Today we’d like to introduce you to Valeria Maldonado

Hi Valeria, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.

My name is Valeria Maldonado, and I’m a Peruvian textile artist and architect based in New York City. My journey with art began at a very young age, when I would sculpt with Play-Doh and paint the walls in preschool, exploring my creativity instead of joining recess. When I turned 18, I wanted to pursue a career in fine art, but my father suggested architecture as a more stable choice. I followed that path and earned a Bachelor’s degree in Architecture, which I was proud to achieve, but my passion for fine art never left me.
In my twenties, everything changed when a friend introduced me to embroidery. That moment ignited my love for textiles, sparking a deep obsession that led me to pursue an MFA in Textiles at Parsons School of Design. During my time there, I discovered my unique artistic voice and developed a practice where I could fully express my identity through textile sculptures.
Today, I’m grateful to live and work in New York City, where I continue to create new work that blends my love for architecture with my passion for textiles. My sculptures represent the full circle of my experiences, merging different parts of my journey while reflecting on the broader human experience and the passage of time.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?

It definitely hasn’t been a smooth road. Going through my architecture degree was challenging, filled with sleepless nights, tight deadlines, and a constant fear of failure. There was little room for error, and it pushed me to my limits. I’ve always been stubborn, determined to prove to myself that I could succeed, even though my passions were elsewhere.
After graduating and working in the architectural field in Peru, I faced a deeply embedded patriarchal system. As a young woman, it was difficult to navigate the industry, where I often felt unheard, underpaid, and oppressed. This experience really shaped my desire to create work that challenges the patriarchal nature of architecture. I started to explore a new way of creating spaces—through a feminist lens—where creation, collaboration, nurture, and acceptance are central. I wanted to question how we discuss the spaces we inhabit from a maternal perspective, focusing on care and inclusivity rather than domination and control.
Another significant struggle was trying to make textiles self-supportive, to hold their own shape and space like architectural models. It became an obsession, and it sparked my artistic practice, helping me merge architecture and textiles into something entirely my own. These challenges ultimately defined my voice as an artist, and my struggles have become the foundation of my creative journey.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?

In my artistic practice, I specialize in creating textile sculptures that explore both physical and symbolic spaces, blending my background in architecture with my passion for textiles. My work stands out for its use of traditional techniques, such as tapestry weaving, coiling, and basketry from the Peruvian coast, which I reinterpret with a contemporary twist. These methods allow me to construct three-dimensional forms and internal spaces that reflect themes of containment, protection, and the maternal strength of nature.

My Peruvian heritage is a major influence on my material choices, as I often use natural fibers like alpaca yarn, sisal rope, and junco, along with clays and ochres to evoke textures reminiscent of natural landscapes, such as rock formations. A key inspiration in my work is the dynamic relationship between the ocean and the rocks on Peru’s coastline—an interplay between fluidity and structure, which is mirrored in the forms I create.

What sets my work apart is the way I fuse textiles with architecture, reconfiguring space from a feminist perspective. I’m proud of how my sculptures, which I call “Gentle Structures,” challenge the boundaries between softness and structure. These works reflect my exploration of how humans inhabit space and encourage contemplation about growth, transformation, and the human experience.

The crisis has affected us all in different ways. How has it affected you and any important lessons or epiphanies you can share with us?

The Covid-19 crisis was a turning point for me. It gave me the opportunity to reflect deeply on what I wanted to pursue and pushed me to focus entirely on textiles. With the isolation and uncertainty, my anxiety was high, which led me to start therapy—a journey that continues to this day. It significantly improved my mental health and helped me heal.

The pandemic taught me valuable lessons about resilience and strength. It highlighted the importance of human connection, showed us not to take life for granted, and emphasized that our health and the well-being of our loved ones are what truly matter. This period helped me re-evaluate priorities, both personally and artistically.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.valeriamaldonado.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/valeriamaldonado_studio/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/valeria-maldonado-morales/

Image Credits

Photography Credits: Jason Greenberg