Marina Hajek (Herrera): Duality

The artwork of Marina Hajek (Herrera) is about the duality of her two lives in Guatemala and the United States as much as it is a metaphor for the dual lives of women caught between culture and expectations.

Hajek explores the human figure and the abstract manifestations of our beings and forms through her art, believing that things are most profoundly understood through unrealistic representations.

Hajek’s work speaks about the human condition, and growing up in the unstable political atmosphere of Guatemala left a strong impression on her. Once living in the USA, she started creating pieces in which she expressed her political opinions and emotions in a way she could not have done in Guatemala.

When Hajek works on a piece based on her experiences and emotions, she realizes the connection with everyone else. We have all gone through something similar, and many do not know how to express it. She takes joy when someone can identify with the emotions she has sought to convey through her work.