UW-Parkside names Roberto Torres Mata first Artist-in-Residence

The College of Arts and Humanities is excited to announce Roberto Torres Mata as the inaugural artist for the University of Wisconsin-Parkside Artist-in-Residence Program for emerging artists. The goal of the residency is to support early-career artists and provide first-rate facilities and instruction for our art-making communities in southeast Wisconsin.

Mata is a printmaker who finds inspiration in the centuries-long craft traditions of the indigenous cultures of the Americas. While specializing in printmaking, his work includes papermaking, installations, and sculpture. A recent graduate, he earned both a master’s degree and masters of fine arts from the University of Wisconsin-Madison under the mentorship of John Hitchcock. Mata was the 2021 Russell and Paula Panczenko MFA prize winner, an award offered annually by UW-Madison and the Chazen Museum of Art, which sponsor a solo show for the awardee at the museum.

Born in California to Mexican parents, Mata has spent considerable time in the Midwest, toggling back and forth between his culture of origin and the US. He notes that the Zapotec and Mixtec people from Oaxaca have served as inspiration and influenced his work. In “Untethered: Our Journey Beyond Borders,” his recent exhibition at the Chazen Museum of Art, Mata explored the idea of migration — both animals and peoples — highlighting the consequences of political and cultural dislocation while seeking a shared narrative that might inspire hope. 

While in residence at UW-Parkside, Mata will be creating his own work in the print studio, which will be on view in a solo exhibition to open on Nov. 30 in the UW-Parkside Foundation Gallery with a reception from 4 to 6 p.m. on Dec. 8. Additionally, he will be teaching a non-credit, community art class and hosting open studio hours on Friday and Saturday mornings throughout the fall semester. His course, “Ink and Paper,” will kick off on Thursday, Oct. 20 and run each Thursday evening thru Dec. 1. The class will focus on monotypes, relief printing techniques, and an introduction to the artistic range of print media.

Professor Lisa Marie Barber and Mata will host an open studio morning on Saturday (Sept. 24) from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. to introduce Mata to our communities of artmakers and welcome all into our studios. 

This project is a collaboration between UW-Parkside, the Osborne and Scekic Family Foundation, and the RAM/Wustum Art Museum. For more information: contact Lisa Marie Barber at barberl@uwp.edu.