news:

:: I have a feature, My Life with Paper, in the next issue of UPPERCASE magazine, a lovely publication out of Canada.

:: I will be part of a panel/talk on New Mexico Women Artists, as part of Mexico Showcase/Women and Creativity, 516 ARTS, Albuquerque, NM, on March 17.

:: This spring, my artwork will appear on the sets of 2 NBC shows: Smash and Best Friends Forever.

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a brief bio:

I was born in Santa Fe, New Mexico. I grew up on a dirt road and collected rocks and other natural objects. I spoke sign language before I spoke with my mouth. Later, I played music, went on exchange to Israel, and learned to bake very well.

Currently I live and work in Albuquerque. I love my dog Henry (madly!), and spend much time outdoors, and at flea markets and antique shops.

I make art, design, edit, and develop web sites. I have a BA from the University of New Mexico, and did extensive study and practice in printmaking and book arts at UNM (under the wonderful guidance of Lydia Madrid).

I have shown my work in a number and variety of exhibitions and venues including The 2nd National Book and Paper Arts Biennial at Columbia College Center for Book and Paper Arts in Chicago, Tributaries and Unraveling Tradition at 516 ARTS in Albuquerque, and Biennial Southwest '08 at the Albuquerque Museum of Art and History. My work can be seen in the books Cutting Edges: Contemporary Collage (Gestalten, 2011) and CUT and PASTE, 21st Century Collage (Laurence King Publishers, 2011).

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about my work:

Generally speaking, my work is primarily composed of and/or inspired by vintage, salvaged, and collected materials. I enjoy the process (I am very much process oriented) of finding materials and the possibility of re-purposing them: reinventing use, intention, or aesthetic, and the transformation into something dissimilar or unexpected.

Much of my work frequently consists of layered surfaces: bits and pieces from discarded books and magazines, handwritten letters and receipts, obsolete reference material, thrift store textiles, and mysterious random pieces. Order, association, and reverence emerges from the sorting, arranging, and placement of each accumulated piece into a whole.

I am obsessed with natural and organic processes. My recent work is an exploration of physiological processes, and a reimagining/reframing of the process of cell mutations in the human body that cause disease, anomaly, and dramatic/overt change.

c 2012 valerie roybal, contact