Statement
My whole life through, I have always had an interest in observing people, places and situations around me. And not just to observe what is in front of me but to understand how people live, how they behave and how they arrive at their beliefs. The emotions and memories evoked by places and situations of personal experiences even if I cannot fully articulate why I am drawn to them. These ideas, observations, attentions, feelings, and queries have become an essential part of my artistic process.
My work explores the relationships between memory, lived experience, identity and the environments that shape our perceptions of ourselves and others. Utilizing personal histories, family relationships, photographs and locations from my past, I revisit moments from my life that continue to resonate with me. I am personally drawn to how memories change over time, how individuals are influenced by their own environments, and how and why the past remains present in ways we may not consciously aware and recognize. Instead of trying to remake these experiences exactly as they occurred, I delve into how they are evoked, depicted, and appreciated.
Working primarily through painting while expanding my practice into sculpture and mixed media, I use materials as a means of both expression and discovery. My process often begins with a particular image, memory, or question, but the meaning of the work may change as I create it. The physical qualities of materials, unexpected outcomes, and decisions made during the process can reveal ideas I had not initially considered. Through these discoveries, making art becomes a way of examining experiences and emotions that I cannot always articulate through words.
My practice also questions the relationship between perception, belief, and knowledge. I am interested in the limitations of what we see and the ways our understanding is shaped by personal experience, culture, and society. Through my work, I continue to examine what it means to remember, to perceive, and to understand. I do not necessarily seek definitive answers. Instead, I see art as an ongoing process of questioning, learning, and discovering meaning, while leaving space for viewers to bring their own experiences and interpretations.
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Bio
Ehrald Solana is a Filipino-American visual artist whose practice explores memory, familial relationships, identity, and the ways personal experiences intersect with broader cultural and social narratives. Working primarily in painting, his work draws upon personal histories, photography, and lived experiences to examine the complexities of human relationships, belonging, and perception.
Solana received his Master of Fine Arts in Visual Arts from Lesley University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He holds a BA in Secondary Education majoring in Music, Arts, Physical Education, and Health.
His artistic achievements include receiving a $1,000 Cash Award in the juried 40th Chelsea International Fine Art Competition in 2026. That same year, he was invited to speak at V-Art Gallery in Hanoi, Vietnam, where he presented Pathways to Studying Fine Art in the United States. In 2024, he joined the MFA Online Juried Exhibition, Anything that Moves at the University of Montana. He submitted his painting, titled The Reconstruction of Self, which later changed to Self Portrait of My Nephew Eight Thousand Miles Away.
During his master's program, Solana participated in four exhibitions between 2023 and 2024. In 2023, he exhibited The Portraits, a series that later evolved into Gaze and Look. In 2024, he presented three additional series: MAMA: Inheriting Her History, Rewriting Our Future, I Become, and Euphoria and Innocence.
Through his evolving practice, Solana continues to investigate the relationship between personal memory, cultural experience, and the ways individuals perceive and understand the world.
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CV
BIO
EHRALD SOLANA
Visual Artist · Lives and works in Rockville, Maryland
EDUCATION
2025 Master of Fine Arts in Visual Arts
Lesley University, Cambridge, MA
AWARDS & HONORS
2026 Cash Award, 40th Chelsea International
Fine Art Competition Juried award ·
$1,000
2026 People's Artist Competition, Semifinalist,
The Art of Elysium, Los Angeles,
California Choice Award · Semi Finalist
2024 Anything that Moves | MFA Online Juried
Exhibition | University of Montana | The
Reconstruction of Self (Diptych)
EXHIBITIONS
2024 Euphoria and Innocence | Lunder Arts
Center | 1801 Massachusetts Ave
Cambridge, Massachusetts 02140
2024 I BecomeI Become | Lunder Arts Center |
1801 Massachusetts Ave Cambridge,
Massachusetts 02140
2024 MAMA | Lunder Arts Center | 1801
Massachusetts Ave Cambridge,
Massachusetts 02140
2023 The Portraits | Lunder Arts Center |
1801 Massachusetts Ave Cambridge,
Massachusetts 02140
PRESENTATIONS
2026 Pathways to Studying Fine Art in the
United States V-Art Gallery, Hanoi,
Vietnam