Tony Aguero moved to the United States six years ago from Costa Rica. MIEDO was inspired by navigating life in the United States. The show uses several mediums to explore the concept of fear; both personal and cultural.

“This show is the culmination of a year’s work. Part of my inspiration came from realizing that living in the United States, I had new fears that aligned with what I felt were collective fears unique to this country. I wanted to juxtapose the current environment against old themes and family values promoted by certain brands in the 70’s.”

The show is a testament to the fact that despite being deeply personal, fears are also widespread and cultural - from mass shootings to mass surveillance, nuclear war, racial profiling, environmental catastrophe, call-out-culture, loss of love and belonging - how do we cope in an age of anxiety?

“I started writing down my fears and creating images to express them. As I worked and developed the pieces, I was having conversations with friends who began sharing their fears with me as well. I realized how extreme some of these fears were and felt compelled to capture not only my experiences, but why someone else might feel afraid… how their life is shaped and affected by fear.”

Each drawing in the series tells an individual story. The black and white series was created as a collage of thoughts and imagery. Tony’s hope is that people see his work and reflect on the ways things are around them, reflect on themselves and their surroundings, and how our own behaviours might impact each other’s sense of safety and community.

In the end, his message is simple - we are all humans with hopes and fears, with different opinions and ideologies. june 2019