Guatemala
Artist Statement:
I am a brown woman who wants to see more women that look like me in the art world. In my work, the brown body takes up space on purpose. I want women I paint to hold their own power: exhibit more than just “being spicy” or “well-behaved” passive women. I want them to always charge ahead and rise against their own stereotypes. I am constantly assimilating in American culture, because it’s not made for the brown powerful women that I am or the images that I draw. My work is filled with color, so you never miss it- and the women in it are never dismissed.
Zoraida Palencia was born in Boston and raised by her Guatemalan mother in northern Virginia. As a shy child, she gravitated toward drawing as a form of therapy and was influenced primarily by 80s/early 90s Saturday morning cartoons and Frida Kahlo. Zoraida -"Z"- further pursued art in college, receiving her Bachelor's at Sweet Briar College.
Z’s work has been featured in art shows in New York City and Lisbon, Portugal, and was included in the 3rd issue of the Mujeristas Collective magazine. She debuted in New Orleans with "Matriarchs of the Universe '' as part of Yardi Gras during the 2020 pandemic and recently appeared at an art pop-up, “House of Slop”, with other New Orleans artists.
Her current style continues to be influenced by Frida Kahlo, but she’s recently been inspired by Mayan symbolism and the experiences of her ancestors.