Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area. Today, Emily chats with Javiera Estrada, a Los Angeles based photographer with roots in Acapulco. She currently has an exhibit running at the Jonathan Carver Moore gallery in San Francisco entitled Back to the Future: Life in Technicolor. About Artist Javier Estrada:Multi-media artist, Javiera Estrada, was born in Acapulco, Mexico, in 1981 and emigrated to the United States in 1989. Javiera’s broad scope of work, which includes photography, mixed media, photograms, film, and textiles, is influenced by her memories of growing up in Acapulco—a tropical paradise of vibrant colors, steeped in spiritual ritual and magical realism.  Estrada’s mystical affinity for bridging the gap between the conscious landscape of reality and the subconscious world of the spiritual can be seen throughout her work. Philosophically, Estrada rejects Cartesian dualism and its compartmentalization of the whole, embracing a worldview of interconnectivity and unity consciousness. Artistically, she seeks to unify the mundane and the sacred.  Javiera examines the theme of interconnected consciousness in a multitude of ways. From incorporating female bodies as sculptural forms in organic communion with nature, to creating galactic primordial environments with inks—fluid and formless, structures representing the “prima materia,” original essence of existence. The juxtaposition of shadow and light play a recurring role in Estrada’s explorations as well, representing the internal struggle between the spiritual and the physical.  Estrada describes her artistic process as both frenzied and laborious. The work is multi-layered and time-consuming, a technique she sees as inducing presence, while moving away from the high-speed nature of the digital age. The initial messy, chaotic stage of unknowing is essential to Estrada’s process, as it allows for connection with the deeper, subconscious elements wanting to emerge through the work.     Estrada has exhibited in the United States, Europe (London, Germany, China, Switzerland) and Singapore. In 2020, her solo show in Las Vegas received a Certificate of Special Congressional Commendation for the Arts from the United States Congress. Recently, she was commissioned to create a site-specific piece for the University of St. Gallen in Switzerland. Estrada currently lives and works in Los Angeles.Visit Javiera's Website: JavieraEstrada.comFollow Javiera on Social Media: @JavieraEstradaArtistFor more info on her exhibit Back to the Future: Life in Technocolor visit the Jonathan Carver Moore Gallery. --About Podcast Host Emily Wilson:Emily a writer in San Francisco, with work in outlets including Hyperallergic, Artforum, 48 Hills, the Daily Beast, California Magazine, Latino USA, and Women’s Media Center. She often writes about the arts. For years, she taught adults getting their high school diplomas at City College of San Francisco.Follow Emily on Instagram: @PureEWilFollow Art Is Awesome on Instagram: @ArtIsAwesome_Podcast--CREDITS:Art Is Awesome is Hosted, Created & Executive Produced by Emily Wilson. Theme Music "Loopster" Courtesy of Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 LicenseThe Podcast is Co-Produced, Developed & Edited by Charlene Goto of @GoToProductions. For more info, visit Go-ToProductions.com