Issis Macias

May 09, 2025

Issis Macias, a self-taught artist and the daughter of Mexican immigrants, was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. Her creative journey is deeply rooted in community and shaped by the diverse array of artists she has encountered throughout her life.

Through her intuitive, abstract practice, Macias explores personal experiences, memory, and the healing of generational trauma. Her work transforms the intimate into the universal, offering vibrant visual expressions of resilience and transformation. Now based in Madison, Wisconsin, Macias maintains strong ties to Los Angeles through ongoing artistic collaborations.

Macias was named the 2025 Latina Artist of the Year and is the recipient of the 2024 Micaela Salinas Artist Fellowship, sponsored by Latinos Organizing for Understanding and Development. She is also a 2023–2025 Bridge Work artist at Arts + Literature Laboratory, a 2023 Forward Art Prize finalist, awarded by the Women Artists Forward Fund, and a member of the Madison Art Guild. Her work is held in private collections across the U.S., Mexico, and Europe.

See more of her work: https://www.issismacias.com/