City of San José

Kaory Santillan

Kaory is an indigenous (Wixarika and Na’ayarite) scholar and visual artist with a focus on ceramics. She was born in Tepic, Nayarit, Mexico before migrating to Los Angeles as a young child. Their art is informed by their cultural background and lived experiences. Their work and research include identity formation, media representation, systems of communication, and environmentalism as they relate to indigenous futurism. Kaory is a recent graduate of the University of California, Berkeley earning degrees in Media Studies and Art Practice in 2022. Her work has been included in various programming by the art department including extro-introspection: senior thesis exhibit (spring 2022), forgiving the forgotten (fall 2022) honors exhibit at Worth Ryder Gallery. Their work has also been featured in the larger Bay Area at the Berkeley Art Center, Marin MOCA, Empire Seven Studios in San José and works/sanjosé. The artist currently resides in unceded Tamien – Muwekma Ohlone land/San José, California.