Artist-in-Residence
Emilene Orozco
February-May 2026
“ I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to participate in this residency, especially because it is located in my own community of South Los Angeles. Having a dedicated space and time to focus on my passion is truly life-changing, and I feel honored to expand my research and create new work here. I am excited to use this residency to experiment, grow, and deepen my practice, while also sharing dialogue with my community and fellow artists. This is both a privilege and an inspiration, and I look forward to building meaningful connections and expanding my work.”
-Emilene Orozco, Blue Roof Residency 2026 AiR
Artist Statement:
My work explores the intersections of labor, migration, and cultural memory, focusing on the lived realities of immigrant communities. Through photography and installation, I reconfigure everyday objects, such as fences, government forms, clothing, and food, as charged artifacts of survival and displacement. These materials reveal how language, labor, and bureaucracy shape notions of belonging while simultaneously rendering certain lives invisible. By weaving together objects, images, and archival references, I aim to honor resilience while also confronting the structures that perpetuate erasure, asking how histories of exclusion might be remembered, reimagined, and resisted."
