Artist talk and Closing Reception with Albert Gonzales

Unconnected with a Sense of Belonging

by Albert Gonzales

September 7 - October 9, 2026

Palmetto Center for the Arts Gallery
Curated by Esteban Delgado

Artist talk / Closing Reception:

October 7th, 2pm – 3pm

Artist statement

Unconnected with a Sense of Belonging explores the tension between isolation and connection. This body of work comes from reflecting on my upbringing and my life now as a father raising two boys and the feeling of being alone, even when surrounded by others. As I have grown, both personally and as an artist, I have learned to better understand that isolation.

The past twelve years has forced me to discover my own capabilities, push myself mentally and physically, and become comfortable with uncertainty. This process has pushed me outward, into my community, into conversations, and into relationships with people who experience and connect with my art. My work has become increasingly public, yet the process of creating it remains deeply private. I can spend long hours alone in the studio, navigating thoughts, memories, emotions, exhaustion, confidence, and self doubt. Then the work leaves the studio and becomes something shared.

The flowers throughout this exhibition have become a visual language for that experience. They are not simply representations of nature or beauty. They carry emotion. They can feel fragile, resilient, chaotic, confident or disconnected. I experiment with these gestures of color and use them to communicate feelings that I do not always know how to put into words.

The creating process has always been therapeutic for me, but this body of work has allowed me to examine why. The studio gives me permission to exert myself, to question what I’m capable of, and to process parts of myself that may otherwise remain unspoken. Each piece is evidence of this process.

Unconnected with a Sense of Belonging is ultimately about learning that connection does not always mean the absence of isolation. Sometimes the two exist together. I can feel deeply connected to my family, my community, my work, and the people around me while still needing the solitude of the studio to understand myself. These paintings exist somewhere between those two spaces, the private and the public, isolation and community, uncertainty and confidence. For me, the flowers have become a way of navigating that space, a reminder that belonging is not necessarily something we find all at once. Sometimes, it is something we create.