Today we’d like to introduce you to Daniela Maria Ferreira Cabeza-Vanegas.
Hi Daniela Maria , it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I was born and raised in Colombia, but my family briefly studied in the US leading me to spend two years learning the culture before we moved back home. In both countries I was regarded as the foreigner; too Colombian for the US and too “American” for Colombia. Belonging was a difficult concept and it only further complicated after I emigrated to the US to study studio art and art history. In this foreign land, where I was told so often that I was foreign, I yearned for home and found I could better understand and frame this feeling through my artistic practice.
My work focuses on the concept of home through botanical sculptures. Nature, unlike humans, does not doubt its roots, instead it draws complete strength and stability from a physical grip to its mother land. This is the strength I envy and I use it as both inspiration and metaphor of that longing to remain connected to my culture, country, and the people I’ve left behind. The work I make is my attempt to create spiritual roots.
After graduating in 2023 from the University of Dallas with my MFA in Ceramics, I’ve been setting up my home studio and creating new work built on the universal experience of longing. I approach it through my history as an immigrant, but every single person, regardless of their nationality, has at least once felt out of place, and in turn they have longed for the safety of Home, be it a location, a people, or a culture. Both these fears and longings have been shared by peoples across time, and when we see that pattern, we can better understand one another and realize that the foreign is not so foreign after all. That is the aim of my work.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I’ve mentioned how leaving home has been an inspiration for my work, but obviously it was also one of the most difficult things I’ve ever had to do. I said goodbye to my mother and father when I was 18 without knowing when I would ever see them again. The only possessions I could bring had to fit into two bags of luggage and the rest had to be carefully carried in memory. The crippling fear of that time, along with the intense solitude was very heavy, but as with my practice, time and work has helped lighten that load.
Artistically speaking, graduate school was another whole struggle! I had to expand my conceptual imagery and I realized I was terribly behind everyone in terms of technique and knowledge. It humbled me quick and pushed me to give everything I had to my artwork, but it was also incredibly rewarding to be beside people who believe wholeheartedly in the power of art to unify and change the world. The time after graduation has also been an ordeal, no one quite prepares you for the artistic shock that happens when you no longer have access to the studio, the critiques and the guidance that were once at your disposal. It’s been an interesting three years trying to make work without access to the University and the people there.
On a societal note, hailing from a Latin-American country always has unfortunate run-ins with racism and xenophobia. I’ve experienced it when I first moved to the US, and I’m horrified at how it’s been allowed to fester and grow under the current political climate. There’s so much targeted hatred and it’s not just exhausting, but incredibly demoralizing, but that’s why I must continue making art; because it can speak truth when others have been silenced, it can unify rather than divide, and it can demand that we become kinder and more empathetic humans.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’m unsure what others would call me in terms of style and practice, but I like to think of myself as a sculptural symbolist; I look to nature to find the human, and I find the divine in the ordinary. Going a bit deeper into my work, creating botanical sculptures isn’t just about assigning meaning to a fruit or making the most realistic flower, I really try to base my work off biological processes in nature and cultural symbols across Colombia and my own heritage. When human behaviors mirror natural processes, layers of symbols cross over and allow for beautiful metaphors. It makes sense that I’d be so fascinated by the science of it as I’m the daughter of a biologist-turned-artist and a mechanical engineer! Both math and biology were seen at home through a very humanist lens and I try to use that approach in my work. I incorporate symbols from sacred geometry, but I also create symbols from my personal heritage until a pattern forms that can overlap from one world into another. For example, when I make a work with the number 3, I allude to the Trinity, a Catholic reference in my upbringing and culture, but it also can refer to Father, Mother and Child, or three daughters, a pattern in my family tree. On that note, even my medium, porcelain, was at one point used by both my paternal and maternal grandmothers. Seeing patterns both in nature and humanity, as well as art and science is incredibly exciting, and being able to connect the patterns feels deeply spiritual.
What does success mean to you?
When that Calendula flower that you’ve made three times before finally looks like she has drawn strength from the earth, breath from the sun, and joy from the rain.
When the stranger sees your work and realizes they share your heart despite not knowing your name.
When audience and artist understand they have both longed for the same safety and are thus bound by the same hope.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.danielaferreiracv.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/danielaferreira.art/
Image Credits
Daniela Maria Ferreira Cabeza-Vanegas
