Meet Marisa DeLuca | Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Marisa DeLuca and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Marisa, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
I have been a lifelong creative. As a kid I played piano, violin, guitar, bass, drums, harmonica, and sang. I danced ballet. And I always made visual art. But growing up I often heard that creative careers were a crapshoot. I was told it was better to get a “secure” job. When I had my first child at age 20, I quickly got a full-time office job that I absolutely hated. I worked Customer Service for over a decade and it was soul-sucking. A series of life-changing events brought me to a decision point where I could keep trudging this endless road of office jobs or go to school and pursue what I loved. I took the risk and jumped into art school. There I was exposed to the promise of a life’s career in the arts. I met professional artists and creatives who made this work their living, and that convinced me that an artistic career was possible. I started following around these professionals, people who I saw were successful in the arts. They were making work, offering creative services to the public, and enjoying full and satisfying home lives. They lived comfortably doing what they loved and I wanted that too.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I am a post-contemporary artist working in painting, drawing, and photography. My practice examines intersections between time, memory, impermanence, and critical theory. I come from a background of community engagement through nonprofit service in the arts sector. I am founder and President of the nonprofit Artists in Solidarity, an artist collective that raises funds for migrant families through charity art auctions. I am a San Diego native based in Oceanside, California and I received my BA in Visual Arts (Studio) from UC San Diego in 2021. I am currently pursuing her MFA at San Diego State University’s School of Art + Design.

To get to this point, I overcame homelessness, incarceration, substance use disorder, domestic and sexual violence. Of course overcoming these challenges wasn’t easy. It’s really been a life-long process. I was able to get the help I needed to move forward in my life, and I want to encourage others that they can do the same. I was hopeless, but getting help gave me hope. There are resources available.

When it comes to my creative work centered in Oceanside, it’s very much based in first-person experience of community. I am a low-income single mother of three. I speak about, for, and to this community as someone who has lived it – not an outsider critiquing living standards. My work is a tender meditation on my love for my city.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I’d take them to the Purple Church but it’s gone now.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
This is a time-sensitive and specific shout-out. I want to thank the Oceanside Public Library for allowing me to realize my vision on this recent body of work. This work is a reverent meditation on the disappearing spaces in my home, Oceanside, CA. Originally in response to increasing gentrification in the region, these paintings have developed into an investigation of my personal feelings around home, impermanence, and remembrance. An urgency to preserve that which is being lost, while paying homage to the spirits of Oceanside that fade into homogeneity, is the driving force behind this work. This exhibition is the culmination of a three-year artistic project that was intended to be shown in the community it honors. As a realization of this vision, I have chosen to show the work in its entirety at the social center of the city – the library.

My solo exhibition, “Part & Parcel”, is opening at the Oceanside Public Library 4/1. I’m holding an opening reception and artist talk on 4/8/23 at 5:30pm at the Civic Center Branch. Work will be exhibited 4/1 to 5/12 at the Civic Center Branch (330 N Coast Hwy, Oceanside, CA 92054) and from 5/12 to 6/23 at the Mission Branch (3861 Mission Ave, Oceanside, CA 92058).

The following weekend, on 4/15/23 from 10:00am to 2:00pm, I will be participating in Graduate Open Studios with much of the MFA cohort at SDSU’s School of Art + Design. This is an opportunity to get an inside look at my working process and a glimpse of the new body of work I’m forming. I will be doing live painting during the event. This will also give you a chance to see what other A+D Artists are up to in SDSU’s MFA program.

If you are in the San Diego area in April 2023, please stop by and see what I’m up to.

Website: https://marisadeluca.com/

Instagram: marisadelucastudio

Other: https://artistsinsolidarity.com/