INTERMedio was a project born out of the artist’s journey as an immigrant living in the United States. Raised in a small town in west-central Mexico, Chávez emigrated to the U.S. in 2020, ultimately settling in San Francisco, California. Rather than view these as distinct chapters in his life, the artist seeks to understand how these seemingly disparate places converge both physically and ideologically.

 As someone straddling two worlds, Chávez identifies points where these cultures inform each other and in turn shape his own identity. In selecting his subjects, the artist looks for “places where I find a connection within my history, celebrating differences and a declaration of migratory resilience. ” The resulting images juxtapose sites of his native and new lands, collapsing them into each other and creating an interim space. “This center describes my relationship in the world and how I perceive it–blending my past and my present."  

 Upon first glance, the works appear to be photo collages featuring a singular place rather than two different countries painstakingly rendered in oil paint. This blurring of boundaries and borders is seen in Cathedrals, center? authorities? Guadalajara Jalisco, San Jose California (2020), which depicts the Catedral de la Asunción de María Santísima in Centro, Guadalajara and the Cathedral Basilica of St. Joseph in San Jose, California colliding into the artist’s signature overlapping central plane. The merging of these institutions illustrates the shared histories of religion, art, and power between the U.S. and Mexico. The structures reveal not only the similarities between physical spaces, but also of the people who constructed them and those who operate within them. “We are all building the world, while we build ourselves. Space transforms us, and we transform space.”

In an age of increasing xenophobia, Chávez responds with a love letter to migration and the intermingling of cultures. Rather than be silenced and made invisible, he invites others to celebrate his position in the INTERMedio. “This intermediate place identifies me and dis-identifies me at the same time. The world doesn't divide, it blends.”