José Lara Menéndez mainly works in painting, drawing, and digital illustration. Their practice contemplates on anxieties and longings stemming from their thoughts on gender and queerness. They weave together humour, eeriness and a sense of urgency and they visually juxtapose socio-cultural references, fantastical elements, domestic objects, and liminal spaces. The figures in these scenes are often depicted in moments of introspection,which is shown through the contrasting and exaggerated expressions of the figures. These elements to reveal Menéndez's thoughts regarding their environmental and social limitations defined by capitalism. It is their attempt at grasping the dissonance of alienation from productivity culture, and the "hurry sickness" created by capitalism, colliding with the artists' trans, autistic and mixed Central American identities. Through their visual language, they aim to affirm the possibility of carving out space for ourselves to exist and think differently, even in the face of adversity. Their practice is driven by a desire to recognize the universality of their struggles and transcending the systems that aim to divide.
José Lara Menéndez (he/they) is a visual figurative artist with a BFA from Concordia University 2022. They currently work and reside in Tiotàh:ke/Montreal. In 2022, Menéndez was awarded a Research and Creation grant from the Canada Council for the Arts to investigate animation and projection mapping, and participated in the Art Volt Mentorship program. Menéndez has exhibited at Hoy gallery, FOFA Gallery, Afternoon Projects, amongst other galleries across Montreal and Canada.
