Works in Progress: b chehayeb on the Art of Trusting, Time and Time Again
b chehayeb in her studio in Brooklyn, NY. Photo by KC Maddux. Courtesy of OCHI
If every artwork is an invitation, b chehayeb’s paintings invite us to explore the lush visual landscapes of her memories and, perhaps, discover how they reflect our own internal worlds. chehayeb’s gestural abstractions are anchored in personal and universal symbols that investigate her past, gender, growing up, aging, and cultural hybridity. Born in Texas and based in Boston, chehayeb is a Mexican American painter, sculptor, and poet. Her art has been exhibited, published, awarded, and collected in the US and abroad. Shortly after participating in the 2024 Armory Show, she speaks to IMPULSE about her current practice and a work in progress.
b chehayeb, jncos at the quinceanera (2023). Oil on canvas, 60 × 48 in. Courtesy of the artist
“If I spend enough time with the memories in the work, I find that I gravitate towards a softness for myself. I relate to myself as a child more than I ever have. I’ve connected with others more than ever, as well,” chehayeb says. As a Hispanic woman artist, chehayeb is interested in preserving her childhood memories, unpacking gender and cultural expectations, and documenting a major life transition: When she moved from a small, conservative Texas town to the Northeast to attend graduate school in 2018.
With rich, layered swaths of color and brushstrokes both exploratory and bold, chehayeb captures vulnerable moments with a sense of raw experimentation and sensitive care. Within impeccably balanced compositions, a personal iconography emerges, including stars, horses, and ladders, which float, anchor, and morph into each other. We also find items of clothing, slips of notebook paper (representing her academic endeavors), furniture, and letters (including ñ, referencing her immersion in Spanglish).
b chehayeb, tomboy texas summer sadness (2023). Oil on canvas, 84 x 72 in. Courtesy of OCHI
b chehayeb, no boy horses (2023). Oil and acrylic, plastic horses on canvas. 10 x 8 in. Courtesy of the artist
The appearance of recognizable shapes in these pieces mimics the way images from the past can arise and submerge again into a colorful storm of memory. They serve as signposts and gateways into chehayeb’s emotional realm, guiding the viewer into their own spaces of recollection.
“I think any artist who tells the truth through art is creating something rare and potent, and they give permission for others to do the same, especially if the truths are stemming from lesser known perspectives,” chehayeb says.
b chehayeb, portion of work in progress, 2024. Courtesy of the artist
chehayeb discusses how the repeating star shape, prominent in a piece in progress, relates to her growing up as an athlete. “I had one foot in the Mexican American expectation of girlhood and, of course, all the other crushing demands of girlhood and hyper-femininity surrounding you since you're an infant.” chehayeb's other foot was in another formative experience that she also considers girlhood: “physical strength and excellence.”
A sports-centric girlhood is represented in her art by stars, softball stitches, and trophies. The star symbol began as a drawing of chehayeb’s body when she was younger, morphing into a star over time.
“I was this really, really stocky kid. I was big and hefty. I loved to exercise. I loved to lift weights. I had this sort of non-figure—a non-feminine figure—growing up that I really personally loved but felt alienated by as a girl,” she explains.
Referencing the piece, mexican dinner hero, chehayeb says, “Almost every painting with food is sort of confessional to me.” This work honors her mother’s caldo (soup). “I come from a Mexican American family and, culturally, cooking and domestic responsibilities fall on women. This is not merely to perform acts of service, but also to carry forward Hispanic culture and keep the family together with meals and gatherings.”
b chehayeb, mexican dinner hero (2024). Oil on canvas, 40 × 40 in. Courtesy of the artist
The artist explains she often struggles with this gender expectation: “My grandma taught me how to make tortillas at least 20 times in my life, and I can’t, for the life of me, remember how to make it on my own.” She adds, “In the rare event I succeed at recreating my mom’s dinners, it's always cause for some small celebration, some evidence that I am not totally disconnected from the ones that came before me.”
Now in her 30s, chehayeb continues to wade through these memories and identities, cultivating self-knowledge and self-compassion through painting. At this point in her art-making journey, she says it’s important for her to practice patience and trust, and to dedicate time and space to feeling.
“Feeling something is underrated. I think in a post-internet world, it’s easier to fast-forward through the process of looking and feeling while scrolling. Art has the power, even more in person, to reorient our minds and bodies to connect on a deeper level,” she says.
chehayeb quotes artist Sister Corita Kent: “Find a place you trust, and then try trusting it for a while.”
“I'm just trying to sit with the piece and see where that shape takes me, and try it again, and try trusting it again, and try trusting it again, because there's so much there. The works are still fairly experimental, but I'm trusting the work more.”
b chehayeb is represented by OCHI. In November 2024, her first European solo show, tomboy heaven, will open at Workplace Gallery in London.
This interview was edited for clarity and length.
