Forced to flee El Salvador during the brutal civil war in the 1980s, multidisciplinary artist Jose Campos, AKA Studio Lenca, explores migration, identity, belonging, and cultural memory through painting, sculpture, and dance. In this film, he discusses the materials and found objects that shape his work, his use of colour and Indigenous folk motifs, and the importance of community.
0:00 “It can be my story, or it can be the story of many people” 0:21 Introduction 0:42 “Like many families, we had to leave because of the violence” 1:11 “It was like being in two worlds at once – I think art, at that moment in my life, was a kind of disruption” 2:02 “With my paintings, I try to create a world that feels like El Salvador, so I choose bright colours. Those kinds of colours really jolt me back to where I'm from.” 2:56 “The painting becomes about the marks that are very controlled, so they really kind of pop.” 4:02 “A colour that I can’t not use, is Light Magenta by Golden.” 4:26 “That kind of changed my whole life; I was undocumented in the US, I had just fled a civil war, and dance was a sort of space where I could be myself fully.” 6:06 “I have always really liked the idea of a studio as a space for experimenting, so that’s why I use ‘Studio Lenca.’” 6:49 “My practice is very multidisciplinary, but I see it as an umbrella. I feel very fluid when I am making work, and I am driven by ideas rather than thinking ‘I have to stick to this process.’” 7:17 “I am challenging what a painting can be.” 9:16 “I’m untrained; paintings come from my imagination.” 9:37 “When I see a dance that is authentic, and a dance that really moves me, it's because that dancer or performer is being so present.” 10:06 “Sometimes the figures look like they are moving, dancing, but also fleeing; it can read as both.” 11:20 “I love Pina Bausch – when I first saw her work, it redefined what I thought dance could be.” 13:25 “It feels so wrong to use oil on an acrylic, fuzzy blanket.” 14:02 “For larger areas in the paintings, I use acrylic; I just love how quickly it dries.” 14:47 “I love how immediate and sharp the colour is, and the texture it leaves behind.” 15:12 “I taught for almost 10 years … I had never really been in an art studio, and then all of a sudden I was in charge.” 16:34 “I actually became obsessed with these dancers from El Salvador called ‘Historiantes.’” 17:19 “When I think of my grandfather in El Salvador, I can’t remember him without wearing this big sombrero.” 17:42 “I think of birds as community ... nature doesn't care about political borders.” 18:18 “I still have the table that I had when I first started making work.” 19:59 “I think about power, and the history of gold in Europe and Central America.” 21:24 “I’m interested in this idea of rupture and repair, what is monumentalised and what isn’t.” 21:56 “I almost need to be bored – to be creative.” 22:53 “I don’t know the rules, so I am able to just say, ‘I am going to make a painting’.” 23:22 “Once I add really bold marks, those bold marks become the focus of the painting.” 24:02 “I’m not that interested in revising and kind of reforming things; I’m very immediate, and some might say impatient.” 24:54 “For oil, I use the hog hair brushes, and when I’m painting with acrylic, I tend to use synthetic brushes.” 25:53 “I’ll feel like I’m too exhausted to really see the painting.” 27:12 “I paint to K-Pop.” 27:52 “I really love to work with natural light, and I love working early in the morning.” 28:35 “A lot of discourse around displaced people usually doesn’t come from displaced people.” 29:15 “Even though I was from there, I was still not from there. I have to say it was difficult.” 32:04 “I love the work of Howard Hodgkin. I’m obsessed with his use of colour.” 32:55 “Just be it, just embody it, don’t be afraid to try new things.” 33:56 Credits
Read our Blog Article: https://www.jacksonsart.com/blog/2026/07/27/artist-insights-studio-lenca/?utm_campaign=ain_studio_lenca&utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=organicsocial&utm_content=youtube_social_organic_video_to_blog
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The music was inspired by the songs Jose and the Jackson's Team listened to while painting during the shoot. Music courtesy of the YouTube Audio Library, except:
Music courtesy of the YouTube Audio Library, except:
J. S. Bach, Goldberg Variations, BWV 988 Performed by Kimiko Ishizaka https://kimikoishizaka.bandcamp.com/album/j-s-bach-open-goldberg-variations-bwv-988-piano
Music: “Romanian Folk Dances, Nos. 1–6” by Gregor Quendel / Classicals.de Source: https://www.classicals.de
Music: “Piano Sonatas K.1–K.20” by Gregor Quendel / Classicals.de Source: https://www.classicals.de
Music: “Il Sospetto, RV 199” by Gregor Quendel / Classicals.de Source: https://www.classicals.de
Recordings may have been edited or shortened for this film.