Love Letter to Oakland
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AGANA
Known as “Agana,” Vanessa Solari Espinoza is a multi-dimensional contemporary mural artist, educator, and activist of Venezuelan descent from the Bay Area. Agana began graffiti art at age eleven and joined Visual Element at EastSide Arts Alliance, a restorative justice program that introduced her to mural arts as a tool for community building. Agana creates monumental, site-specific murals that amplify marginalized voices and make calls to action around racial justice and liberation, women’s empowerment, and environmental justice. Her work is rooted in her Latinx identity and reflective of the Pan American experience. Working at the intersection of graffiti and fine arts, she’s known for her bold imagery, vibrant color palettes, expressive spray techniques, and calligraphic gestures. Influenced by her experiences with Visual Element, Agana is a teaching artist and mentor for Oakland youth, helping them tell their stories, raise awareness on issues facing their communities, and envision meaningful futures. She holds a BAS in Animation and Visual Effects from Ex’pression College for Digital Art and has worked in the film, animation, and video game industries. She's a member of women-led artist collective Few and Far. She was featured on the Oxygen television series Street Art Showdown and in the 2023 documentary, The Muralists' Beautiful Pain. Past commissions include SF Giants, SFMOMA, Richmond Art Center, Oakland Museum, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, Chinese Historical Society Museum, Wynwood Walls, HBO, Google, Netflix, among others.
DJ Agana Shopify | Few and Far: Agana