Whats My Thesis?

In this episode of What’s My Thesis?, host Javier Proenza is joined by artist Lauren Goldenberg Longoria for a conversation that traverses personal memory, studio practice, and the tender labor of transformation. Known for her materially rich works that fuse paper, performance, and poetic intuition, Goldenberg Longoria speaks candidly about the healing logic of her process—and the quiet revolutions that can occur through repetition, care, and tactility. Trained in traditional printmaking and now immersed in the world of handmade paper, Goldenberg Longoria discusses how she builds meaning through destruction—tearing and pulping paper from past works, using the remnants to seed new ones. Her practice becomes a kind of emotional composting: nothing is discarded, everything is metabolized. Whether she’s embedding hair into a fresh sheet of paper or excavating the boundaries between sculpture and drawing, her work investigates how memory and material collapse into one another. Throughout the episode, Goldenberg Lo

In this candid and moving conversation, host Javier Proenza sits down with Los Angeles-based artist Dena Novak, whose sculptural paintings and ceramics challenge the rigid codes of minimalism through what she calls “aggressive feminism.” Drawing from a rich personal archive of experience—one shaped by Orthodox Judaism, motherhood, neurodivergence, and trauma—Novak’s work reimagines historically male-dominated art historical tropes with unapologetic sensuality and material intensity. A recent recipient of the Simon Gad Foundation Award and an MFA candidate at Otis College of Art and Design, Novak shares how a life-altering diagnosis of autism at age 50 reshaped her understanding of herself, her past, and her artistic practice. Her tactile impasto paintings, often described as “candy-colored” and “irresistibly edible,” subvert the pristine aesthetic of artists like John McCracken, replacing “fetish finish” with riotous layers of piped oil paint. As she explains, “The first response people say when they see my w

Diana Taylor: A practice where research and materiality meet. Presented by What's My Thesis? in partnership with DON’T LOOK Projects In this illuminating live conversation recorded at DON’T LOOK Projects, UK-based artist Diana Taylor joins host Javier Proenza (What’s My Thesis?) for a deeply textured discussion around her first solo show in the United States, Flotsam and Jetsam. Organized by DON’T LOOK Projects in association with SLQS Gallery in London, the exhibition draws on Taylor’s research-intensive practice, exploring time through the fusion of research and materiality. Her work employs a remix logic, echoing Sigmar Polke's 1980s period. Currently in a short-term fellowship at The Huntington, Taylor speaks about her practice-based research. Her PhD was in collaboration with the William Morris Gallery, where she focused on how historical craft, screen-printing, and reproducibility inform her contemporary approach to painting. With roots in both rural Wiltshire and Cyprus, Taylor's early exposure to Eng

In this episode, artist and community advocate Corey La Rue. traces his relationship to the land, labor, and survival—from a near-death experience that altered the course of his life, to his ongoing advocacy for California’s agricultural workers and displaced communities. Raised in the Bay Area in California, La Rue shares his early exposure to fieldwork through family ties to migrant labor. These firsthand experiences, coupled with his own time working in agriculture, shape his nuanced understanding of the exploitation embedded in the state’s economy. What emerges is a critique rooted not in theory, but in lived knowledge: the food systems that sustain us are built on invisible suffering. In a conversation that flows between the local and the global, La Rue and Proenza examine the slow violence of gentrification, the complicity of liberal “investment” language, and the way grief and survival are interwoven. La Rue describes the rapid transformation of his Melrose neighborhood—where new development displaces

Dreams in Migrations: AAPI Identity, Diaspora, and Resistance in Contemporary Art In this special live episode of What's My Thesis?, host Javier Proenza moderates a closing panel discussion at BG Gallery for Dreams in Migrations—the third annual AAPI (Asian American and Pacific Islander) exhibition curated by artist and organizer Sung-Hee Son. This timely conversation assembles a multigenerational roster of artists whose practices interrogate identity, memory, imperialism, and the myth of the model minority through distinct formal languages and lived experiences. Featuring artists Dave Young Kim, Mei Xian Qiu, and others, the episode moves fluidly between personal narrative and structural critique. Kim speaks candidly about growing up Korean American in Los Angeles, navigating ADHD through drawing, and finding community through both art and street culture. He reflects on his work’s deep connection to place—evoking the layered histories of Koreatown through archival images, signage, and symbolic compositions.

Queer Landscapes, Dual Lives, and the Art of Looking Closely with J. Carino Painter J. Carino joins What’s My Thesis? for a candid conversation on the formation of a deeply personal visual language—one that straddles autobiography, queer identity, and reportage practice. Known for his emotionally resonant paintings that combine landscape, figure, and storytelling, Carino reflects on a unique career that led him to his upcoming solo exhibition Carry It With You at Yossi Milo Gallery in New York, on display from June 26 - August 22. Carino speaks candidly about the challenges and freedoms of sustaining parallel careers in publishing and contemporary art. He traces his transition from NYU to Parsons, where studies in reportage and drawing from life laid the foundation for his immersive painting practice. From plein air sketches in national parks to nude Zoom drawing sessions during the pandemic, Carino’s shift from illustration to painting allowed for a more intimate, layered exploration of what it means to live

Strategic Generosity: Collecting, Curating, and Championing Emerging Artists with Leslie Fram In this galvanizing episode of What's My Thesis?, host Javier Proenza is joined by Leslie Fram—collector, curator, marketing strategist, MFA educator, and tireless champion of emerging talent—for a sweeping conversation that summons the urgent need for innovation as well as entrepreneurial literacy among artists today. Fram’s multifaceted career is an exercise in forecasting trends.  Formerly a dancer with the NYC Ballet, Fram studied art at Parsons, founded a fashion design company, became the Trends Editor of Cosmopolitan, obtained an MBA from Columbia University, segued into early Internet enterprises…  and eventually arrived in Los Angeles to engage with the city’s emerging art scene.  Fram has cultivated a holistic approach to art, deploying business models from the various industries she has worked in.  Marrying aesthetics with infrastructure, community with commerce, her approach is unique. Fram speaks candidl

Astrology, Embodiment, and the Myth of Power: A Conversation with Alystair Rogers In this episode of What's My Thesis?, host Javier Proenza is joined by artist Alystair Rogers for a searching, radically honest exploration of transformation—personal, political, and astrological. Traversing terrains of gender, spirituality, social critique, and visual language, Rogers shares the deeply embodied trajectory that led to his MFA thesis: an immersive installation confronting capitalism, queerness, and cosmic time. With the insight of a cultural theorist and the intuition of a mystic, Rogers recounts how early encounters with Scott Cunningham’s Solitary Practitioner and a DIY magical practice laid the groundwork for a conceptual framework rooted in astrology, myth, and critique. From testosterone therapy and shifting social legibility, to trans embodiment and the slow violence of neoliberalism, Rogers discusses the pain and revelation of becoming, with humor and precision. Their thesis installation—centered around a

Building Gene’s Dispensary: Community, Curation, and Creating New Art Spaces in Los Angeles with Keith J Varadi In this wide-ranging conversation on What’s My Thesis?, host Javier Proenza welcomes artist, curator, and writer Keith J. Varadi, founder of Gene’s Dispensary, for an illuminating discussion on forging alternative pathways in the contemporary art world. Through candid reflection, Varadi shares their journey from painting to sound art, music, and ultimately to the establishment of their independent gallery space in Los Angeles—a project that has rapidly become a vibrant hub for creative cross-pollination. Drawing on years of experience as both a practicing artist and an accomplished curator—with writing credits in Carla, Flash Art, Kaleidoscope, and Los Angeles Review of Books—Varadi discusses how health challenges, a deep commitment to community-building, and a rigorous interdisciplinary ethos led to the creation of Gene’s Dispensary. Operating in the heart of Los Angeles at 2007 Wilshire Boulevard,

In this intimate conversation hosted at Don’t Look Projects for her solo show By the Company They Keep, the Chenhung Chen traces a path from formative memories of classroom murals in Taiwan to a tactile, spiritually inflected sculptural practice rooted in the poetics of material and memory. Drawing on a lifetime of cross-cultural experience—born in Taiwan, educated in New York at the School of Visual Arts, and now based in California—Chen reflects on the diasporic transformations that shaped her worldview, her practice, and her understanding of artistic responsibility. Over the course of the episode, she speaks candidly about the lasting impact of calligraphy, the subtle power of Taoist and Confucian thought, and the slow labor of crochet and wire weaving as acts of embodied meditation. Her early engagement with Chinese ink painting, which emphasizes the expressive qualities of line and brushstroke, has evolved into three-dimensional constructions made from recycled electrical wires and cables—materials charg

This week on What’s My Thesis?, host Javier Proenza is joined in-person by multidisciplinary artist Gerald Collins, whose practice illuminates the intersection of architecture, chromotherapy, and community. Based in Detroit, Collins returns to the show for a candid and expansive conversation that moves through memory, material, and meaning with striking clarity. Spanning topics from childhood sketchbooks to large-scale light installations, this episode traces Collins’s journey from the east side of Detroit to Topanga Canyon and back again—both physically and philosophically. The artist reflects on the deep roots of his creative practice, from early encouragement during “bring your kid to work” days, to being admitted as a first grader into an upperclassmen art program, where he began printmaking and working with chalk pastel on a collegiate level. As Collins explains, his formative artistic influence stemmed from early exposure to Picasso’s Blue and Rose periods, and later, a deep investigation into chromothe

In this episode of What's My Thesis?, host Javier Proenza is joined by Liz Hirsch, co-director of 839—an artist-run house gallery in Los Angeles that reimagines what a commercial art space can look and feel like. Located in a 1920's bungalow, 839 is part of a growing network of intimate, artist-centered spaces shaping the future of exhibition-making in L.A. With a background in academia, curatorial work, and community organizing, Hirsch discusses the vision behind 839: a space that supports artists through solo shows, long-term relationships, and thoughtful engagement. Many of the gallery's artists-including Olivia Gibian, Andrés Janacua, and Nichelle Dailey-have recently presented solo exhibitions at 839, some for the first time. The episode touches on the realities and freedoms of running a house gallery, the gallery's upcoming presentation at NADA New York, and their limited-edition print series designed to make collecting more accessible. This conversation offers essential insights into how artists and cu

Queer Spectacle, Polaroid Realities, and the Art of Wrestling with Identity with Christopher Anthony Velasco In this illuminating episode of What’s My Thesis?, host Javier Proenza welcomes artist and educator Christopher Anthony Velasco—a polymath of performative personas, analog photography, and speculative queer mythologies. Known for his immersive character work and deep engagement with the aesthetics of subversion, Velasco brings an electrifying mix of vulnerability, irreverence, and narrative dissonance to a conversation that resists containment. Anchored by his long-running alter ego The Doctor, Velasco charts a performative lineage from backyard wrestling and horror cinema to body horror and experimental drag. His work collapses boundaries between art and entertainment, sincerity and satire, fiction and lived experience—what he terms “the art world as a wrestling ring.” Through characters like Krystal Carrington and Doctor Barbie, Velasco reclaims and retools identity through spectacle, queering archet

  In this episode of the podcast, host Javier Proenza is joined by Rhett Baruch, founder of the contemporary art space Rhett Baruch Gallery, for a candid conversation that moves fluidly between car culture and curatorial strategy—touching on everything from VTEC engines and flat-plane V8s to the architecture of gallery identity in Los Angeles. Baruch discusses his unconventional journey from car enthusiast to gallerist, tracing how a passion for craftsmanship, aesthetics, and the tactile qualities of objects evolved into a sharp curatorial practice. With no formal background in the art world, Baruch speaks to the DIY spirit that shaped the gallery’s beginnings—from styling vintage design vignettes in his historic Little Bangladesh apartment to leveraging Instagram to cultivate a following of interior designers who would become his first collectors. Throughout the conversation, Baruch emphasizes materiality, intention, and relationships over trend-chasing or institutional pedigree. His eye for precision, born

"Worldbuilding Through Memory and Myth: Elias Hernandez on Storytelling, Surrealism, and the Legacy of Conflict" In this immersive episode of What’s My Thesis?, host Javier Proenza welcomes artist and educator Elias Hernandez, whose deeply narrative visual practice draws from Latin American surrealism, video game aesthetics, and inherited stories of displacement and resilience. A recent MFA graduate from USC and collaborator with cult streetwear label Brain Dead, Hernandez charts a complex universe in his paintings—populated by star-bearing knights, sentient castles, and time-traveling wizards—where memory, mythology, and trauma are rendered in fantastical allegory. Born in Mountain View and raised between the Bay Area and Sunnyvale, Hernandez reflects on a childhood steeped in card games like Magic: The Gathering, which sparked his fascination with visual storytelling. These early interests evolved into a practice that explores “the burden and blessing” of cultural inheritance—from Salvadoran family historie

Episode Title: “Sanctuary in Practice: Art, Advocacy, and Survival with Dalia Palacios” In this luminous and profoundly intimate episode of What’s My Thesis?, host Javier Proenza is joined by teaching artist and community advocate Dalia Palacios, whose multidisciplinary practice and lived experience offer a compelling meditation on resilience, displacement, motherhood, and the transformative power of art. Palacios, born and raised in Echo Park, Los Angeles, recounts her early creative awakening amid housing insecurity, gentrification, and cultural dislocation. Her trajectory—from riding buses and bicycles across the city, to leading youth art workshops that reflect current gallery exhibitions—unfolds with honesty and urgency. With a voice shaped by community organizing, lived trauma, and poetic resolve, Palacios articulates the many roles she occupies: artist, mother, educator, survivor, and advocate. A former resident artist at Arts at Blue Roof, Palacios reflects on the pivotal experience of having a dedica

Art as Infrastructure: A Conversation on Social Practice, Community, and the Evolving Role of Nonprofit Art Spaces in Los Angeles An interview with Pranay Reddy, Director of LA Artcore In this compelling episode of What’s My Thesis?, host Javier Proenza sits down with Pranay Reddy, the director of LA Artcore, for a far-reaching conversation that explores the role of nonprofit art spaces as vital community infrastructure in Los Angeles. With clarity, conviction, and deep sincerity, Reddy offers an unfiltered look at his trajectory from punk and zine culture in suburban Colorado to leading one of the city’s longest-running artist-run institutions. The conversation traces Reddy’s early exposure to alternative music and DIY media, his education at the Maryland Institute College of Art, and the profound influence of social practice artists on his own sculptural and photographic inquiries. Through personal reflection and institutional critique, Reddy unpacks the realities of inheriting LA Artcore’s legacy and reima

Spiritual Kinship, Artist-Run Futures, and Burning the Art World Down (Gently) - Cat Gunn In this episode of What’s My Thesis, Javier Proenza welcomes Cat Gunn—artist, curator, and co-organizer of Other Places Art Fair South (OPAF South)—for a wide-ranging conversation on community, creative identity, and the radical possibilities within artist-run spaces. Rooted in their early relationship to art and shaped by their current role in the San Diego-based initiative Harvest and Gather, the dialogue illuminates the power of collaborative curation and experimental presentation. Gunn shares the ethos behind Harvest and Gather’s programming, which includes boundary-pushing moments such as a bonfire where artwork is ceremoniously burned—a powerful gesture of impermanence, intention, and spiritual offering. As OPAF South emerges as a new chapter of the long-running artist-run platform Other Places Art Fair, Gunn reflects on mentorship, shared resources, and the liberatory potential of decentralized arts infrastructure

What’s My Thesis? – Live from Orange Coast College: Dakota Noot on Art, Censorship & Community Building Orange Coast College | Frank M. Doyle Pavilion | Southern California Art Scene In this milestone episode of What’s My Thesis?, host Javier Proenza sits down with artist, curator, and community-builder Dakota Noot for a special conversation inside an ambitious group exhibition at the Frank M. Doyle Pavilion at Orange Coast College. As the acting gallery director, Noot reflects on their journey from North Dakota to Southern California, exploring their evolution as both an artist and curator. The discussion unveils the complex networks that shape the region’s art scene and highlights the challenges and triumphs of curating large-scale exhibitions. Episode Highlights: