Drawing beyond the layers: An artist’s story on identity, belonging and finding her place
On a quiet Saturday afternoon in her live-work studio, Karina Vazquez works on a drawing that will easily become her favorite.
It’s a self-portrait—a close-up portion of her face as a baby.
She blends in the lips, creating a soft, subdued look that matches the innocence of the subject. It's colored in a light, pastel, almost eerie shade of green—reminiscent of a label placed on her a long time ago.
She plans to scrawl the word “ALIEN” on top.
Staring at her younger self, Vazquez, 35, may recall what it felt like coming to the U.S.—foreign, unwanted, and unwelcome.
Now, as a self-taught artist, muralist, and illustrator with 14 murals and several artworks completed in Long Beach, Los Angeles, and beyond, Vazquez’s work challenges that narrative and draws a window into universal themes of immigration, womanhood, identity, and struggle.
Born in Guadalajara, Jalisco, in 1990, Vazquez came to the U.S. at around 8 years old.
She bounced between Long Beach and Antelope Valley, learning English in public schools.
Vazquez recalls the first time she heard the word “alien” in newscasts.
“As a child, it was like, ‘Wait, what? Aliens are not from this planet; I am just not from this country.’”
Although she struggled with belonging, one thing was constant: drawing.
“She had a giant chalk kit and would draw on the sidewalks as a kid,” her sister Zulema Vazquez said.
As she worked in office jobs throughout her 20s, she found herself doodling on Post-its while on the phone. Eventually, those doodles turned into sketches, colored illustrations, and painted canvases.
Over the years, she honed in on her craft, making friends in the Long Beach scene who encouraged her to publicize her work.
“Long Beach has such a special place in my heart,” she said. “It made me.”
Vazquez would frequent Hops & Vines, a liquor store on Third Street where Long Beach artists would gather, mingle and sell their work.
She made her debut at the Long Beach Art Walk around 2018, selling prints, canvases, T-shirts, and stickers.
“By the end of the Art Walk, she had the best setup of all of us,” her friend and fellow artist Nat Iosbaker said.
Another friend recommended Vazquez to an employer, and she started working as a studio assistant for an artist in Downtown L.A.
“It all just evolved. I didn’t plan for it. I didn't think I’d be where I am now,” she said. “It’s just something that kind of happened because I just fell in love with art.”
2019 was when things “really started” for Vazquez.
She painted her first mural at Homeland Cultural Arts Center in Cambodia Town after being recruited by a local artist.
“I had two little girls that were just so in awe, and they helped me paint a little bit,” Vazquez said. “Being part of the community in that way—I think it’s like a huge part of it. That's where I also fell in love with murals.”
From there, the projects kept coming.
In 2021, she completed “Esencial,” a mural in Canoga Park paying tribute to essential workers during the pandemic.
“I’m like, ‘Oh, maybe I can make my parents proud,’” she said.
Since then, Vazquez has completed several public murals, participated in group exhibitions, collaborated with other artists, and sold her work online.
At her studio, Vazquez often works late into the night, staying up until 3 or 4 a.m. working on a piece.
Braids are a recurring symbol in her art, connecting to her Mexican heritage.
“A lot of the things that identify me to Mexico are kind of just distant memories,” she said. “The woman with the braids is kind of my way of reaching for that connection… It's a way to connect to my cultural history.”
Vazquez hopes to continue adding to the pool of Mexican identity, diversifying what it means to be Mexican beyond sugar skulls and Day of the Dead.
“I want my work to be more universal… finding other ways to show my Mexican roots to show the public that ‘hey, it's more than just this,’” Vazquez said. “Being Mexican has so many different levels and layers.”
