Emmy-Winning Venezuelan Artist Jorge Torrealba Showcases Surreal Works In Union City

Editor’s note: Interviews for this story were conducted in Spanish and translated to English.

Jorge Torrealba, an Emmy-award-winning Venezuelan artist, is no stranger to large-scale ideas. 

Bringing an artistic palette that draws on pop art and a near-saturated command of color, Torrealba builds creative scenes that verge on the surreal, with the heart of “El Niño” or “Kid” grounded in his artwork.

Torrealba’s work was on full display at a solo exhibition called “Dimensions,” which took place on Friday evening at the William V. Musto Cultural Center in Union City.

From an early age, Torrealba turned walls into canvases, sketching wherever he could. It was his aunt who first encouraged him to paint when he was around seven years old. His drawings, inspired by his early memories in Punto Fijo, located on the southwestern coast of the Paraguana Peninsula, is “something I come back to, I see art as a way of finding solutions to everyday problems,” he told New Jersey Urban News.

“El flow (the vibe) of what I do is draw out moments in my life where I present those experiences in a way that connects my inner child with my surrounding reality.” 

One timeline he recalled growing up in Venezuela was being surrounded by red-wing grasshoppers known as Cheveve Grasshopper, which can reach a wingspan of 10 inches, an insect he says drew out an artistic sculpture displayed as part of his “Dimensions Collection,” a line of his creative pieces.

Jorreaga blends in New York City monuments such as the Vessel with a roachlike cartoon display of how he perceives the 150-foot-tall honeycomb-shaped sculpture located in the Hudson Yards neighborhood of Manhattan, calling it the “Vesseroach” as the title of his painting.

In elementary school, Torrealba filled the margins of his notebooks with portraits of classmates and teachers. As a child, he was “fascinated by faces,” he said. He studied their subtle differences, then reimagined them in his art with magnified features, reshaping facial outlines through the lens of youthful curiosity.

“When I draw people, I tap into my inner child, and that is what gives life to a lot of the sculptures I work on,” he told New Jersey Urban News.

In 2o15, he traveled to the U.S. to take part in the International Society of Caricature Artists (ISCA) convention in Sandusky, Ohio, which was his first time appearing at the world’s largest caricature event. 

He returned the following year, this time to Arizona, where he would make a pivotal decision to move to Miami, FL., due to Venezuela’s political and economic crisis. “Things were becoming complicated in Venezuela. I talk to my parents every day because they are still there, but it has not been the same since.”

Arriving with little more than his craft, he began drawing caricatures in local restaurants for tips, making his way up the creative ladder into Miami’s art scene.

His work continued to gain recognition, including honors from ISCA: “Most Innovative Technique” in 2019, second place for “Exceptional 3D Technique” that same year, and first place for “Exceptional Technique” in 2020. 

That same year, he received an Emmy award for the New York International Film documentary, “Hay que intentarlo” or “You have to go for it,” which showcased his journey as an immigrant artist navigating through challenges, while also cultivating his threads of inspiration.

Back in 2021, he first appeared at the gallery during a June showcase of Venezuelan artists, where he introduced “Migrant Odyssey,” a monumental painting that symbolized the struggles of immigration. One of his paintings shows the Statue of Liberty holding a phone, while families are seen on a path of flowers in the apple-like treehouses–Torrealba says it is meant to reflect the immigrant’s journey coming to this country and “starting a new life here.”

“Sometimes people come to this country with a dream or talent and they end up forgetting it,” said Miguel Londoño, a photographer originally born in Cali, Colombia spoke to New Jersey Urban News in an interview, who moved to the U.S. in 2014.

He met Jorge Torrealba at a Latino influencers event called Más Latinos. “It was one of those things that just clicked for us as creatives in this space,” he added.

With over 11 years of experience as a videographer and photographer, he noted the contrast between art demand in Latin America and the U.S., urging people to experience art in person amid the rise of artificial intelligence in new works. 

“It is just not the same reality we once lived in, now with A.I., the world of artists, writers, creatives, and journalists simply changed,” he said. “People need to be reminded of the value tangible human art has compared to what A.I. can bring…we need to be vigilant.”

“I could see how the immigrant story manifested in his artwork, he draws out people and the message of unity, while drawing in the audience with everyday things as immigrants we go through,” said Ino Martel, an attendee of Martel’s solo exhibition, who moved from Havana, Cuba, 46 years ago. “Seeing this artwork reminded me of how important it is to have the freedom of expression.”