b. 1993, Dallas, Texas

Monica Curiel is a first-generation Mexican American multidisciplinary artist, explores the intersection of art and design. Informed by the material sensibilities passed down through her parents' craftsmanship, Curiel employs construction mediums—plaster, spackling paste, wood—to merge traditional techniques with contemporary approaches. Rather than relying on the vibrant palettes often associated with Mexican and Mexican American art, her practice emphasizes texture, form, and inherent materiality, offering a nuanced and embodied representation of her heritage. Curiel’s body of work examines the dynamic interplay between tradition and innovation, engaging with themes of identity, labor, and the visceral experience of cultural inheritance through a tactile language that underscores the physicality of her chosen materials. Her practice articulates a layered understanding of Mexican American identity, deeply informed by labor, memory, and the lived experience of cultural transmission.

The trajectory of Curiel’s artistic development was significantly shaped by her enrollment at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in Los Angeles (2012), an endeavor interrupted by a cancer diagnosis. The subsequent eight years became a period of profound transformation, as Curiel navigated sustained medical treatments alongside a recalibrated academic pursuit spanning fashion, interior architecture, and ultimately, fine art. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Kansas in 2021.

Curiel reflects on her cancer experience as both a transformative trial and a catalyst for the expansive, cross-disciplinary nature of her current practice. As she articulated in conversation with Kit Bernal, “I feel this responsibility to try it all… I think, why not while I can? Let me explore. Let me do it now.” This ethos fuels her dynamic output across painting, sculpture, and collectible design—including seating and lighting—each imbued with strata of personal narrative and cultural resonance. Curiel’s works often function as agents of reinterpretation, re-contextualizing both the spaces they inhabit and the constituent materials themselves.

In 2024, Curiel was recognized on Dwell Magazine’s Dwell 24, and in 2023, she was featured in Sight Unseen’s American Design Hot List. Her work has been presented in notable contexts such as This Is America at Alcova during Milan Design Week (2022) and Art In The Time Of Corona™ on Artsy (2021).

Through her evolving body of work, Curiel seeks to comprehend, articulate, and celebrate her identity, continuously investigating the generative intersections and potential evolutions within the realms of art and design.

Photographed by Paul Miller