Deja Belardo is a multi-media painter and muralist from St. Croix, V.I. Using acrylic paint for its vibrancy and collage as a metaphor for bringing people together, their work challenges perception and subjectivity. Along with color theory, their artistic practice is shaped by a political science background, and challenges the way people connect, especially at cross sections of intersectional identity.

Notable exhibitions include, "Intersectional Wonder Woman", which benefitted survivors of domestic violence, as well "Pride thru Art", for the first ever LGBTQIA+ Pride held in St. Croix, V.I. They completed the Queer Art Walls at Henrietta Hudson, the longest running Lesbian centric queer bar in NYC with a portrait of Stormé DeLarverie, a drag king and performer who played an instrumental role in the Stonewall Rebellion.

Growing up in the U.S Virgin Islands, a current colonial holding of the United States has influenced the use of vibrant colors and understanding for challenging sociopolitical conditions. I flatten the image by using a dark background that is pushed to the forefront of the image along with the subject. This allows the subject to become one with the feeling created by intense color and text placed in the background. My art practice reconstructs both images and ideas presented in my daily life to aesthetically simplify the subject while using color to enhance dimensions of human emotion and awareness. By isolating select details, the control of color and form allows me to interpret complex ideas and translate them in my paintings, to give access to a wide variety of viewers. Social, political, and environmental factors are incorporated in to my work. My work uses familiar and often simple images with a depth of color to invite the viewer to connect with my sentiment and to reflect on their own by creating visual narratives about people who have often been erased from the art historical canon. I want to create images that expand beyond visual stimulation. By learning more about my subjects and their experiences, I hope to learn more about myself, as well create a shared experience between the artist, subject, and viewer.

Media

Showtime’s “The L Word: Generation Q” Season 2, Episode 6
- 4 paintings featured

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Selected Group Exhibitions

2022

Wildflowers in the Concrete Jungle, Pace Gallery, August, New York, NY

Revolution is Not a One Time Act, Fort Frederik, June, Frederiksted, V.I

Expressions of Freedom, Cane Roots Art Gallery, June, Christiansted, V.I

Last Bodega in Brooklyn, March, Brooklyn, NY

Intersections, Art on the Ave NYC, December 2021-March 2022, New York, NY

2021

Atmospheres, Pace Gallery, July, New York, NY

Pride Thru Art, Caribbean Museum Center for the Arts, June, Frederiksted, V.I

2019

Westside Exposure, Westbeth Gallery, July, New York, NY

Pride Thru Art, Caribbean Museum Center for the Arts, June, Frederiksted, V.I

2018

Westside Exposure, Westbeth Gallery, July, New York, NY

Intersectional Wonder Woman, The Hof Garden, May, Richmond, VA

2017

Pride Thru Art, Caribbean Museum Center for the Arts, 2017, Frederiksted, V.I

Art Thursday, Maufe Gallery, May, Christiansted, V.I

2016

States of Existence, Parse Gallery, June, New Orleans, LA

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Murals

Anxiety 8 & 9 (When the music hits, you feel no pain)- Levels, June 2020- Christiansted, V.I
Sunset in Paradise- Cloud 9 Ultra Lounge, July 2020- Christiansted, V.I
Drag King- Queer Art Walls at Henrietta Hudson, September 2019- New York, NY
- Tribute to Stonewall Veteran Storme Delarverie
Blue Wall Project, February 2017- Frederiksted, V.I
- Mural for the centennial transfer of the Virgin Islands to the U.S
Crucian Christmas Festival Mural- Governor's Stand, December 2016- Frederiksted, V.I

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Bibliography

Experience

Curatorial Assistant, The Shed, NYC, August 2022- current
Sales Assistant- Pace Gallery, NYC, November 2020- August 2022
Museum Professionals Seminar- Studio Museum in Harlem, October 2020-January 2021
Gallery Assistant- Whitney Museum of American Art, February 2017- November 2020
Art Teacher- Exploring Our Island Summer Camp, June-August 2017- Christiansted, V.I
Juror for the Student Congressional Art Show, May 2017- Frederiksted, V.I

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Education

Loyola University New Orleans- BA Political Science, December 2015- New Orleans, LA
- Loyola University Merit Scholarship, Judge Warren A. Young Scholarship
- Black Student Union, Untitled Art Club, SAFE Zone- Executive Board
- Member, Student Advocates for Gender Equality- Executive Board Member
LaGuardia Community College- AA Humanities, July 2018-New York, NY