One of Vanessa Shive’s favorite pieces in her upcoming show, Barrio in Technicolor, is a painting of a woman carrying a bouquet of florals on her back. It’s a familiar image — one she has seen at home in Ecuador and throughout the streets of the Mission. “It connects,” she says. The flower she chose to paint is common yet beautiful and personal, one she plans to include in her own wedding bouquet in just a few weeks. The painting, like many others in her show, reflects Shive’s ability to merge the “vibrancy of Ecuadorian culture with the complexities of urban life.”
Since moving to the Bay Area, the Mission District has become a special place for Shive. “It feels like everything that is familiar to me in a little cluster,” she says, describing the food, colorful murals and the relief of being able to speak in her native language. Even though the Mission isn’t predominantly Ecuadorian, she says the historically Latinx neighborhood feels like home. “We face the same issues,” said Shive. “What it means to be Latino in America.”
Born and raised in Quito, art classes were rare in Shive’s early education. In high school, however, her Saturday French class introduced her to impressionist artists. She was taken with the work: “It was so beautiful!” What started as images in textbooks sprang to life during a study abroad trip to France, where she saw the works in person. “It was the happiest I have ever been,” said Shive. The detailed brushstrokes and textures inspired her to imagine a different path for her future, one beyond her earlier career ambitions of law or software engineering. Shive began to consider, what would it look like to do something different?
Determined to pursue a newfound passion, Shive moved to the Bay Area to pursue a degree in Visual Development at San Francisco’s Academy of Art University. There, she developed her foundation in technical skills, critical thinking and ability to “translate ideas into cohesive visual works.” After graduating, she gained hands-on experience working at Local Language, an Oakland-based creative studio, and saw her independent work published in outlets such as Harper’s Bazaar and the Los Angeles Times. She returned to the Academy of Art a second time, now only a semester away from completing her Master’s degree in Illustration. In her most recent coursework, Shive began a deeper exploration of cultural heritage and storytelling.
Shive’s art is rooted in magical realism, where everyday scenes glow with a fantastical twist. “[Magical realism] enables me to depict the richness of cultural identity and heritage in a way that transcends the ordinary,” Shive said. Through exaggerated color, surreal elements and layers of symbolism, her work reflects her experiences while reimagining the familiar, shimmering with the magic of the possible.
Shive draws inspiration from an array of sources. She admires the representation of cultural identity and social struggle in Eduardo Kingman’s painting Los Chucchidores (The Gleaners, 1936) and draws from the bold use of color by American painter Wayne Thiebaud. After working as an illustrator for a wide range of clients with equally diverse aesthetics, Shive is now turning inward, asking, What calls to me? What am I the most passionate about?
These questions guide Barrio in Technicolor, her first solo show, which opened on January 31 and is on view through March 28 at the Juan R. Fuentes Gallery at 2958 24th Street. Featuring a range of mediums — from printed tiles to oil paintings — the exhibition marks a milestone in her artistic journey.
If there’s one thing Shive wants her show to express to the Mission, it’s gratitude. “I absolutely love it. And it brings so much joy to my everyday life. I love the activism, I love the art, I love the people,” she says. And, perhaps more than anything: “Just keep going.”
