Jose Felix Castro Jr. eagerly awaited the chance to present his final project, a replica of a classical renaissance painting, to his class at San Francisco’s Academy of Art University.
“Skin tones are some of the hardest parts I deal with on a painting. A painting I considered my first best really slapped me on the face after showing people,” Castro said, remembering his class project. “People kept asking why the lady’s skin-tone was green, but I couldn’t see it.”
It was at that moment that Castro, then 23, finally realized he was colorblind.
“But, it’s grown to be my style and brings a unique touch to my paintings,” said the artist, who is now 26.
Judging from the array of bright colors in his art pieces, one would never guess that he is colorblind.
“I have trouble mainly with reds and greens,” he said. “At times I have trouble seeing gray, pink, light greens and orange. I’ve gotten better with time and I obviously read the labels.”
Castro graduated from Academy of Art University where he studied human anatomy and figure drawing, and analyzed shades, color and structures. But Castro can trace his artistic ability back to his childhood, where street art was his core motivation.
“Through time and life experiences, I felt the need to express myself and what better way than to have a color tool at hand and a paper where you can go all out,” he said. “I would justify my art as a free outlet. I love graffiti, I love portraits, I love landscapes. I would do everything I do now back then, but with a free sense. Not subjected to a career, none the less a lifestyle.”
Throughout his Redwood City studio, some of his art books are on shelves and others are scattered on his desk for research. His current and previous pieces of art adorn the white walls of his studio with bold color.
An artist of Mexican descent, Castro was born in Redwood City and raised in various cities throughout the Bay Area, a region rich with diversity. However, it wasn’t until recently that Castro found his style: creating paintings that reflect political, Latino and immigration issues.
Most of his current pieces are black and white portraits of women and men holding up signs protesting injustices against immigrants. A recent piece of his that sold during the Oct. 11 RAW Artists San Francisco SAVOR art show depicted Colin Kaepernick, the former 49ers quarterback who ignited a national political debate after he began kneeling for the national anthem during football games to protest racial inequality and police brutality.
“I think artist nowadays are really the voice in anything because we can create just about anything,” he said. “I also want to be part of my community in ways that represent everyday causes, national causes, political [causes] and just be the voice for my family and my people.”
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