Favianna Rodriguez (born September 26, 1978) is an American visual artist, and
activist
Activism consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived common good. Forms of activism range from mandate build ...
, known for her work in political posters,
graphic arts
A category of fine art, graphic art covers a broad range of visual artistic expression, typically two-dimensional graphics, i.e. produced on a flat surface, Her artwork topics include global politics, economic injustice, interdependence, patriarchy, migration, and sexual liberation. She worked as a director of the National Arts Organizatio CultureStrike in which writers, visual artists, and performers engage in migrant rights.
Early life and education
Rodriguez was born in the
Oakland, California
Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, California, Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major We ...
in 1978, in the Fruitvale neighborhood. Her parents are Peruvian and migrated to California in the late 1960s. Rodriguez herself identifies as a queer latina with Afro-Peruvian roots. She attended Centro Infantil school in Oakland in her early childhood. In Mexico, Rodriguez became interested in political artwork. Learning from politically-engaged works of Frida Kahlo, she began to identify with both Kahlo herself and her powerful political works.
Fruitvale is a predominantly Latinx neighborhood. Here, Rodriguez experienced and became aware of anti-Latinx racism. She observed that students from her community were under-served by the school system, profiled as gang members, and women of color having negative representation in the media. Rodriguez went to live in
Mexico City
Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...
from age 13 to 15, first with her aunt and then in a rented room. She became interested in politically engaged artwork, learning about the political context of murals, and the work of
Frida Kahlo
Magdalena Carmen Frida Kahlo y Calderón (; 6 July 1907 – 13 July 1954) was a Mexican painter known for her many portraits, self-portraits, and works inspired by the nature and artifacts of Mexico. Inspired by Culture of Mexico, the country' ...
with whom she immediately identified. When Rodriguez returned to Oakland, she began to respond to anti-immigrant and anti-latino policies in California by associating herself with other Latino activists. She began staging walkouts and creating flyers. Her political artistic career began to really take shape. When she was 16, California Proposition 187 was introduced, marking state level anti-immigrant legislation.
After graduating from Skyline High School in Oakland in 1996, Rodriguez received numerous scholarships and chose to attend the
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...
. She withdrew at age 20 indicating she wanted to follow her path rather than limit herself to her parents' wishes. She was inspired by printmaking, introduced to her by Chicana artist Yreina Cervantez, and decided to pursue a career in political art.
Oakland
Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major West Coast port, Oakland is ...
, California. Her designs and projects range on a variety of different issues including
globalization
Globalization is the process of increasing interdependence and integration among the economies, markets, societies, and cultures of different countries worldwide. This is made possible by the reduction of barriers to international trade, th ...
,
immigration
Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not usual residents or where they do not possess nationality in order to settle as Permanent residency, permanent residents. Commuting, Commuter ...
,
feminism
Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideology, ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social gender equality, equality of the sexes. Feminism holds the position that modern soci ...
,
patriarchy
Patriarchy is a social system in which positions of authority are primarily held by men. The term ''patriarchy'' is used both in anthropology to describe a family or clan controlled by the father or eldest male or group of males, and in fem ...
, interdependence, and genetically modified foods. Rodriguez studied the history of political art, including the artwork and graphics associated with the
Black Panthers
The Black Panther Party (originally the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense) was a Marxist–Leninist and black power political organization founded by college students Bobby Seale and Huey P. Newton in October 1966 in Oakland, California ...
and the 1970s feminist movement, through her residency at the
Center for the Study of Political Graphics
The Center for the Study of Political Graphics (CSPG) is a United States non-profit, educational and research archive that collects, preserves, documents, and circulates domestic and international political posters relating to historical and conte ...
in Los Angeles.Rodriguez was drawn to posters and reproducible art like printmaking for their power to educate, organize, and liberate communities.
Rodriguez has worked closely with artists in Mexico, Europe, and Japan, and her works have appeared in collections at Bellas Artes, The Glasgow Print Studio, and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. In 2003, with Jesus Barraza, Rodriguez helped establish the Taller Tupac Amaru print studio to promote the practice of
screen printing
Screen printing is a printing technique where a mesh is used to transfer ink (or dye) onto a substrate, except in areas made impermeable to the ink by a blocking stencil. A blade or squeegee is moved across the screen in a "flood stroke ...
among California-based artists and foster its resurgence. Rodriguez also co-founded EastSide Arts Alliance and Cultural Center, an organization of artists and community organizers intended to promote community sustainability through political and cultural awareness and leadership development. She serves on the board of Presente.org, a national online organizing network dedicated to the political empowerment of Latino communities.
University of California, Santa Cruz
The University of California, Santa Cruz (UC Santa Cruz or UCSC) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Santa Cruz, California, United States. It is one of the ten campuses in the University of C ...
, Santa Cruz, California, U.S.
* 2021, ''New Time: Art and Feminisms in the 21st Century'', group exhibition, BAMPFA, Berkeley, California, U.S.
* 2017 Multicultural Center at the
University of California, Santa Barbara
The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Tracing its roots back to 1891 as an ...
, Santa Barbara, California
*2016 Recipient of the Creative Work Fund Award, San Francisco, CA
* 2016
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (YBCA) is a multi-disciplinary Contemporary art, contemporary arts center in San Francisco, California, United States. Located in Yerba Buena Gardens, YBCA features visual art, performance, and film/video that cel ...
, San Francisco, California, U.S.
* 2015-2016 Museo del Barrio, Manhattan, New York, U.S.
*2011 Recipient of Innovation Grant, Center for Cultural Innovation, Los Angeles, CA
*2010 Inducted into Women's Hall of Fame (Alameda County) in Arts & Culture, Alameda County, CA
* 2007 Recipient of Innovation Grant, Center for Cultural Innovation, Los Angeles, CA
* 2006-2007 Mexican Fine Arts Center, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
*2006 Recipient of the Belle Foundation Individual Artist Award, San Jose, CA
*2005 Art Is A Hammer Award from the Center for the Study of Political Graphics, CA
* 2005 Parco Museum, Tokyo, Japan