Stretched Ink and Coffee Wash Painting of Surrealist Scene 'Memory Breakage' Item ID: 2671770543

"I was born and raised in El Salvador. A few years ago, my father was ill and seeing him this way made me rethink a lot of things about life. We had the opportunity to get ahead in life and that experience gave me a great lesson about what really matters and it was more than clear that I should set goals and fight for them.

"I appreciate each moment I've spent with my family. I've had some wonderful moments every day. I always try to see the funny side of all my experiences, which is something I learned from my father. I still remember when I was young and I was in a restaurant with my family looking at a menu. I turned to my mother to ask, 'What is coffeeortea?' My parents responded with laughter, 'Jorge! Coffee or tea!'

"When I was in college, I became interested in art. Eventually, I majored in art and started exploring engraving inks and airbrushing. A few years later, I learned I couldn't keep using these materials because they were hazardous to my health. One day in a cafe, I started to use the coffee I was drinking to sketch on a piece of paper. During that time, I filled several notebooks with spontaneous drawings, some only in ink and others washed with coffee. In 2009 or 2010, I started to seriously explore this medium. I loved it because I can do it at any moment, in any cafe or coffee shop.

"I learned how both coffee and hibiscus tea could be used as watercolors. As an exercise, I spent years making at least two 'caffeine paintings' a day, which is what I call my works.

"I teach drawing and painting. I share the process of painting with coffee and hibiscus tea, and teach my students to create these works. I like to show them my notebooks, since there are changes in tones depending on the types of coffee and the places where they're prepared. In many of my drawings, I note in which cafes I drew them.

"What I most like about my work is coffee's versatility. I can use it as a watercolor in sepia and I can keep refining the image with ink to get more realism. The most challenging part is depicting a dynamic atmosphere full of light and volume since I love the sensation of these works.

"This art motivates me and I want to keep traveling and making art. I want to continue spending time with my family and would like to one day open up a cafe with a mural with all of the packaging I've collected from the coffees I've tasted.

"I hope to contribute something to the people who can see what I make. I try to add positive messages in my works and raise awareness. We live in a world that's already too chaotic."