We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Kandelyne Gomez. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Kandelyne below.

Kandelyne , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?

Honestly everything about being an artist is taking a risk one way or another. The risk of thinking out loud or putting your feelings into a palpable state for others to hopefully see and value…. Posting yourself online for others to critique, judge and admire… Or the risk of still creating even when no one’s there buying your art or supporting it. Risk is all that the art life is made up of I feel… but every risk pays off beautifully… I don’t think I’d like this art selling and promoting if there wasn’t so much risk involved.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

Well I’m a 30 year old , chicana native artist. Chichimeca and lipan apache to proudly specify. I’ve lived in San Antonio Texas my whole life and am now bringing up my beautiful family here as well. I have been drawing my whole life, and only professionally painting for about 5 years. My main drive in my art career is to not only live doing what I love, but to provide an example for my boys that their future isn’t set to one way or another. I want them to know what they can follow their passions no matter which way or how late they find them. Also the same example for other Hispanic and indigenous women and girls. We’re capable of creating such beautiful art , music, clothing, etc… we all deserve to feel free to chase these talents. We aren’t meant just to work and die. We’re meant to be more and do more. Leave more behind than just money and items. And art feels like the tool I need to be able to do all of this.
I primarily paint in acrylic paint on canvas, but I love branching out in mixed media, sketches, clothing , murals and more recently digital art.
I love using vibrant colors and golds with beautiful, fun textures. Personally can’t stand the beige, monotone trends happening … I feel our world NEEDS COLOR. NEEDS textures and vibrancy. It needs the chicana touch of a woman and the beautiful vision of indigenous people. It feels like those old cartoons where someone would go over the world with a brush or object and it would go from bland to technicolor. No matter how small my corner is, I’ll fill it with color, our heritage and culture that is Chicano, and the spirit and power of my ancestors.

Some upcoming events I’m thrilled to be apart of are the holiday events at Centro Aztlan for día de los muertos and the Virgen de Guadalupe exhibit. I also have a kids art show and hopefully a solo show coming up in 2026 along with more fun art calls, gallery nights and showcases along the way. I hope to branch into a full time artist in 2026. I’m also excited to share my artistic progress in some works I’ve been working on silently.
A lot of fun things ahead.

One main thing I hope people take away from this or remember about me is that I’m not an artist for the clout. I’m not someone who only wants money. I want to share my visions with people. I want to beautify our world and people’s lives. You’re not dealing with someone who has thousands of followers or deals or faces to keep. You’re buying art from a mom who just wants to be more for her kids and community.

I’m really looking to do more workshops, commissions and event art for this upcoming year so if anyone needs art… let me know!

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

Yes. My main mission , as mentioned before, is to be a catalyst for my children and others. I want my kids to grow up and be literally whatever they want to be. Without any worry if I’ll approve or support. I was brought up with a huge emphasis on college. Test well, go to the best schools to get to the best schools….. but that wasn’t for me. I wanted to make my parents proud, my mom proud… give them someone they can brag about to their friends and my tias…. But long, heartbreaking story short…. That didn’t happen… I wasn’t told it’s ok or there’s other options for me…. Just reminded every possible second I didnt go to school. I felt like a failure. A loser..the family disappointment… which is wild to feel at 18-20 as a fresh momma.
Fast forward to the current me….. I’d never .. ever EVER make my kids feel this way. Feel like their acceptance or success is dependent on my opinions or judgement. I want them to feel completely confident in what they decide. If it be college, art, traveling, selling food, owning a business…. Anything they do I’ll be the loudest one cheering for them even in their losses. The only way they’d ever disappointment me is if they didn’t live in their truths. I could never imagine putting my own insecurities or projections on them. I just hope my becoming an artist shows them there’s nothing they can’t do or shouldn’t do.

This drives me as a person and artist everyday. I love those boys so much. I see them in other kids too and that’s what’s broadening my mission. Every single child deserves to feel safe and encouraged in choosing a creative path… or whatever path! It’s not our life, it’s theirs and our only job is to love them through every path they choose.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

Take chances on us. That’s it lol.

If society would take chances on artists , or even just stop trying to be the next instagram shoot spot … they could elevate their businesses tremendously.
I see so many blank walls , buildings, areas with the perfect potential for murals or art but when businesses approach us it’s like they forgot they started out too.
We’re all grown ups with real businesses. Art isn’t just doodles in class that we give out to put on your binder…. It’s us it’s expression it’s personal.
I had a business reach out for a like 40 foot wall and they were so rigid on the pricing. The whole interaction was just ….. disrespectful.. and I feel they were , like a lot of shops, expecting an artist to just jump at the opportunity. Which is really crappy, but happens SO MUCH. Just because you have a new shop doesn’t mean your traffic will be good enough to have an artist work for free or cheap. It was so crazy to have a negative interaction but hey, like 3 better opportunities came from it lol.
I feel businesses should factor art in their budgets. Yes it’s easy to get your friend just to throw up a wall but your limiting yourself to one artist and audience. Reach out to artists. Offer walls to display art, open your doors to the community the way you wanted them to for you. But please don’t lowball. If you’re not sure ask their pricing, and be brave enough to tell us no not just leave us hanging. We’re people too, people who may feel more than others. Art is accessible for everyone. For every artist that doesn’t align with you there’s literally 10000000000 more eagerly waiting for a shot.

Get art into your businesses. On your walls, at your events. Hire someone to make digital art for an event (cough cough ) hire an artist to live paint while your business runs…. There’s so many ways you can incorporate art into your work while it being lucrative for us all.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.hopp.bio/admsatx?fbclid=PAdGRleANxmAJleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABp5ImHtmUCrtSHZXCujyZ8Z6xztUg7KE7BV2OZRRuPpdiESwfrP5syRQiJyZb_aem_rqEfUzYT4_7zmE1uSovmEw
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amordemadretx?igsh=ZTJ5M2NrYnh1bDNv&utm_source=qr
• Other: [email protected] for commissions and inquiries