CYNTHIA LUJÁN
Surrogate of Power
December 2022
Through my daily commutes and travels abroad to other nation states I’ve found public space to influence my artwork in so many ways.
For ten years, I’ve researched objects found in public space that serve as surrogates of power. The object and symbol I’ve obsessively and consistently photographed, subverted, and re-presented has been the traffic cone. While a traffic cone is a quotidian form, it serves as a surrogate of power while at all times powerless.
Opening night of Surrogate of Power.
As a result, my work creates space for grief and processing personal history in relation to public spaces. The conversations bring attention to matters that oftentimes are uncomfortable to discuss, especially in American culture. By identifying the fabric of our social architecture and creating shared spaces that promote safety, accessibility, and inclusion we can [continue to] practice and co create public spaces that do not alienate, that do not isolate, that do not exclude, that do not disengage, that do not foster fear.
In contrast to a traffic cone, we as collective individuals can become surrogates of power that co create a social architecture fostering fulfillment, empathy & belonging.
About Cynthia
Cynthia Luján is an artist working regionally in Southern CA creating murals, paintings, drawings, prints, and photographs. She is an inclusivity, mobility, and safety advocate creating artworks that address accessibility and the way people navigate public and social spaces.
Luján completed her bachelors of fine arts in drawing and painting with a minor in Russian studies from Cal State University of Long Beach and recently received a certificate in arts management from The Paul Merage School of Business at University of California Irvine. Luján learned the value in interdisciplinary exchange while studying at CSULB through study abroad programs to both China and Russia. She received the Romance, German, Russian Languages and Literatures Award, Russian STARTALK National Security Language Initiative Scholarship, and the Linda A. Day Endowed Student Award to support those experiences.
Luján is a committed arts & culture leader who not only creates murals projects but demonstrates a collaborative history of working in the arts & culture sector as: member of FA4 Collective, placemaking committee member for the Downtown Long Beach Alliance, founder and curatorial director at Flatline Art Gallery in north Long Beach, public art director at the Arts Council for Long Beach, leadership committee member for Santa Ana Active Streets, and fine arts educator to older adults for cities and non profits in both OC & LA County.
IG: @desfigurados
