Guadalupe Maravilla is a transdisciplinary visual artist, choreographer, and healer. At the age of eight, Maravilla was part of the first wave of unaccompanied, undocumented children to arrive at the United States border in the 1980s as a result of the Salvadoran Civil War. In 2016, Maravilla became a U.S. citizen and adopted the name Guadalupe Maravilla in solidarity with his undocumented father, who uses Maravilla as his last name. As an acknowledgment to his past, Maravilla grounds his practice in the historical and contemporary contexts belonging to undocumented communities and the cancer community.

In This episode of Broken Boxes Guadalupe Maravilla speaks with Cannupa Hanska Luger about the current creation story of Mariposa Relámpago, a school bus being reworked into a new healing sound work. The artist reflects how this bus’ artwork journey is becoming so much more including multiple communities involvements, several countries and even a volcano. We hear how migration routes are reflected throughout the visual language of Guadalupe’s practice, including the autobiographical nature of the artist's own migration story as a child. Guadalupe unpacks a bit on how he strives to create sustainable micro economies through his artmaking process and we hear about how his art practice also becomes a vessel of support for new asylum seekers arriving in NYC, while in tandem the artworks provide sound healing for those recovering from trauma, including centering healing for cancer survivors.Rounding out the conversation Guadalupe shares how maintaining wellbeing for mind, spirit and body through daily ritual aids in the strength needed to continue to carry the work and support forward, and emplores us to find time in our daily life to nurture inner health.

Please visit the following link to donate to Guadalupe’s efforts in supporting new asylum seekers arriving in NYC. gofund.me/396e7d27

Artist website: https://www.guadalupemaravilla.com
Artist IG: https://www.instagram.com/guadalupe__maravilla/
Song featured: La Democracia by the artist Very Be Careful