ARTIST STATEMENT
Inspired by everything around me, my paintings and prints reflect my emotions, my experiences, and my beliefs and the way that I interpret them. The theme in most of my work deal with issues that we as people experience, the way we question ourselves, and the burdens we carry. I use different mediums to recreate my pictures, such as acrylic and gouache on canvas because the colors are so vibrant. I also like to work with chalk and oil pastels not only for how vibrant they are but because I can use my fingers to mold every detail like the way a sculptor sculpts. While I still love my other mediums, I have recently fallen in love with Linocut printmaking. I love art and like food for the body I need art to feed my soul. Expressing myself through my art helps me deal with my disability by pouring my pain into my work, takes my mind off of my illnesses and the chaos they create in my life. I love the process of creating linocut prints and how distinctively raw each print comes out.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Mildred Annani Mercado started painting with an old box of oil pastels that her father was going to throw out; she asked if she could have them and never stopped. She is Puerto Rican, born and raised on the south side of Chicago. Annani is a mixed media Artist, Beekeeper, spoken word Poet, and was a Chef for 26 years. After 12 years of being misdiagnosed and treated for Arthritis, she was properly diagnosed in 2018 with Fibromyalgia and Crohn’s Disease. As with most women, she promised herself to not lose herself once she started a family, but life happened and eventually, she took a step away from her art for a little more than 10 years. She went back to school and earned a bachelor’s degree in Psychology. She began
backyard beekeeping and realized that like food for the body, she needed art to feed her soul!
Expressing herself through art helps Annani deal with her disability, this and beekeeping take her mind off the chaos that her illness has created in her life. She believes in showing her children that there are healthier ways to release pain and deal with mental health issues. Inspired by everything around her, her art reflects her experiences, emotions, and beliefs; this is how she interprets them. The themes in her artwork deal with ourselves, and the burdens we carry. She works with acrylics, gouache, oil pastels and Lino-cut printmaking; loving the process and how distinctively raw each print comes out.
© Mildred Annani Mercado