This Sunday we’re looking at the artistic process of Judith Baca. Baca is an American artist of Mexican descent, well known as both an art educator and an activist for Chicana feminism. In her art practice, Baca is frequently involved in the creation of large-scale public murals, and is credited with the design and creation of one of the largest outdoor murals in the world, the Great Wall of Los Angeles.

While the outdoor space pictured here isn’t Baca’s studio per-se, it is set up in the same manner as a large and busy studio space. Given how much public art Baca creates, this is probably the style of studio that she spends a good amount of time working in.

In the back of the shot you can see a number of assistants hard at work on the mural, which may be a section of the aforementioned Great Wall. Even though Baca employs numerous assistants it’s always nice to see the artist herself covered in paint and smiling - though Baca’s work has achieved wide popularity, it looks like she still very much enjoys the process of making art.

The large, expansive nature of the work space here is slightly reminiscent of Chris Ofili’s work space for his production  of 2012 Royal Ballet backdrops - a temporary studio set up, but one that still showcased the artist hard at work.

When she’s not at work on a painting or outdoor project, Baca is the founder and creative director of the Social and Public Art Resource Center, a Los Angeles-based non-profit organization that lobbies for the creation of public art and helps protect existing murals, besides being an arts-based education center. 

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