Gabriela Cayetano learned early that art could say what she could not. Creating came to her like breath itself, driven by instinct, necessity and survival.
Raised in Mexico City by parents who were artisans, Cayetano grew up in a home where feelings moved through hands rather than words. When she crossed the U.S.-Mexico border at 16 with her sister, that instinct followed her. English came slowly. Safety never felt guaranteed. Speaking up often felt impossible. So she created drawings and paintings.
Now living in Fresno, Cayetano’s work is rooted in immigration, memory and resistance — not because she set out to make “political art,” but because her life has always been shaped by politics…