We recently had the chance to connect with Juan Salcedo and have shared our conversation below.
Juan, it’s always a pleasure to learn from you and your journey. Let’s start with a bit of a warmup: What are you chasing, and what would happen if you stopped?
For the past 5 years of my life I’ve been chasing freedom. I have this intense desire to escape and disrupt the status quo that’s been instilled in me throughout my childhood. The freedom I’m referring to is far more than physically or financially, it’s in my life as a whole. Freedom in the fullest expression of the word, and most importantly: creatively. I can’t stop and don’t plan on doing so ever in my life. The moment I stop creating is the moment I die.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Deemed “The Picasso of Gen Z,” by Univision’s Despierta América, Juan Salcedo, known professionally as Salcedo, is a twenty year-old multi-faceted artist, whose talents span diverse creative mediums, such as visual art, fashion design, and poetry. His works aim to reflect the boundless creativity and refracted perspectives of society’s youth. His goal is not to attain so-called “perfection,” or to work inside of the established notion of aesthetics. Instead, it is to demonstrate how he sees world, encapsulating all of the beauty and wretchedness within it.
“Outcast” is a term far too familiar to Salcedo. Growing up as an only child, of Colombian descent, inherently came with many differences to what everyone else seemed to be living throughout his childhood. Imposed limitations and hindered experiences served the same purpose cocoons seem to do for caterpillars. The struggle and desire to escape has crafted the beauty that is the diverse perspectives and ambiguity Salcedo portrays within his artistry. Years of observation, analysis, and day-dreaming, of unknown experiences were the key to enabling his unique vision and ability to create. He is the epitome of strategic risk-taking and self belief.
Salcedo is characterized by what seems to be an innate fire and sense of rebellion that can be seen by many, through his passion and dedication towards his career as an artist. Confidence and integrity are sometimes misinterpreted as arrogance and egotism, but they are the keys to his success. Completely self-taught, and fully immersed within his “autodidact life,” he has attracted the attention of names like Lil Yachty and Olaolu Slawn, amongst an abundance of celebrity names and art collectors across the world, including companies like Puma and Shoe Palace, who have sought out exclusive commissions from the artist. At his young age, he has worked alongside galleries such as Aura Copeland Gallery, Colour Senses Project, and White’s Art Gallery, as well as garnered recognition from prestigious media outlets such as, Art E$tate Magazine, El Tiempo, W radio, and El Espectador. His work has also crossed the barriers of his preferred medium and been shown on the textiles of pieces by womenswear designer Yas Gonzalez during Miami Fashion Week.
The concept of failure is nonexistent in his mind. In his own words, “you can’t fear outcomes you don’t accept as possibilities—and me personally, I don’t give a f**k to risk my entire existence on success. I rather die trying to live than live wondering what it’s like to die without doing so.” The artist is currently based out of Miami where he continues to produce innovative work that consistently drives him up to be amongst today’s top emerging artists.
Okay, so here’s a deep one: What did you believe about yourself as a child that you no longer believe?
I grew up thinking I was mediocre or bad at everything besides school. Video games, sports, even art. I don’t know why, but I vividly remember saying that I wasn’t creative to other kids. Now that I think about it, I think I was just bad at listening to instructions; if I was told to draw something specific I would always feel lost, not knowing what colors to use or ideas to incorporate. In hindsight, I see that it was an over abundance of ideas, I just didn’t know where to start and wasn’t able to just do what ever I wanted to. I think “coloring inside the lines” literally and metaphorically, has never been my thing. I stopped making clothes because it felt like everyone was doing the same and to succeed you had to follow a set formula. I started making art because it’s me and a canvas. Nobody is in between the two and so far, I’ve achieved everything I have by being stubborn.
What did suffering teach you that success never could?
Failure and suffering to me come more often than most would think. Mostly, it’s internal. Battling with depression, anxiety, and overthinking about the future, but within this, I think lies something incredibly critical to our success which is the art of strategically acting on impulses. Some of the most stressful moments of my life have come immediately after my greatest achievements. The question is always the same, “Now What?” The mind starts to spiral and fear is always the highest. At a point which always feels like an all time low, a faint light at the end of the tunnel appears and it’s the birth of a new idea. I’ve gone through this cycle and actually made an analysis that’s similar to what everyone says about life. “There will always highs and lows.” In life, your achievements are like mountains. To climb them you have to place your feet strategically, all while aiming at one single peak. Once you’re there and the moment fades, you get pushed off and fall to the bottom of that enormous pile of motivation, passion, and proudness. Finally, when you’re at the bottom, all you can think about is how to climb onto another mountain, a bigger one, and stay at the top for just a little longer. That’s the life I’ve chosen to live, not the one of the climber that chooses to stroll over hills or use a safety harness.
Next, maybe we can discuss some of your foundational philosophies and views? What do you believe is true but cannot prove?
I think the correct approach to life is the exact same as when you’re told you have one chance to do something. Think about a scenario where you could only go on one date with the person you have a crush on, take an exam with only one attempt, or spend one last day with a loved one. We would all try our best to meticulously achieve every single little detail open to possibility, in that one instance. We get to try and experience life once, yet most people from a young age try to guide themselves with a map that’s been written by others who maybe haven’t even done the things that align with our own individual potential or dreams. I try to guide my life by thinking what I would consider, fun, worthy, and necessary to do and achieve, when examining my life moments away from when it ends. This idea is something I could only aim to prove, because all of our paths in life are incredibly different with countless variables, so in that case it’s just the theory of my life.
Okay, we’ve made it essentially to the end. One last question before you go. What is the story you hope people tell about you when you’re gone?
A story about a bright little kid that had all the right tools to choose a normal path, yet chose the one of self belief and pushed all of the boundaries he wanted to; Ultimately leading him to his own sense of personal success and achievement that was driven by the desire to take care of those he loved, including himself, to the fullest extent. I do what I do to make the most out of this one life I’ll live, but if I had to think of those that stay after i’m gone I’d like them to remember me by my work and by the emotional intention behind all the destruction and creation I did throughout my life.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://salcedo.studio/
- Instagram: @salcedostudio
Image Credits
Valentina Alban-Paz
