Daniel Velasquez

I have made art my entire life, but my artistic career started at 16 when I started working with 5 Feet From The Moon, a metal and concrete artist studio in Santa Cruz California. I learned basic welding and metalworking skills, as well as large scale concrete casting. I worked with this studio on and off for six years as I began studying Ceramic sculpture at San Francisco State University. I fell in love with ceramics because the material is so ancient and so human, but I wanted to learn how to work with it on a larger scale. I eventually met a potter named Mattie Leads who makes large scale pottery and incorporates it into the architecture of buildings. Working with Mattie helped me to increase the scale of my ceramics and has changed the way that I seek to incorporate ceramics into the environment. After graduating and pursuing my career as an artist I began working a lot with graphic Design, CNC operated machines, 3D modeling programs, and other types of technological mediums. I developed a studio process of working with technology so that it enhances tangible materials such as clay and the humanity of the media. I am always looking for opportunities to use more diverse mediums and create art that relates to the public on a deeper, more human level. The past two years I have been working as a full-time International muralist. This work has been rewarding because it has allowed me to contribute to diverse communities, and promote creative expression. Lately I have been working with a Gallery and a few different interior designers to start creating living wall art to promote environmental consciousness and healing.