User:Beatrizld

Beatriz E Ledesma (born 1958) is a native of Buenos Aires, Argentina, a self-employed professional magic realist painter, illustrator, educator, and psychotherapist. She was drawn to painting and drawing in her teen years but it was in the 1970s during what is known as “the dirty war” in Argentina, that art became the pivotal force in her daily living, providing her with much needed emotional balance to face the social political reality of her country. It was on the walls of the Instituto de Bellas Artes de Buenos Aires, and the studio of maestro Luis Lopez and Osvaldo Rainoldi that she felt safe, her soul found solace and her spirit could soar. By 1981 she was in exile in USA, settling in Chicago and becoming involved with the local art community. Networking and participating in community art project propelled her artistic career forward and upward. She obtained a masters degree in fine arts and in art therapy from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago (1988), obtaining additional art training from Helen Oh (traditional oil painting), from Carol Dolan (egg tempera painting), and printmaking (etching) under the guidance of Audrey Niffenegger. Her interest in the practical applications of psychoanalysis and art for healing motivated her to obtain a doctoral degree at the Institute for Clinical Social work(2009),focusing on the use of art-making in the clinical treatment of adults. Her extensive exhibition record includes numerous solo and group shows in galleries and museums. A few examples are: Chicago Cultural Center, Edna Manley College (Jamaica), Dittmar Memorial Gallery (Evanston), 33 Contemporary Gallery (Chicago), Women Made Gallery (Chicago), Indianapolis Art Center (IN), Paterson Museum (NJ), Latino Art Museum (CA), Museum of Contemporary Art (CO), Centro Cultural La Recoleta (BA, Argentina), Gallery 79 (Brazil), Centro Colombo Americano (Colombia), Mestizo Gallery (Mexico). Ledesma enjoys working in collaboration with different art expressions and since 1992 she has curated, organized, and participated in several collaborations with dancers, printmakers, ceramists, musicians. such as "Incantation" (1997 @ Links Hall Studio), "Toward Diane Arbus" (1993, Randolph Street Gallery), "Madrid & Chicago" (2004), "Symbolic Visions" (1994), "ARTicipate" (1992). In 2011, she was invited to participate in the First International Art Conference in Kingston, Jamaica by presenting her collaborative work: art- music “Spiritual Resonances" ( www.spiritualresonances.com ) in conjunction with a solo exhibit by the same name.  Her work has been featured and reviewed in numerous publications such as the IMPpress Magazine for Poetry & Art (2011), Quintessential Barrington Magazine (2011), Neoteric Art Online Magazine (2010), Dubois Frontier Newspaper (2010), American Art Collector (2008), and Clave - A journal of Latin American Arts & Culture (2002), and ArtBeat Chicago-Channel 11 (2005) to name just a few. In 2013 she published her first book “Mandalas: A Personal and Visual Journey into Mandala Journaling”, following her passion for the manifestation of the unconscious into symbolic language.  Beatriz's work has received financial support from several art institutions and foundations such as the Illinois Arts Council, The Cove Foundation, Fairfield Savings & Loan, Evanston Art Center, The Chicago Office of Fine Arts, The School of the Art Institute, and Chicago Community Trust Funds.

Ledesma creates art inspired by emotional, spiritual, and social issues.She says about her work: "I am interested in the manifestation of the unconscious which I try to unveil through the art making process. The use of imagery and the act of painting itself function as meditation tapping into mystical realms of my self. She takes a closer look at the emotional impact of displacement in marginalized populations and to examine the symbolic language of indigenous peoples."

Ledesma maintains an art practice at the Chicago Fine Arts Building where her studio is located. Her work can be viewed at www.beatrizledesmastudio.com