Meet Karen Fiorito | Artist, Activist and Curator

We had the good fortune of connecting with Karen Fiorito and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Karen, how has your background shaped the person you are today?

I am originally from a suburb outside of Philadelphia, PA. I grew up in a working class neighborhood, the daughter of a single mother. Both sides of my family were first generation immigrants. We did not have much growing up since my mom was raising three kids with no college education, and she had to work her way up the ladder from the bottom. I remember her telling me that she didn’t get paid the same as her male counterparts, even though she worked harder and was just as capable. She taught me about feminism and equal rights at a young age. I also grew up in a very rural place with farms and lots of nature. I love nature and animals. I used to run home from school to go feed the dairy cows at the farm next to our development. I would give them grass and hay through the fence of the farm while they licked me and tried to eat my shirt. They were just very large dogs to me. Feeling such a connection with animals and nature would be one of the reasons I became vegan. From a young age, I was also an environmental and animal rights activist. I knew how poorer communities were affected by circumstances like environmental racism, pollution, unequal education, and low wages from my own personal experiences. These experiences have shaped me as an ecofeminist activist, artist and curator. My work is about the oppression of others: whether that oppression is racism, sexism, ageism, ableism, classism or speciesism does not matter to me.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
My art is political, and my activism and art overlap quite often. I started doing political art over 20 years ago. This was not very popular, even in art school. I was told that political art was too ephemeral to be elevated to the status of fine art. I am glad that I never listened to those professors that told me not to pursue this type of work. Instead I kept going. Finally in graduate school, I was not only encouraged to make political art, but it became my thesis. I have been doing this type of work ever since and have no plans to stop, even though it is still not that popular. I know people want something to hang over their couch that is “pretty” and not a politically charged statement. However, I continue to make the art that I want to see in the world, despite it being difficult or making people uncomfortable. I am very proud of the fact that I have never sold out and continue to keep to my ethical principles.

I am also proud that I paid my own way through 7 years of college and have my M.F.A. and B.F.A. in Fine Art/Printmaking. Even with scholarships, I had to work three jobs while carrying a full course load. I am still in a heck of a lot of debt, but not for the lack of repayment! I have paid back more than I borrowed but still owe almost three times that amount. I learned the hard way how unfair our educational system is towards poor people. Wanting to learn and grow should not be something that ends with you in a debtor’s prison, and education should be free. If I could have gone back, I would have done a lot of things differently – at least financially. I was young and didn’t know anything about finances, and growing up poor didn’t help any. (It is also ridiculous that we expect an 18 year old to make sound financial decisions.) Regardless, I am the first in my family to receive an M.F.A. and that was a big deal for my parents. It wasn’t easy though, and I still am dealing with the consequences.

This hardship is one of many reasons why I fight human rights, especially those who are economically disadvantaged. I am a working class artist, and I support the proletariat. Whether it is inequality of pay, health care, education, or reproductive rights, poor and working class people are always hurt the most. Politics affect every aspect of our lives, from health care to abortion to education to affordable housing. Every aspect of our lives is governed by a system that favors the wealthy and punishes the poor. Politics also control the rights of nonhuman animals. Whether animals have any rights and when and where they do is governed by our laws. This is why animal and other activists know the importance of passing progressive new legislation. This is also why I am obsessed with politics and consider myself a political animal. This obsession spills into my art: I’m a printmaker by trade, but I also design billboards to get my message out to the masses.

I was drawn to printmaking for the ability to work in multiples and hence the ability to disseminate information to the masses by making art more affordable, even free. Printmaking has a long history of being tied to political movements, social justice movements and revolutions. My work is a continuation of this tradition as I use my work to explore such themes as human rights, animal rights, climate change, war and environmental issues. I use billboards and prints to spread my messages. Billboards and prints are a way to reach a wider audience and circumvent the conventional art world. I believe art should be affordable to everybody, and multiples are a great way of doing this. I also love to curate art exhibitions with other artists and believe that community is important. My curations are labor of love as I bring collaboration and activism into my curatorial projects. I just recently curated an exhibition of 10 international ecofeminist activist/artists about our relationship with animals and how our shared oppressions stem from a patriarchal hierarchy that values white maleness above all others.

All of my work – whether it is an artwork, a billboard or a curated exhibition – is meant to agitate, educate and organize. My work is meant to make you think outside of your comfort zone. As Banksy said, “Art should comfort the disturbed and disturb the comfortable.” I believe that art can be a powerful tool for change, and that it is the responsibility of the artist to bear witness to injustice and to hold a mirror to and shape reality. Art can play a positive role in society by engaging the public and opening dialogue. My art enters the public domain through the use of prints, billboards and curated exhibitions to educate the public and to create debate and awareness. I want to challenge the perceptions that overtly political and uncompromising art is not salable.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I live about an hour South of Orange County and 45 minutes North of the city of San Diego. I lived in Los Angeles for about 15 years before moving here. There is not as much to do as in L.A., but there is still a lot! I like this area because it is a lot cleaner, more rural and not as stressful as L.A. We live in the foothills on the side of the Daley Ranch Nature Preserve, about 1,000 feet from a trailhead. The view is breathtaking. The first thing I show people who come to visit is the Nature Preserve near my house. We have all kinds of wildlife including mountain lions, eagles, road runners and coyotes, and there is even a lake. We also have over twenty wineries in Escondido alone (the nearest town to us) and many more in the surrounding areas like Temecula. There are also 150 breweries in San Diego County. Stone Brewery is the closest to Escondido, and it is my favorite. They have a large outdoor garden and are dog friendly! The food is pretty good also. There are plenty of amazing vegan restaurants in the city of San Diego and the surrounding beaches. In San Diego I like the Gaslamp Quarter, Mission Bay and Barrio Logan. Barrio Logan is an artistic, industrial area with Mexican roots. At its heart is Chicano Park, with dozens of murals depicting the community’s past activism, alongside images of notable figures like Frida Kahlo. This being Southern California, you are required to go see the beach at least once! Carlsbad is one of my favorite beaches. There’s a lot to do in Carlsbad also, including the Flower Fields and Lego Land. I really like San Clemente and Dana Point too. They are less than an hour’s drive away, and the Old Mission in San Clemente and the old town are a lot of fun to walk around. The beaches are nice too, and you can usually bring your dog along. Anything I can do involving my dog is good for me! Finally I haven’t been yet, but I want to see Queen Califia’s Magical Circle in Kit Carson Park in Escondido. According to the City’s website, “Queen Califia’s Magical Circle is the only American sculpture garden and the last major international project created by Niki de Saint Phalle (born France, 1930-2002). Inspired by California’s mythic, historic and cultural roots, the garden consists of nine large-scale sculptures, a circular “snake wall” and maze entryway, sculpturally integrated bench seating, and native shrubs and trees planted within the interior plaza and along the outer perimeter. The garden bears the brilliant, unique mosaic ornamentation that is an unmistakable part of Saint Phalle’s later work.” It looks amazing from the photos and is a fairly well known landmark.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I’d like to dedicate this to all of my mentors past and present. The amazing professors I had in undergraduate and graduate school: Sarah Van Keuren, John Risseeuw, Kathryn Maxwell, and Joseph Segura especially. I would also like to dedicate this to one of my best friends and mentors, the late great Leroy Johnson, who had a profound impact on me as a political artist, and – last but not least – to activist, artist and community leader Beatrice Moore who has pushed me to take my political activism to the next level and who has supported so many artists and activists over the years, including myself.

Website: karenfiorito.me

Instagram: @karenfiorito

Linkedin: Karen Fiorito

Twitter: @buddhacatpress

Facebook: KarenTheFury

Youtube: @KarenFiorito