David Peña

This photo was taken during a pattern making workshop I lead at Universidad Autonoma De Baja California Ensenada. The pattern in the background was created collectively by students who participated in the workshop.

Degree: MFA in Art

Expected Graduation Date: June 2023

Previous Degree: BA in Art, California State University, Long Beach, CA

I’m From: San Diego, CA

Why I Came to the UO and How I Chose My Major
I chose the University of Oregon for multiple reasons. In researching the program I found the faculty’s work to be inspiring, and I knew I would gain new insight into my own practice working with them. Within the first week of school, I am also finding tremendous support with instructors and current MFA students. UO also has excellent resources within its facilities and research database. The MFA program is generous in offering GE positions to gain teaching experience which I hope will be offered in the coming year.

Since graduating with a BA in Art, I have been on a trajectory that has led me into teaching within my own community in the Tijuana / San Diego border region. I have been wanting to complete an Art MFA program for many years. My experiences have led me to this point where I would like to teach as a professor. I am following the path to an MFA in Art which is part of my formation as an artist.

Unique Qualities I Bring to My Studies
I describe myself as an artist and cultural organizer. The process of defining and describing my work has reinforced three truths that guide me. I am first guided by my commitment to working alongside my local community. Second, collaborations are not only inspiring, but essential to my artistic growth. Finally, I am a painter. Paint is a medium I am fascinated by and I am motivated to explore it in depth. My practice has developed as I have balanced and interwoven these elements. I believe graduate study will provide me with the skills, conversations, and meditations necessary to pull at the threads of medium specificity, community engagement, and artistic collaboration in a way where all three elements of my work will develop fully.

My artistic practice is specifically situated within my particular border community. The border is a psychogeographical place that has its own dialogue with art, heavily influenced by both its geography and the population’s constant state of flux. People persistently migrate within, through, and towards this space. And being situated within two cultures and countries allows for a particular set of parameters to work and live within. While the border grows and dwindles in popularity, and is always an interesting point of conversation, the local artist community that flourishes and develops here does not live the border as a mere conversation starter. The constant clash of identities that comes with the region is a daily practice, pain, or thought. This physical and mental place of struggle and flourish influences my work in approach and visual output.

My Influential Professors
This is my first year at University of Oregon. Within the first two weeks being in the program, Professor Eric Guerrero has become one of my mentors. In meeting, he has already given me helpful feedback within my practice and particularly understands the context of the border between the USA and Mexico where I have developed. In learning about his work, I discovered he explores post-colonial themes and I look forward to learning from him, especially since he has a relationship to the border, growing up in San Ysidro, CA.

My Extracurricular Activities
I’m part of Common Ground (CG), which is a BIPOC community of artists, educators and activists based out of the San Diego / Tijuana border region. CG seeks to support each other by providing a space of inclusivity and alternative ways of organizing outside of institutions. This has been an important space of healing and personal development. Through coming together we help each with the stresses we face individually and collectively. We are also actively working to form workshops, group shows and public speaking events.

I’m also becoming actively involved within the community of MFA students. I’m just starting, but it has been rewarding connecting with each other through group discussions and imagining the possibilities of further collaboration. The potential for creativity is exciting and I look forward to share what we come up with.

My Greatest Learning Experience at UO

The greatest learning experience I have had at UO is the community of people within the Art department that are here to provide mutual support. In the past, I have felt on my own within an institutional context, but here, I feel students and faculty are supportive of each other.

After Graduation
After graduation, and even during the process of learning in this program, my hope is to connect the border community with the University of Oregon. As I develop here, I believe there is an exchange of knowledge and experience from both communities and geographies that can critically engage with each other. It’s still early, but the idea of developing a residency is something I look forward to, whether it is in Tijuana or locally through the University of Oregon. I ultimately want to start an artist run project space within the border community, providing resources such as materials, printing, guest speakers and more as the idea develops.

Your Gift
This scholarship is important to me because pursuing a college education within this particular context of COVID-19 has many unknowns for the future and it helps cover the costs I paid out of savings for fees this term. To receive this particular scholarship helps ease this financial strain, and also provides me with funding for needed art materials.

This scholarship shows the level of commitment that donors and the University have to its students. This is a particularly challenging time living within a pandemic, and to have the support of a scholarship to help ease the financial burden shows me that I’m not overlooked, and that I truly have support from the University. I very much appreciate it and am humbled to receive this scholarship. Thank you!