Meet Carlos Alvarez Cotera | Fine artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Carlos Alvarez Cotera and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Carlos, why did you pursue a creative career?
I believe I was born with the intention to one day be an artist.

From a really early age I was always drawing and drawing. As I grew up I became involved in pottery painting around the age of 16 and from there I was drawn to paint on canvas and never looked back, I was hooked.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
My work has evolved over the years. I am 57 years old, so I have been painting for over 40 years now.

I was very inspired early by the surrealism of Salvador Dalí so I went the rout of surrealism at 16 and continued painting in that style for a while. At the same time I was working at the time as a ceramic decorating artist which was a wonderful opportunity given to me by a wonderful lady in Costa Rica who own the ceramic complex.

My style changed around the age of 32 when I had the opportunity to be represented by a gallery in Key West, Florida which required that I change my style to then create cityscapes of that city and I really don’t regret it since it is a privilege to be in a gallery such as the one I was in.

I didn’t completely give up on painting the style I loved but I was doing more realism than surrealism for a while. My proudest moment was entering a competition and I got to paint a surreal painting which was awarded the top prize of $10.000.

I was also very proud while I lived in Florida to own and run a gallery/frame shop for 2 years before I moved to North Carolina.

I now find myself in the studio painting abstraction. I dabble in abstract painting over the years but as of late I find a strong inspiration to create more freely. It is like a more spiritually inspired creation.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
To be honest, I’m more of a home buddy but if my friend were here I’d take him to my studio of course but they might not be interested in art at all.

We would go out to eat, probably a Thai or Mexican restaurant; there are plenty of both and maybe at night go to a bar on a Saturday.

I do enjoy going to Asheville so we might go there. Plenty of great galleries and good food.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I never went to school to study arts, I was just very excited to draw since I was little and I have never stopped drawing since.

If there any credit to be given, I would say it was a book; a beautiful book about Salvador Dalí, a famous Spanish artist who painted surrealism. I was in awe of his work. So much so that my first oil painting I created at the age of 16 was a replica of one of his paintings.

Website: artcotera.com

Instagram: artcotera

Facebook: Carlos Álvarez Cotera