As a young kid I was in love with breakdancing. I practiced the uprock style, which is a battle style of dance that looks like fighting. It comes from the gangs in New York in the 1960s and '70s. It's… — Jose Parla Copy Share Image
One teacher told me that my work belonged in the trash. That day I ran out of the classroom and ended up in the library, where there happened to be a black and white photography exhibition of Robert Rauschenberg's photographs… — Jose Parla Copy Share Image
I never want to abandon my roots. I want to give my past and the history of painting the importance it deserves, including the… — Jose Parla Copy Share Image
I think artists should define themselves. They should speak about their work and how it relates to society and what's going on in the… — Jose Parla Copy Share Image
For me, the canvas is an abstract interpretation of a wall. It's a piece of art with its own history, one that alludes to… — Jose Parla Copy Share Image
Sometimes I'm inspired by a certain part of my life - I'm thinking about a place and I'll mix the colors from memory. — Jose Parla Copy Share Image
Sometimes I'm not so sure how healthy it is because it's exhausting to put all your emotion into your work, but I guess I… — Jose Parla Copy Share Image
As a young kid I was in love with breakdancing. I practiced the uprock style, which is a battle style of dance that looks… — Jose Parla Copy Share Image
My work is an exploration of the self. I've always been concerned with how I'm living and how that reflects in the painting. — Jose Parla Copy Share Image
When I was young I was constantly reading walls; I took in everything written on walls, from love messages to political messages. It was… — Jose Parla Copy Share Image
You try to tap into a memory and you close your eyes and it comes back. So I was doing this in the painting… — Jose Parla Copy Share Image
One teacher told me that my work belonged in the trash. That day I ran out of the classroom and ended up in the… — Jose Parla Copy Share Image
I have too much energy, even for myself. I'm lucky to have something that focuses me. — Jose Parla Copy Share Image
People have thought that some of my writing and lines are done by a machine. I'm able to move in a way that's part… — Jose Parla Copy Share Image
