Diego de la Rosa
Diego de la Rosa (b. Caracas, Venezuela) became a Canadian citizen in 2025. Diego graduated from OCAD University in 2015 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in Drawing and Painting. Diego currently works as an assistant painter for the Canadian First Nations artist Kent Monkman.
Diego De la Rosa’s work explores the cultural impact of the social crisis in his native country, and relies on symbolism to explore the ideas and sentiments born from this reality. His process involves the collection of found imagery of people and places from Venezuela that are then rearranged into painted narratives full of imaginative elements, such as giants, theatrical atmosphere, and fantastical characters. The source imagery represents the perceived reality, while the painting tactics embody the values and ideas that are employed to create a reading for these circumstances.
The use of allegory in his paintings provides an artistic translation of social concepts similar to the interpretative approach of an anthropological study. He uses these painted scenarios to illustrate both the cultural notions surrounding the crisis, and critical theories on frustration, resilience, the desire for change and the search for meaning, which he employs to analyze the subject at hand.