About

Dalila Paola Mendez is a first generation Guatemalan/Salvadoran queer artist born and raised in Los Angeles.  At a young age she found herself sitting in libraries drawing from books of birds, horses and comics. She credits Barnsdall Art park classes for igniting her love for both photography and painting as an adolescent.

Even though she began art at a young age she wasn't always able to create art due to life's challenges. Yet whenever possible she would use her 35mm camera or paint brush to explore color and subjects.

When she began teaching in the inner city, she began to understand the importance of living your dreams and doing what you love, something she would share with her students. She eventually left teaching full time to pursue her art.

She is a versatile artist who works in several media including photography, painting, serigraph, and film. In 2012, the film Mosquita y Mari was selected for Sundance Film Festival, a feature film she production designed.  The visual images she creates whether in painting, photography, print work or film communicates stories about nature, urban environments, indigenous cultures, feminism, and social justice.