Muralist Juana Alicia Is Inspired by Poetry and Magical Realism
Juana Alicia describes herself as “uncompromising.” She has been criticized for being too political, radical, and issue-driven. Based in Berkeley, California, she has created murals, prints, sculptures, and paintings for over three decades. Inspired by poetry and literature, Juana Alicia blends elements of magical and social realism into her vivid mixed-media work. As an artist and activist, she addresses issues of social justice, gender equality, environmental crisis, and the power of resistance and revolution.
Known for her dynamic murals on the walls of storefronts and warehouses, and detailed portraits of political figures such as Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Juana Alicia is a firm believer in the power of art to enact social change. She aims to “humanize public spaces, reclaiming them in order to democratize the public square, and offer visions of a better world.”
As a Latina artist of working-class origins, Juana Alicia often felt excluded from the traditional art world. She was sexually harassed in academic and non-profit settings, and omitted from publications, exhibitions, and commissions. When a colleague included her in a book on Latina artist/activists in California, it had to be published in Mexico because no one would take it on in the US. Despite incidents of gender and racially motivated bias, her achievements include a Fulbright Fellowship, a Woman of Fire Award, a long list of domestic and international residencies, and commissioned murals throughout the Bay Area, as well as in Pennsylvania, Mexico, and Nicaragua.
Juana Alicia quotes Nina Simone to explain how she has remained motivated and engaged over the years. “‘I choose to reflect the times and situations in which I find myself. That to me is my duty.’ And at this crucial time in our lives when everything is so desperate…How can you be an artist and not reflect the times?”
New Book By Katie Love
From Cult To Comedy, A Memoir, by Katie Love
![Author Katie Love: The Comedian Turning Heartbreak Into Humor [Podcast] cover](https://notrealart.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/KatieLove_TwoTickets_3480e51b580ddab4420c3075f139bc39_2000-400x209.jpg)
The year is 1970. The horror soap opera “Dark Shadows” is all the rage, the Vietnam War is raging and nine-year-old Katie, an imaginative and independent latch-key kid, comes home from school to discover her mother’s suicide.
Taken in by her older sister who has recently become a Jehovah’s Witness, Katie is shown an illustration from a bible picture book featuring wild animals peacefully lounging by a pool of water, surrounded by happy people picking fruit. An enticing offer is made: “Katie, this is Paradise. Do you want to see Mom again, happy and living forever? All you have to do is follow all of Jehovah’s commandments and you can be with Mom again.”
Mom happy and living forever? Two tickets to Paradise, please!
So begins Katie’s zealous quest to attain perfection and entrance into a utopian world which promises peace, love, and happiness. She discovers a much darker world. “Two Tickets to Paradise, from Cult to Comedy” tells the hilarious and heartbreaking story of an earnest, bible-toting kid intent on saving the world, and follows her metamorphosis into a boisterous comedian intent on saving herself through the healing powers of humor.
“The voices of the women have often moved me to make images. I work for the future, for my children and grandchildren and theirs.” —Juana Alicia
Scroll through for a selection of Alicia’s poetic work, submitted to the annual NOT REAL ART artist grant. To learn more about our grant program, go here.
Juana Alicia: Website | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter
About the Artist of the Day Series
All artworks have been published with permission of the artist. Our "Artist of the Day" series is a regular feature highlighting artworks from the 100's of grant applications we receive. The "Not Real Art Grant" is an annual award designed to empower the careers of contemporary artists, and this is one way we honor all entries we receive. Find out more about the grant program here.
