The canvases of artist Tessa Mendoza are large and textured. Raised portions hint at a passion for the medium or the subject matter. When she paints, she likes using old brushes, painting spatulas and even her hands; she literally leaves her handprints on everything she makes and touches.

 

“People who really know me know that I’m a very passionate person. I only stop working on a piece when I can sit in front of it and calmly ask myself what I can do to improve it, and the answer is nothing more,” she told Inquirer Lifestyle last week.

 

At her first solo exhibit which ended yesterday, the Writers Bar in Raffles Makati was lined with easels bearing 30 of her works composed of portraits, landscapes and abstracts, many of them recent works she made only this year. Mendoza, however, started painting almost 20 years ago. She was part of the joint exhibit “Nuances” in 1987 with artist Marivic Rufino.

 

Self-taught

 

She considers herself a self-taught artist, remembering how her elementary school teachers suggested to her mother that she be enrolled in art classes during the summer. “Although I am grateful for the early recognition, a part of me thinks that this enthusiasm may have had more to do with their growing concern that my notebooks contained more doodles and caricatures than numbers and essays.”

 

It was only as an adult in 1986 that she started painting seriously. “In 1987 I was one of two artists in a joint exhibit. In 1988 I got married and my artistic career took a backseat to my growing family,” Mendoza says in the notes that accompany Gracia, her recently concluded exhibit.

 

When her four children grew older and became more independent, she rediscovered her passion for putting brush to canvas. “In 2007 the artist in me awakened. I decided to pick up from where I left off and began painting again.” She chose to title the exhibit “Gracia” because it literally means “unmerited favor,” something that is given for the sheer pleasure of the giver. “I was given a second chance,” she says.

 

Mendoza enrolled in several art classes under established Canadian and British artists. While living abroad with her family, she was an elected member of the Societe des Artistes Canadiens (SCA), an active member of the Federation of Canadian Artists (FCA), and a member of the North Vancouver Community Arts Council (NVCAC).

 

Impressionist, expressionist

 

Instead of limiting herself to watercolors which she initially dabbled in, Mendoza began working with acrylic paints and other media. The results of her endeavors were on display for five days at the Raffles Hotel.

 

“I would describe my style as a combination of Impressionist and Expressionist; Realism is not me. I gravitate toward iconic-looking figures.” Her commissioned portraits of women have an almost mythical quality about them. Raised patches and squares of gold paint further reference religious iconography.

 

Mendoza says she is subconsciously drawn to texture as she considers it “a manifestation” of passion. “As an artist, my goal is to continue discovering, communing, appreciating, and creating the conversation of art.”