La Jefa Celebrates Culture Through Painting
Phoenix artist Kathryn Sesma, better known as La Jefa, is excited to announce her inaugural solo art exhibition “La Vida Es Un Carnival” which translates to Life is a Party.
Friday, November 3rd from 6pm-9pm at Luna Culture Lab 803 East Washington Street in Phoenix. Admission is FREE. “La Vida Es Un Carnival” will take gallery goers through a kaleidoscope of colors and perspectives that defines La Jefa’s artistic world. La Jefa’s art uses Dia De Los Muertos and Mexican culture influence as the influence as subject matter through the vibrant realm of mixed media paintings adorned with glitter. To learn more visit @lajefapaint on Facebook and Instagram.
Friday, November 3rd from 6pm-9pm at Luna Culture Lab 803 East Washington Street in Phoenix. Admission is FREE. “La Vida Es Un Carnival” will take gallery goers through a kaleidoscope of colors and perspectives that defines La Jefa’s artistic world. La Jefa’s art uses Dia De Los Muertos and Mexican culture influence as the influence as subject matter through the vibrant realm of mixed media paintings adorned with glitter. To learn more visit @lajefapaint on Facebook and Instagram.
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00 Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, is coming up on November 1st and 2nd, and local
00:05 Latina artist, La Jefa, utilizes Dia de los Muertos in her art.
00:10 Well, now she's opening her first solo exhibit and is showing us how to do some fun Dia de
00:16 los Muertos art.
00:17 Okay, I love it.
00:18 I love saying it.
00:19 Let me say it one more time.
00:20 Dia de los Muertos.
00:21 Okay, so, Catherine is your real name, but you go by La Jefa, which I love, which means
00:26 the boss, right?
00:27 Yes.
00:28 I love it.
00:29 I love it.
00:30 It's a pleasure.
00:31 So, tell us a little bit about how you kind of got into creating this amazing art.
00:34 Sure.
00:35 I started painting about 15 years ago when I was about eight or nine years old.
00:40 My mom just came home with a canvas and was like, "You know what, just paint."
00:43 Yeah.
00:44 As a hobby, I think, just to keep me busy.
00:46 I painted on and off again throughout high school, a little bit through college, but
00:50 it really wasn't until the pandemic when I was furloughed from my job that I remembered
00:56 that this was a hobby of mine, and I had a box of paint in my closet, and I was like,
00:59 "You know what, I'm going to paint."
01:01 And I've been painting every day since.
01:03 Wow.
01:04 And I've been a full-time artist since January of this year.
01:06 Yeah, we were just talking about that, that you left your full-time job at the end of
01:10 last year because your business was just blowing up and you were just doing so well with La
01:16 Jefa paint, which is so cool.
01:17 So, I love that you're inspired by, obviously, the Dia de los Muertos imagery, but you also
01:23 say that you're inspired by people like Lisa Frank and Betsy Johnson, which is where you
01:26 get these bright colors, this glitter.
01:29 It's just so fun and festive and adds a whole other layer to it.
01:32 Tell me a little bit about that.
01:33 Sure.
01:34 I mean, I'm a '90s baby.
01:35 Yes.
01:36 I grew up not too far from Arrowhead Mall, and they had a Lisa Frank store, and oh my
01:43 gosh, I used to drag both my parents in there.
01:45 And just the bright colors, and I know Lisa Frank is an Arizona girl, and yeah, I was
01:50 just super inspired by her, very inspired by Betsy Johnson's pattern.
01:54 She was really big in the 2000s and the '90s.
01:57 Absolutely.
01:58 And so, that was something that I really just wanted to incorporate in my art, that inspiration,
02:03 but also my culture.
02:05 I paint what I know.
02:07 And so, I really love the Dia de los Muertos.
02:10 I love the glitter.
02:12 All my skeletons have gold teeth.
02:14 Oh, cool.
02:15 So, it's kind of like my signature.
02:16 Yeah, I love that.
02:17 So, I try to keep that on there.
02:19 Thank you.
02:20 That's really fun.
02:21 Okay, so you're going to teach me how to do something a little similar to your style today,
02:26 right?
02:27 Yes.
02:28 So, we're going to be doing a little heart canvas.
02:31 I wrote Arizona Daily Mix on here.
02:33 Look at this.
02:34 This is amazing.
02:35 And we do have the cheetah print.
02:37 I didn't bring glitter with me, but you can absolutely glitter them at home.
02:41 I love it.
02:42 And we'll make it colorful and fun.
02:43 Yes.
02:44 Okay, so this is one I'm working with.
02:45 So, I pre-drew this one for you.
02:46 Thank you.
02:47 She knew I was starting out at a deficit, so she's helping.
02:51 I appreciate that.
02:52 So, what's super easy about this, so really what I start off with, and I use the Posca
02:59 paint markers, just because they're not as messy as paint, and you're able to just layer
03:06 on the colors.
03:07 So, I usually start just by drawing a heart.
03:11 And I just-
03:12 Give us that outline, sure.
03:13 Yeah, I give the outline.
03:14 And then I do, like, really just a little squiggle on top for the flame.
03:20 And then from there is when I do the banner.
03:22 So, I just kind of draw a semi-circle on top, and then match up the lines, and then match
03:30 up the bottom.
03:31 So, this is so great, so fun and easy.
03:34 And are some of these kind of pieces going to be at your show?
03:37 I am going to have a few of these pieces there.
03:39 Okay.
03:40 That's on November 3rd.
03:41 Tell me a little bit about that.
03:42 Yes, so the theme of the show is La Vida es un Carnaval, since it is the day after Dia
03:50 de los Muertos, because, you know, we see life as a party, and the afterlife as a party
03:57 as well.
03:58 Right.
03:59 So, I am going to have 40 pieces on view.
04:03 And are those going to be for sale, or are they all commissions?
04:05 A majority of them are going to be for sale.
04:07 Some of them are on loan.
04:09 Okay, and where is that going to be again?
04:10 It's going to be at Luna Culture Lab.
04:12 Great.
04:13 Downtown Phoenix.
04:14 And I am going to have 15 never-before-seen pieces as well.
04:18 Oh, so that is absolutely a reason to come out, just to see some more of this amazing
04:21 work.
04:22 This is so great.
04:23 I'm so excited.
04:24 And it is party attire encouraged.
04:26 Perfect.
04:27 Because it does give the viewers a chance to kind of dress up and have fun, since it
04:33 is a party theme.
04:35 That is so great.
04:36 So, that's November 3rd at Luna Culture Lab.
04:38 Luna Culture Lab.
04:39 That sounds great.
04:40 Do people have to get tickets, or can they just show up?
04:41 It is open to the public.
04:42 Oh, I love it.
04:43 Oh my gosh, and you can come see some of these amazing works that we have here.
04:47 Those new pieces.
04:48 This is going to be great.
04:49 So, mine is definitely not looking like yours.
04:51 I can teach you how to do the cheetah print.
04:55 We only have about a minute left.
04:57 So, can you do that really quickly for me?
04:59 Yeah, absolutely.
05:00 So, if you want to pick a color.
05:01 I'll do this one.
05:02 You want to do red?
05:03 Okay.
05:04 So, I'll kind of show you here.
05:05 So, we just do, I just do like a little squiggle, and then a little squiggle on the inside,
05:11 and I just make them thicker, and just kind of round them out.
05:15 That's perfect.
05:16 And I just keep going in different shapes and different patterns.
05:20 And that is your cheetah print.
05:23 Fantastic.
05:24 Easier than I thought.
05:25 Well, you know what?
05:26 This sounds so great.
05:27 Go check out her website and her Instagram to find out more information about La Jefa
05:30 and about her show coming up.
05:31 Stick around guys.
05:32 We have more of the mix coming up after this.
05:33 All right, I'm going to go ahead and get my phone.
05:34 I'm going to go ahead and get my phone.
05:35 I'm going to go ahead and get my phone.
05:36 I'm going to go ahead and get my phone.
05:37 I'm going to go ahead and get my phone.
05:38 I'm going to go ahead and get my phone.
05:39 I'm going to go ahead and get my phone.
05:40 I'm going to go ahead and get my phone.
05:41 I'm going to go ahead and get my phone.
05:42 I'm going to go ahead and get my phone.
05:43 I'm going to go ahead and get my phone.
05:44 I'm going to go ahead and get my phone.
05:45 I'm going to go ahead and get my phone.
05:46 I'm going to go ahead and get my phone.
05:47 I'm going to go ahead and get my phone.
05:48 I'm going to go ahead and get my phone.
05:49 I'm going to go ahead and get my phone.
05:50 I'm going to go ahead and get my phone.
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