Chemical engineering and painting are both art forms, in a way. Both require creativity, a level of technical skill and a dose of experimentation. Local artist LUSMERLIN knows the two worlds well — she was working as a chemical engineer in textile and cement manufacturing in 2019 when she began to explore art.
Her first medium of exploration was pastels tapping into her memories of childhood art class.
“I love making lines and pastels,” she said. “Working directly with the pastel stick is so raw, and working with my hands connected right away.”
A chance encounter with a kid’s watercolor set led her to painting.
“I didn’t think I was going to make abstract work,” she said. “However, when I saw a painting of Ed Ramsburg, he had so much force and I realized I wanted that force. I wanted to understand the use of color and the use of texture and the use of pattern.”
On Display at Slayton House
LUSMERLIN’s work is currently on display in the Bernice Kish Gallery at Slayton House in Columbia. The exhibit, titled “H-E-R: Art In Five Voices,” features work from five artists: Anne Barney, Barbara Lawson, LUSMERLIN, Maylnda Madzel and Dora Diaz Strope.
The pieces range from abstract and watercolor paintings to found-item sculptures and woodcuts
When deciding which pieces to include in an exhibit or show, LUSMERLIN said she always tries to display her latest artistic direction. “My latest direction is big and bold, and I definitely am enjoying what is happening at this point,” she said.
Controlled Chaos
One of LUSMERLIN’s pieces featured in the Slayton House exhibit is titled “Intuism 022 (I miss hurricanes).” She describes the piece as controlled chaos — it’s equal parts geometric and chaotic, but every stroke was intentional.
“This has the strength and the energy because of the colors,” she said. “I wondered, how do I combine doing an expressive drawing that keeps the energy of the drawing while also having a striking use of color?”
The white background is raw canvas, providing an experience reminiscent of drawing on paper.
Every swirl of the tornado was intentional and colorful rays were used to invoke a sense of motion. The rays are intentionally imbalanced and not symmetrical. The rays are made of spray paint, meaning she had to mask — tape off — each section to ensure the spray paint did not get on another ray or the raw canvas. She describes the process as painstaking but worth it.
“There is a lot of intention into every part of that drawing and I actually like that I cannot make corrections because the canvas underneath is meant to be exposed,” said LUSMERLIN. “It’s a lot of commitment to something and I like committing to decisions in the artwork.”
Taking Up Space
Movement plays a large role in LUSMERLIN’s work, both in product and in process.
A native of the Dominican Republic, dance has always been a part of her life. She describes her artistic process as a whole-body experience.
“I play some music, in my state of flow,” she said. “When I realized that dance was inspiring, conducting music and anchoring me physically and into the practice, I’m like, can I blend these two things together?”
She remembers her grandfather as a dancer, and family events revolving around dance.
“In the culture, dance is a form of socializing, connecting — not only a couple’s activity. That was really my anchor point, when I immigrated, to stay connected … I was dancing every day.”
She translates some of her dance vocabulary into performance pieces, setting up canvases in public places and painting with her feet.
Storytelling is also core to her performance art, with immersive exhibits like “The Uncatchable Ciguapa,” an immersive experience centered on Dominican culture and folklore. La Ciguapa is an elusive figure from Dominican folklore.
Exploring Identity
LUSMERLIN’s practice explores her womanhood and identity, including her immigration experience since moving to the U.S. in 2016.
Her path to Maryland began in 2012, when she was selected for a national competition program through the U.S. Embassy in the Dominican Republic. The program allowed her to attend school in the U.S. She was sent to Bozeman, Montana. She was there for a year, during which she met her future husband, Michael.
She returned to the Dominican Republic to graduate and start work, first in pharmaceuticals before transitioning to textiles. In 2016, LUSMERLIN joined her husband in Maryland, working in chemical engineering. She became used to being the only woman in the room and, often, the only person from the Caribbean her coworkers had ever met.
“They haven’t worked with women in technical roles, so they parse their interactions with me based off of their wives, their daughters,” she said. “ I got a lot of questions because some of them had never met someone from the Caribbean … what’s the accent, what’s the hair? It was very rough.”
The male-dominated environment — and the ensuing culture shock — inspired introspection, as she questioned how to present herself in different spaces. She said the experience accentuated my sense of womanhood while at the same time presenting masculine trends that she naturally possessed.
“I will still show up in Carhartt and high vis. I actually worked on being bolder and louder and taking a lot more space,” she said. “I’ll wear a polo shirt. I love my khakis, but my hair’s going to be done and I’m going to look fabulous.”
LUSMERLIN is a 2024 Philadelphia Mural Arts Fellow and a 2025 Sondheim Prize semifinalist. She has also received grants from the Baltimore Office for Promotion of the Arts and the Frederick Arts Council.
“H-E-R: Art In Five Voices” will be displayed at the Bernice Kish Gallery at Slayton House until March 2. The gallery is located at 10400 Cross Fox Lane in Columbia at the Wilde Lake Village Center.
Article written by freelance reporter Sarah Sabatke.
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