Enrique Hernandez
Enriquito, as most of his friends know him, was born in Havana, Cuba in 1978 but has lived in Calgary for the past 3 years. As an only child, Enrique spent a lot of time alone. At the age of 8 he was drawing comics, later he delved into graffiti and in time collaborated with local friends on art projects. Finding inspiration from local cuban artists to date.
"My art is described as a combination of neo-expressionism and cubism, some even say it's more abstract expressionalism. My paintings are bold and busy, I bring collages of shapes and forms together. I call my style of art 'Selfismo,' taking the English word 'myself' and the same version of the word in Spanish 'yo mismo; and combining it into one word."
At the last count I estimatted having painted over 800 paintings, 1500 drawings and I have given away about 300 works to strangers whom I befriended in public. I am always eager and prolific in finding time to paint, even on public transport I have my pen and sketch pad in hand. I feel it's more integral to keep painting as more inspiration comes as I go. Painting is an addiction for me, I need it, I feed it everyday, and everyday it feeds me!
My artwork can be seen in Calgary, White Rock, and Vancouver Canada as well as in Bangkok, Thailand, Spain, and Cuba. Eventually I would like to see my art in major galleries around the world and have a 3000 sq. ft studio space where I can work on at least 10 pieces simaltaneously, that is my ultimate goal. Fame and riches are not important to me but my dream is to be able to sustain a life where I can look after my son and be a painter too.
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