S(OBRAS)

ARTIST BIOS 

DAVID HERNAÍZ CONCEPCIÓN was born in 1978 in the Highbridge section of the Bronx. A son of the Puerto Rican diaspora, Hernaíz Concepción’s roots hail from Santurce, Puerto Rico, a rich, creative well in one of the island’s most dynamic urban hubs. Inspired by his Afro-Boricua heritage, spiritual traditions, and the raw, lively terrain of his Bronx community, Hernaíz Concepción’s work reflects a bold and eclectic sensibility.

He transforms urban folktale, sacred allegory, and improvised rhyme into visual and digital art, creating a lush metaphorical tapestry that weaves diverse and complex Afro-Latinx identities. Hernaíz Concepción’s work offers visual narratives of diverse aesthetics and experiences, Traditional, yet experimental in his use of media and space, Hernaíz Concepción’ creates drawings, paintings, and mixed media works, using ink, oil, aerosol paint, cloth,, pigments, paper, canvas, and cement. His fantastic interpretations of faith, history, and human experience elicit the magic of everyday things, inspiring one to appreciate the divine within the mundane.

Hernaíz Concepción studied fine arts in the notable School of Visual Arts, in New York City. His work has been featured in El Centro for Puerto Rican Studies, at Hunter College; Camaradas, El Barrio, Bob’s; and has been featured on The A-list; New York. He’s designed logo work for musical ensembles like Ilu Aye, and has participated in community revitalization efforts including a mural restoration project of “Dos Alas” in East Harlem, NY.

JULIA L. GUTIÉRREZ-RIVERA (Julia Loíza), was weaned as a child on Bomba & Plena as the youngest daughter of Juan Gutiérrez, the founder/director NYC’s vanguard Bomba and Plena ensemble, Los Pleneros de la 21 (LP21). Since childhood, Julia was taught by numerous Bomba and Plena luminaries. Over the years, she’s developed her own style combining both traditional influences and an urban swag, telling a story of complex DiaspoRican identity and experience and pushing the envelope in traditional dance expression. She is now regarded as one of today’s most respected and premiere Bomba & Plena performers, dancers, educators and advocates.

Part of today’s next generation of Latinx Cultural Arts practitioners, Julia bridges her passion for dance, music and culture with community and arts advocacy. Julia has worked in leadership development, organizational sustainability, and community engagement with several cultural groups, arts institutions and peer Bomba and Plena ensembles.

She has been the Program Manager for BomPlenazo since 2014 (a biennial festival celebrating Bomba and Plena from NY and the diaspora); and was responsible for transforming this South Bronx-based festival into a globally viewed digital Festival in the fall of 2020.

A Pregones/PRTT 2019 Step Up Artist in Residence, she created, choreographed and premiered her first solo dance theater piece, I Am Julia, in June 2019 to a sold-out audience; it is being restaged for digital touring in 2021.

This FREE program is made possible, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the City Council, and the New York State Council on the Arts, with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature. Southwest Airlines is the official airline of Pregones/PRTT. For a full list of our funders, visit www.pregonesprtt.org.