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Oree Originol, born Daniel Aguilera Jimenez, grew up in Los Angeles where, inspired by street culture, graffiti became his outlet. He used OREE as his “tagger” name, derived from an inside joke with childhood friends who poked fun at his big ears. In 2009, he moved to the Bay Area in pursuit of a career as an artist and social activist. He began painting colourful abstract compositions of various shapes, and these became his identifying style of work.
Originol expanded his skills into digital art and, in 2014, launched Justice For Our Lives, a digital portrait series of people killed by US law enforcement. Over the ensuing seven years he created 100 black-and-white portraits that would become the visual backdrop to numerous Black Lives Matter protests in the Bay Area and beyond. His portraits have been reproduced and shared worldwide in public demonstrations, classrooms, museums, and online. In 2016, his project was exhibited at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, San Francisco, and in 2020 at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington DC; the latter also acquired digital copies for its permanent collection.
2020
Oree Originol
Spray paint on canvas | Pintura en aerosol sobre tela
121.9 x 91.4 cm (48 x 36 in)
Collection of the artist | Colección del artista
Photo courtesy of the artist | Imagen cortesía del artista
We asked the artists to share their favourite things | Le pedimos a cada artista que comparta sus cosas favoritas
