ANA GONZALEZ-GALVAN
Ana Gonzalez-Galvan born 2007, Washington, D.C. native, is a painter and storyteller passionate about capturing the depth of human experiences through portraiture. Her work explores identity, humanity, and untold narratives within a broader societal context, often incorporating elements of her Mexican heritage and intricate patterns. Deeply interested in the ways environments, systems, and history shape individuals’ lives, she uses art as a tool to amplify unheard voices and critically examine the structures that define society. At the core of her work is a fundamental truth: at the end of the day, we are all bones.
My Art
My work weaves together history, culture, and empathy into a tapestry that celebrates our shared humanity. At its center I am inspired by José Guadalupe Posada’s 1930 engraving. Originally conceived to lampoon the ostentation of Mexico’s Porfirian elite—whose silk finery belied the suffering of the masses—La Catrina now resonates as a symbol of reclamation and resistance. In our own era, when economic and political power rests ever more heavily in the hands of a few, her defiant grin reminds us that beneath our differences, at the end of the day, we are all bones.
By placing everyday individuals in the language of presidential portraiture—complete with its symbolic regalia and compositional gravitas—I democratize the honor of legacy, granting to all what was once reserved only to some.
Each one a single grain of sand on an immense beach. Here, I explore “sonder”, the humbling awareness that every passerby carries a life as vivid and complex as your own, complete with hidden passageways of memories, dreams, and struggles. Through bold colors inspired by my heritage, patterns, and vibrant cultural motifs, I invite the viewer to pause and recognize that those “random” faces in the crowd each hold an incredible journey and message, in all the tapestries that drape behind, their story lies within symbols.
This series is my introduction: a call to look beyond surface distinctions and see what lies all around us. It is both a celebration of individuality and a testament to our profound connectedness. And as these works remind us, no matter how varied our lives may seem, at the end of the day, we are all the same.