Franklin Sinanan

I am an outsider artist with no formal training, who never even went into art galleries growing up. I do my own thing. I love to break the "rules of art", like mixing oils and acrylics together. I never used to paint with canvas - only until recently; for a long time I painted only on paper because I liked the way the paint was absorbed by the paper.

My work used to be tame and had no direction. I was growing, learning how to develop a style, more so than a technique. My colors come from nature . . . I actually used to paint flowers, for example, but of course in my way. As years went by, after exploring and experimenting I have learned to paint my feelings, as the driving force in my work. When I am sad, I paint. Happy? I paint. My addictions, relationships, anger, pain? I paint. I believe you can see my feelings everywhere in my work. For me, it's almost like an actor when they need to be "sad" in a role, they think about what makes them sad and then they act it out. For me, when I feel pain or sadness it comes out in my work.

When I paint in my studio it's like I am in a trance. I never sketch in a book or anything. I start with the blank space and it just comes to me as I go along. By the time I am finished, I am covere...

Self-taught

Solo Exhibitions include: Miami City Hall, “Black History Month”, Miami Beach, FL, 2010; “Addicted to Love and Abuse” at Edge Zones, Miami Art Space, Wynwood Art District, Miami FL., Feb. 2008 and March 2008; “ Spring Garden” at Birchwood Gallery, Yellowknife, Artic Circle, Canada, Nov. 2007, “ Not for the Faint of Heart” at Elder Gallery, Charlotte, N.C., Feb. 2007; “Hidden Treasures” at The Pearl Factory, Hamilton, ON., Canada, Oct. 2007; The Pearl Factory, May 2007; “Images from Within” at Elder Gallery, Charlotte, N.C., Feb. 2007; “Mixed Media” at The Urban Gallery, Toronto, ON., Canada, May 1996; “Slave to the Rhythm” at Hand Works Gallery, Picton, ON., Canada, July1999; “A Spiritual Journey” at Carnegie Gallery, Dundas, ON., Canada, May 2001; “AIDS” at Fitchburg State University Gallery, MA, Oct., 2003.

Group Shows includes: Art Basel Miami, Tom Rosetti Fine Arts, “Out of the Box”, Pompano Beach, FL, 2012; Art Basel Miami, ArtCenter South Florida, “Just Mad MIA”, December, 2012; Art Basel Miami “Art Africa”, Miami, FL, December 2012; Art Live Fair, Coconut Grove, FL, September 2012; Parallax Art Fair, New York City, New York, August 2012; South Florida Art Center, “The Afterlife”, Miami Beach, FL, July 2012; Miami Beach LG...