We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Lé Dieguê. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with lé below.

Alright, Lé thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear about the things you feel your parents did right and how those things have impacted your career and life.

My parents have always been supportive of my creative practice. At least for the most part. My creative endeavors started when I was a child, doing small oil paintings with my stepfather. My mom always took my brother and me to concerts, storytelling, and role plays at local theaters. Art has always been present in my life; it is influenced by my family, who are also very artistic in many different ways. Later on, I started doing graffiti, and that was definitely not appreciated or accepted. I would always get addressed by my mom about it; she did not like it. I believe she still doesn’t like it to this day, but I always told her that one day I would profit from it. Though I do not blame her, she is just looking out for me. Today, my parents are my biggest fans and are always filled with pride everytime I get to exhibit or paint murals around the world.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Well, I decided to be a painter after I went to an art store and saw racks full of Montana spray paint. Mind you, I am from Venezuela, and in the early 2000’s, when I started doing graffiti, these sprays were hardly found on the street. There was no major distribution in Caracas, so I would only hear about them, but I had never seen them in real life. They were like legendary. So, when I migrated to the US and saw that I could literally come in and hand-pick them, any color, any type, any size I wanted, I said, “I am going to be a painter.” I surely did not know what it meant to be an artist at the time, but just having access to the material, I knew I would find my way to make it work. I am an artist, muralist, poet, and instructor. Even though, as a professional artist, I have my own style and pictorial investigations (style), I usually work with the idea of clients to produce murals/logos/paintings that match their desires. I have learned to adjust their ideas to my style; in this way, we can find a middle ground where the work speaks to both my artistic discourse and their desired ideas.
I consider myself a sensitive man, a person who sees life in a very poetic way. My work encompasses an understanding of color that can be received by the most scientific person as well as by the non-connoisseur. I believe my work is enjoyed by anyone, as I have created a color language that resonates with people of any ideological or religious background. When I get to work with clients for different types of projects, it is very important for me that they know that. I am not only creating something that is beautiful or aesthetically pleasing, but I am also going beyond. I want to create a sense of connectivity; I want them to feel and experience the work more deeply. As an artist, it is very important to me that people realize how beautiful life can be if one opens up their heart to experience life in a more artistic way.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

In 2017, I was living and studying in Campbellsville, a small town in central Kentucky. At that time, things were going well for me. I was in my senior year of my bachelor’s in graphic design, painting murals around my university, and I had a student job in the school’s landscaping department. However, in a moment when I felt I was doing very well, not knowing how to manage my emotions, my tasks, and responsibilities, I suffered a psychotic breakdown that caused me to stop everything I was doing to go to Venezuela to be treated by my neurologist. I had had neurological problems in the past, so my family took this very seriously as we feared this event could have severe consequences in my brain. I fled to Caracas and had to stop my studies for a while. I began a medical treatment that lasted almost 5 years. These years were hard because there was a lot of doubt in me about fully recovering, but I did not give up. I came back to the States that same year (2017), just a few months after I went to Caracas, and completed my last year of school, graduating that December. From there, I just did not stop. I knew I had to bounce back; I had already endured many hardships since I migrated, so I knew I could only move on. Today, I have been off my medications for about 4 years, and gladly, I have not suffered any related issues. This experience helped me to understand myself better, to know my limits, and how important it is for me to rest and manage my feelings.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

Yes, I want to be globally known. I want to take my art to public spaces and create large-scale murals/sculptures that resonate with cities around the world. I am not in a rush; I know that takes time and work, but it is my dream. I want to visit the biggest and most important museums. Specifically, I want to have these large works in my home country, Venezuela.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.lediegue.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ledieguearte/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ledieguearte
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/l%C3%A9-diegu%C3%AA/
• Twitter: @ledieguearte

Image Credits

Pictures taken by: Latino Arts Inc