projects
Meadows Museum, In the Shadow of Dictatorship: Creating the Museum of Spanish Abstract Art, 2023, Dallas, TX, USA.
Jessica collaborated with the Meadows Museum as a Guest Speaker & Artist Collaborator for a series of four Artist Talks as part of In the Shadow of Dictatorship: Creating the Museum of Spanish Abstract Art, a project curated by Clarisse Fava-Piz, PhD | Mellon Curatorial Fellow. The talks explored the exhibition through an artist’s perspective, aligning with the role artists played in the creation of the Museum of Spanish Abstract Art. Jessica led three talks in English and one in Spanish, engaging audiences in discussions on abstraction, history, and artistic resilience. She also participated in a roundtable discussion examining self-run, self-financed museums, with a focus on the Museum of Spanish Abstract Art in Cuenca, Spain. This collaboration was part of the capstone project of the Mellon Curatorial Fellowship, reinforcing the connection between historical artistic movements and contemporary creative dialogue.
Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, Psychic Automatism Drawing Session, 2023 Fort Worth, TX, USA.
In 2023, artist Jessica Baldivieso designed and led a Psychic Automatism Drawing Session with Music at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth during Robert Motherwell's exhibition. This community-focused activity took place within one of the museum’s galleries, where participants engaged in a deeply focused drawing session accompanied by a curated playlist.
Inspired by the Surrealist technique of automatic drawing, the session reflected Motherwell’s own engagement with the practice, despite not being a Surrealist himself. His approach to abstraction, particularly his exploration of existence through black and white compositions, closely aligns with Baldivieso’s artistic inquiries.
During the session, 20 participants joined Baldivieso for an hour of immersive art-making, producing 12 automatic drawings using materials such as graphite pencils, charcoal sticks, and colored oil pastels. The carefully selected playlist enhanced the meditative quality of the exercise, guiding participants into a creative flow. The event not only encouraged intuitive art-making but also demonstrated the transformative power of art in a communal setting.
12 drawings I made in the psychic automatism session at Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth during Robert Motherwell's exhibition in 2023
Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, The Collection of Eyes, 2023 Fort Worth, TX, USA.
Inspired by Penelope Umbrico’s collection of sunsets and sunrises, The Collection of Eyes invites children to create a shared artwork that reflects both individuality and connection. Each participant receives two 6x4-inch pieces of paper to draw one eye on each—one to keep and one to contribute to a growing communal display. As the collection expands, the assembled eyes form a striking visual dialogue of personal expression.
Like a sunset or sunrise, an eye captures shifting moods and perspectives, shaped by time and emotion. This activity encourages children to observe, reflect, and engage with both their own creativity and the collective vision of the group.
