Cascarónes: Paintings and
Site-Specific Installation by Bobby Marines

How do significant experiences warp one’s perspective of the world and the way they interact with it? What are the lasting effects of poverty, drug/cartel culture, domestic violence, and divorce on a person’s emotional coping skills and relationships? Do experiences affect one’s moral compass? These are just a few of the questions that serve as points of departure for Bobby Marines.

The work in Cascarónes is an exploration of the lasting effects trauma has on the psyche. The references are family photographs, personal images from social media, and memory of context. Symbolism is prevalent throughout the work. Sometimes in the form of color (yellow for divinity, red for power, green for greed, etc.), other times, in the form of imagery or material (syringes, hearts, crosses, etc.). At times, even the way a medium is applied, or the specific medium used, serves as a tool utilized to convey the reflection at hand.

It begins on a personal level, with people Marines knows as the subjects. However, upon contemplation, it can serve as a catalyst between the audience and their view on how experiences and memories play a role in shaping their own perspective of the world. His hopes are that it may even allow for the viewer to be empathetic and understanding to those who have to navigate these particular realities.

Bobby Marines is an interdisciplinary artist living in Rochester, MN. Since 2010, his methods have evolved from an underground, grassroots approach using found cardboard as canvas to creating monumental pieces while experimenting with various, more polished materials. Being raised in the poverty-stricken community of Robstown, TX, his current work navigates romantic notions of his childhood while simultaneously exploring its realism. In 2015, he was the recipient of an Advancing Artist grant through Southeast Minnesota Arts Council. Alongside several group and solo exhibitions, his work has been featured in local and national publications that include Washington Post, Star Tribune, and Corpus Christi Caller Times. He is currently a board member of C4, a non-profit arts organization based in Rochester and is the founder of Art Blitz, an arts festival that operates in Texas and Minnesota.