepad app on his iPhone inspired him to pursue his artistic practice further:
"In terms of opencloseddoors and the art that I'm making now... That started around 2016/2017 so fairly recent. My girlfriend has an arts background and she was using "Notes" on the iPhone to draw and do little illustrations and stuff... and so, I started using that to make posters... but I was like, “oh, this is kind of fun.” I started making illustrations and digital drawings, and she saw it and was really encouraging me, and she just thought it was cool. That feedback immediately was like "Oh ok," and I just kept doing it for a few months. I really liked the limit of Notes... right? Cause it’s just... a couple of tools, a couple of pencils to draw lines, duplicate, copy and paste kinda thing... And then I kinda just took it really far... Hahaha."
Jose started his Instagram account @opencloseddoors as a way of sharing his drawings anonymously at first. The first 20 or so images shared on @opencloseddoors are black line drawings on white backgrounds in simple compositions. The style of his work has changed over time, and Jose has gradually found himself making 4-5 drawings a day and sharing work as often as every other day. Some of his drawings and paintings are more colorful and complex, while others have a minimalist design. He continues to make use of formal basic elements of art-making like shape, color, and line. His use of layering and visual texture adds depth and illusion of space to his works. This is what he had to say about the visible change of style in the works he posted online over time:
"That kind of happened on its own. I wasn’t thinking about it, I was just kind of posting it as I was learning. For some of them I didn’t think of them as completed works... I just got used to sharing them. And I definitely thought about each phase... Like, OK I have been doing this, what's my goal, I don’t just want to share things. It wasn’t really about creating a social brand or anything like that. It was more about the feedback... Knowing what people react to, and that’s kind of interesting.
... I think I've got into the habit of like working and whatever was coming out I would go with it. So, if I had an idea of something I wanted to do, I would just do it, and sometimes that would just be it. And then a lot of times I would just find my way through a piece. I was just kind of being curious. Also, Notes doesn't give you a lot of options - I upgraded to different software after, but at first it was just Notes."
Palacios, Jose. Untitled. 2020, Digital painting.
Jose uses his knowledge of music production techniques to arrange his abstract works. I asked about how he does this, and where he got the idea from. His explanation goes as follows:
"Once you would go into a studio or have access to a studio the way you record, tape, and edit sound files... The process is like... recording a bunch of tracks... For guitar, for drums, for any type of idea. Then the mixing process is where you are EQ-ing the sound levels of everything but also deciding what you want to leave out, how loud that piece of music or instrument is gonna be, and whether you will completely take it out, or whether you can add effect to it.
You can do a lot in that mixing stage and it’s a very creative phase. When I was making visual art it just kind of clicked in my head. Once I started doing it, I realized what I was doing, and once I made that connection, it opened up a whole new faster way of working, because ... I can just do a lot. Especially with digital, it's very quick and you can add a lot of layers or ideas but you can also very easily erase or select a section and copy it and manipulate it... And that’s kind of how music works in the recording process.
Also, for DJs... DJ-ing is about sampling, right? Sampling a piece of sound or a song, and then taking that and making something completely new...
So essentially, I would think of it as... I've done a bunch of lines and illustrations... So, I would just kind of take a piece... Take that and put it into another piece... So just using that kind of mindset. I'm pretty sure other artists arrive at that point and visualize working that way through another path but that’s how I got there."
Palacios, Jose. Untitled. 2020, Digital painting.
I was wondering how Jose orchestrates the colors he uses in his works. He mentioned that working digitally is a good way to experiment with new color combinations.
"With digital its cool because you have a lot of ability to easily erase -you can try things, a lot easier and faster... Rather than with paint, where if you commit to a color you’ve got to keep going with it, you can add more once it dries... but it’s a slower process. They both have their ways of getting to an interesting result. But digital definitely helps you try different ways of adding color, and seeing which colors work together really well.
I also started creating a color palette, because on those programs, they do come with a generic selection of primary colors that go off a little bit... But you can create your own colors and save them... I created a library of colors that I like and different color patterns so I can just select from there. So that helped actually - creating a color library."
When asked how he feels about using social media as a platform to share his work, Jose replied:
"It's a great tool if you are starting out as an artist as a hobby or something you want to take seriously. It’s a good way to connect with people... If you want to share your work and sell your work, it's possible to do it. You are sort of bypassing the middle person of the gallery. It's very D.I.Y, sort of like music, or how when in the early 2000s the internet allowed bands to just make music at home and put it on the internet and sell it, the record label became a little bit obsolete. A lot of artists see the potential of reaching their audience and connecting with them. I still think galleries are important, but those are the advantages of sharing the work digitally."
Palacios, Jose. Capitulation. 2020, Acrylic gouache on paper, 22 x 30 inches.
Jose’s solo exhibition titled “Open Closed Doors / Radical Joy Project” was held at The Manx, a local arts pub and restaurant located on Elgin street, in January to February of 2019. The show included 12 pieces of 24x36 inch framed gouache paintings on paper and was curated by Ottawa artist Marisa Gallemit.
In July of this year, the City of Ottawa selected one of Jose’s acrylic gouache paintings to add to their permanent collection. It was featured in the recent “2020/21: Hindsight: 2020 Additions to the City of Ottawa Art Collection,” a group exhibition at City Hall Art Gallery, from December 2020 - February 2021. Two of Jose’s acrylic gouache paintings, “A False Dilemma” and “Take a Peek at your Centre,” were featured at the Ottawa Art Gallery’s commercial gallery, Gallerie Annexe, in 2020. Jose’s work has also been shown in group exhibitions at the local venues Bluebird Coffee and Cinqhole in 2019, both of which have unfortunately been forced to close this year due to the COVID-19 lockdown.
This past summer Jose was awarded a grant by the Canada Council for the Arts, a funding initiative for artists making work by digital means during the pandemic. Being awarded this grant allowed him to keep making work during a difficult period in his life.
“I just basically pitched what I was already doing. I was already making art through a digital means. I told them I was only going to do 5. Up to that point I was focusing more on painting, but then my mom was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer and passed away in September... And so, I just didn’t have time to work in a studio setting with paint. Now I use an iPad, and I just use that to make the pieces. It was also a way to escape too, because those 3 months were really intense. So, I just kind of used that as a way to produce ... I ended up making almost 100 pieces.”
Palacios, Jose. Untitled. 2020, Digital painting.
I asked Jose if he would name some artists and musicians that he finds inspiring. Jose brings up Jean Michel Basquiat, and Nirvana and explains why they are close to his heart:
"I really connected to Basquiat, not just his work but his life was really interesting. And that sort of connects to my first influence with music, why I got into music, the first band I really connected with was Nirvana... that was a long time ago... I just liked their politics. What they represented was change. They were changing the course of music, they were anti-racist, they had feminist points of view... just really refreshing things, and they were really vocal about it and they kind of drew a line with their audience and I thought that was really powerful. With Basquiat, his life is kind of similar to Kurt Cobain's, especially with their struggle with fame and stuff. I connected with Basquiat's work because he spoke the same languages as I do. He spoke English, French, and Spanish, which I also do. So, when I saw Spanish words written in his artwork... The first connection was he wrote “Arroz con Pollo” which means rice with chicken... a dish in South America that is slightly different in every country. It's kind of rare that I make a connection with my background within popular culture, so that really drew me into his work. Same with Nirvana; I think that’s what really got me into it. I mean, I love all kinds of music... But I was thinking about that a couple of months ago, where some of my politics came from, and I think that’s where it started, connecting with that. Seeing a musician say, “that’s wrong, this is racist and misogynistic,” it was very new and refreshing and it makes you feel safe going to events, like ok, this person feels this way and there might be a lot of people here who connect with that also. I like connecting that way with art.”
During the early stages of the first lockdown last spring, Palacios Dj’d for “Together Apart Dance Party,” a virtual dance party that lifted spirits during a confusing and dark time. He explained to me that it was Rémi – the owner of House of Common, a local media production organization, that was the catalyst for the idea.
“When the first lockdown happened, he [Rémi] approached my friend Arturo and I, Arturo does the back end of things, he works for the company that provides the server, so it was kinda done outside of Facebook live or Zoom... So, it was a more private community space. We also wanted other people to join in but it wasn’t super easy to access... I can’t remember if it was him or all of us that chose the name. He was the catalyst; the one who wanted it to happen... Yeah, it was fun connecting, especially at first, because no one really knew what was happening and there was a lot of anxiety around being outside. We didn’t know how contagious it was... people were very freaked out about going out to places... It felt very isolating, it still does, but we kind of got used to it and learned more about what was happening. It was a good way to connect to people like right away... People have adjusted but some haven't. It’s a really intense time ... I just hope people are taking care of themselves physically and mentally.”
Palacios, Jose. Opened. 2021, Acrylic gouache on paper, 11 x 14 inches.
COVID-19 cases continue to rise in Ontario. On Dec 26th 2020, our province entered a second provincial lockdown. On Jan 14th 2021, a provincial “Stay-at-Home Order” was put into effect to try to prevent further spread of the virus.
Just days before I met with Jose for our Zoom call, a dark event took place in Washington, D.C. On January 6th, a violent group of far right, mostly white insurgents stormed the Capitol Hill building in an attempt to prevent the defeat of Donald Trump in the 2020 election. Some extremist groups that were involved in the attack include QAnon, conspiracy theorists, The Proud Boys, and NSC-131 among others. Jose made a comment about the insurgence on Capitol Hill:
“I feel there's a lot of people who have gotten into the deep conspiracy stuff too... and I just hope people are taking care, and are able to surround themselves with people who don’t shame them but help give them a little window out. It’s kind of dangerous I find, just sort of connecting all those people who stormed the capital a couple days ago. Just believing into this fake news and basically conspiracies. Some people are deep into it ... it’s a time when we are very isolated and disconnected from people, and this can cause a lot of paranoia. Things are very easily distorted. I just hope people are okay and able to reach out. “
The issue of radicalization and extremism is widespread in the U.S and Canada. Social media and social isolation due to the COVID-19 pandemic have been deemed major factors in increasing the spread of radicalization and mobilization of these movements. This is an issue that should be addressed seriously by our government, as some radicalized white supremacists are known to commit acts of terrorism, hate crimes, and violence against racial and cultural minorities and marginalized groups. It can be harmful to shame people with extreme and untrue beliefs, as it can cause them to dig their heels in the ground and stand firmer in them, or look for an online community that will accept them. Some people will never choose to deradicalize, however it is important that we remember people can choose to change their minds and offer them options to do so.
Palacios, Jose. Untitled. 2020, Digital painting.
With the interview coming to a close, I asked Jose if he has any upcoming exhibitions in the near future. He said that next, he plans on selling the smaller works on paper that he made from January to July of last year. He’s unsure on if he will have a socially distanced opening, or sell them over social media. He mentioned looking forward to studying new ways of intentionally using color and learning more about art history in general, as well as doing more paintings.
We say our goodbyes and I close my laptop, and suddenly I’m hit with a burst of serotonin. There’s something special about connecting with an artist who you admire. It feels like their art comes to life once you have a bit of a deeper understanding of the person behind the images. Jose’s freedom and confidence as an artist is admirable. I thoroughly enjoy looking through his large, impressive, body of work on Instagram, even if it is only on a tiny phone screen. There is a selection of prints of his work available for purchase on the House of Common website. I’m looking forward to seeing what he creates next, and going to one of his sets at the bar someday when we have all been vaccinated and can dance together again safely.
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