Jorge Roldan is a Puerto Rican artist who goes by the name of ‘Rojo the Artist.’ Originally from Cleveland, Ohio, Rojo moved to Tampa when he was 4 years old. He currently lives in Valrico, but his colorful murals can be found all over Tampa Bay. He discovered his passion to create when he was 15 years old and taught himself how to paint.
“I’ve always been creative for as long as I can remember,” Rojo said. “I started making things when I was a little kid. My mom would mop the floor and I realized we didn’t have a wet floor sign, so I got a piece of cardboard and went to my room to make one for the kitchen floor. When I lost my first tooth, I put it under my pillow, expecting the Tooth Fairy to bring me something. When I awoke the next morning and found my tooth still under the pillow, I immediately started making signs and leaving them all the way from the front door of our house to my bedroom so the Tooth Fairy knew where to find my tooth.”
Rojo eventually decided to quit his sales job when he was 22 and pursued a career of being an artist. He has painted multiple business and residential murals around Tampa. He recently painted a butterfly mural at Seminole Elementary in Seminole Heights to welcome the students back to school for the fall semester.
“It’s something that I love to do and would be interested in partnering with other schools in the area to paint more murals,” Rojo said. “I enjoy doing public art and having my art seen in different areas of the community.”
Rojo also teaches mural art classes at TRIBE Seminole Heights in Tampa.
Rojo hopes to achieve a lifestyle that will allow him to travel and make the world a more scenic journey for everyone to enjoy.
To learn more about Rojo the Artist or if you would like to have him create a mural for your home or business, you can visit his website at www.rojotheartist.com or email him at Rojo@rojotheartist.com.
