MARCH 7, 2019
Meet Rafael Montilla LOCAL STORIES
Today we’d like to introduce you to Rafael Montilla. Rafael, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today? “I always knew that I would dedicate myself to art.” The visual artist reveals here the origin and purpose of his artistic work, which he assumes as an expression of his spirituality and his interest in science. “Since I was very young, I have given great importance to two aspects that have defined my life: my inner search and my art. Thanks to my constant need to delve into myself, I have had the fortune to travel the world and be enriched by different cultures”, this is how visual artist Rafael Montilla explains the origin of his being and his making. He assures that his existence has developed around the search for oneself and artistic creation. I have not always had the time to dedicate myself to art, but I have followed the teachings of my oil painting mentor, Lucio Rivas, who used to tell me:” If you do not have time to create the works, you should develop them in your mind. The day will come when you could execute them.” When did you know that you really wanted to be an artist? I always knew that I would dedicate myself to art. My girlfriend at that time – the nineties – also had the desire to do it since she, like me, was passionate about art. When we got married, we decided to focus on her artistic training. Odalys Valdivieso is nowadays a great conceptual artist. When we got divorced, I decided to retake my dream of becoming a visual artist and traced a ten-year plan that would allow me to create the work I am now proposing. My strategy was, first of all, to get myself known while developing my proposal. I am convinced that