Vanessa "AGANA" Solari Espinoza

Known to the world as AGANA, (American, b.1982) Vanessa Solari Espinoza is an internationally acclaimed multi-dimensional contemporary artist converging traditional large scale murals and contemporary street art. Rooted in her Latinx identity of Venezuelan descent, hailing from the San Francisco Bay Area, Agana paints prolific imagery as calls to action encompassing black liberation, women's empowerment, environmental and racial justice issues. Impactful and intentional to the specific locations they are placed in, Agana’s artistry adds color and light to what would be blight.

From the juxtaposition of being a reality TV show star to fruitful community-building engagement, Agana’s murals have not only been a healing tool from violence in the hood but have actually saved lives. AGANA translates the mural process into cultural work of layered storytelling provoking visibility to otherwise marginalized experiences while stimulating transformative conceptualism for diverse audiences. Agana’s dexterity gives vibrant life to any public surface by spraying gradients of bold and bursting gestures forming iconic pictorial imagery. When the viewers of her work witness relatable reflections of self as painted stories into the walls and borders intended to divide and separate, the context is transformed by connecting and bringing people together.

Agana’s expertise reflects the Pan American experience, premiering at the intersection of graffiti and fine art praxis, communicating common social threads via monumental vision.