Artist Statement
The transformation of matter is a mirror to the transformation of the soul. Like clay, people are malleable—shaped by pressure, by care, by circumstance. We are, at every moment, matter in constant change.
My dual art practices include ceramics and social practice. Much of the latter is in prisons. These two vocations are deeply entwined. In clay, I question. I doubt. I (re)search. I reflect on life’s contradictions, fragilities and strengths. In prison work, I find echoes of the same, raw, urgent, and real. Both spaces hold trauma and transformation at their core.
Existen muchas formas de encarcelamiento: emocional, psicológico y estructural. Creo que el arte ofrece una resistencia suave, una forma silenciosa y persistente de recuperar la humanidad. Es un lugar donde la vulnerabilidad se convierte en fuerza y la expresión en supervivencia.
Through touch, through fire, through form, I explore what it means to change, to endure, and to become. My work is not about perfection, but presence. It is about listening to ourselves, to the material and to each other. It's about hearing and being heard. It's about spaces for the soul to develop.
Education
2019 MVA, Master in Art Direction, VIU University, Valencia, Spain
1991 Ceramics, Escola Sant Jordi, Barcelona, Spain
2002 MCER B2, Alliance Française, Guatemala
1991 Ceramics, Escola Sant Jordi, Barcelona, Spain
1988 BA, Interior Design, ELISAVA, Barcelona, Spain
Professional Experience
2013-25 CARE Method, Yoga and Meditation in Prisons, Guatemala & Barcelona, Spain
2021 Founder and director: www.prisonyogacare.org
2015 Cofounder and Director CORE Foundation: www.core.org.gt
2013-21 Cofounder and Director Poderosas deja tu huella, Empowering Women, Guatemala
Awards/Grants/Fellowships
2025 Arquetopia, Puebla, Mexico
2024 TXC, Jingdenzhen, China
2022 Women in criminal Justice award, Springfield MA, USA
2022 Keramik, Karlsruhe, Germany
2021 Tandem: Ceramic Artist Exchange, Neumünster, Germany
2020 Guldagergaard, Denmark
2020 Rah, Iran
2019 Member of the AIC, Ceramics International Academy, Switzerland
2018 Shigaraki Ceramic Park, Japan
2017 Institute de la Marionnette, France
2016 Artistic Meditation Retreat, Peace Revolution fellowship, Thailand
2016 Artist of the Year, Hemeroteca Nacional, Guatemala
Select Solo Exhibitions
2024 Heart Containers, TXC Jingdezhen, China
2023 Pillars, Sol Del Río gallery, Guatemala
2020 NAOS, Sol Del Río gallery, Guatemala
2019 Nests, Sol Del Río gallery, Guatemala
2019 Muñecas, Espacio Alternativo Proyecto Poporopo, Guatemala
2018 Muñecas, Galería José Gorostiza, Embajada de México, Guatemala
2016 Muñecas, Art Gallery Univesity Rafael Landívar, Guatemala
2016 Muñecas, Yingee Ceramic Museum, New Taipei, Taiwan
2015 A.las, Primo Piano gallery, Venice, Italy
2014 A.gua, Modern Art Museum Carlos Mérida, Guatemala
2012 A.las, Galería Ana Lucia Gómez, Guatemala
2009 A.pelo, Galería Patrick Dumken, Cadaqués, Spain
2009 A.pelo, Casa Santo Domingo, Antigua Guatemala
2008 A.pelo, Galería Ana Lucia Gómez, Guatemala
Select Group Exhibitions
2023 Virgen Morenita, BACS Biennale, Menton, France
2023 Muñecas, JUANNIO, Guatemala
2022 Ashes, Ariana Museum, Switzerland
2021 Guardians, JUANNIO, Guatemala
2021 Human and Animal SCCP, Shigaraki, Japan
2021 The Shape of Wine, BACC award, Rome, Italy
2021 Silence, N.A.C.E. Navarre, Spain
2020 Naos Maquettes, X Changchun Ceramic Symposium, Changchun, China
2019 Life, IX Biennale Talavera, Spain
2019 Nests, JUANNIO, Guatemala
2019 Naos, Equinox, Los Angeles Califonia, USA
2019 Nests, JUANNIO, Guatemala
2018 Nests, XX Biennal Cerveira, Portugal
2016 Batea, America’s IV Clayfest, Roseville, USA
2016 Muñecas, Self Identities, Laura Haber Gallery, Buenos Aires, Argentina
2015 Muñecas, XII Biennale Manises, Spain
2014 A.gua, Arte en Mayo, Fundación Rozas-Botrán, Guatemala
2014 Battle Horses, Spectrum Miami Art Show, Winwood, Miami, USA
2013 IX Florence Biennale, Florence, Italy
2013 A.gua, Art Palm Beach, María Elena Kravetz Gallery, Palm Beach, USA
2013 A.gua, Art Expo Toronto, Invited artist, Toronto, Canada
2013 A.gua, Arte en Mayo, Fundación Rozas-Botrán, Guatemala
2013 Battle Horses, Fundación Rozas-Botrán, Guatemala
Select Performances
2019 Our footprints in the world, Anima Mundi, Venice, Italy
2019 Our footprints in the world, Pottery Slam, Tel Aviv, Israel
2017 Our footprints in the world, UNIS, Guatemala
Commissions
2023 Naos, large scale public sculpture, Chengdu, China
2022 Mosaic mural, La Teca, Public Library, Guatemala
2021 Mosaic mural, residential complex, Guatemala
2019 Mosaic mural, INPA, Manaus, BRASIL
2018 Mosaic mural, Farming Art Studio, Rajasthan, India
2017 Mosaic mural, Ionian Center for the arts, Kefalonia, Greece
Lectures, Presentations, Workshops
2024 Lecture, TXC Jingdezhen, China
2024 Naos, conference at AIC, Portugal
2021 Naos, conference at ACC, Barcelona, Spain
Video Channels
Estefania Valls Urquijo (youtube.com/@evuart)
Prisión Yoga Care (youtube.com/@prisionyogacare)
Collections
NAOS, Changchun Ceramic Museum, China
ASHES, Ariana Museum, Switzerland
ROZAS BOTRAN private collection, Guatemala
Gallery Affiliation
Sol del Rio Gallery, Guatemala
English 
Spanish