Zachary Ochoa: Manifest Destiny

Steve Turner is pleased to present Manifest Destiny, a solo exhibition by Zachary Ochoa which features recent paintings that conflate the artist’s lived experiences as an Afro-Latinx queer person with the escapades of cartoon characters such as Popeye, Donald Duck and Tweety Bird. According to the artist, “I use the imagery of American cartoons to address the disappearing American Dream and the rise of teen suicide and depression. The characters are stand-ins for me, both psychologically and physically as they also bear my scars and tattoos. They embody darkness and violence, but they are also funny and playful. They enable me to find inner peace and power amidst a constant onslaught of ghetto aggressions.”