Living in the Heart of Empire
Artists whose work is featured in the In Diaspora and Tres Flores Exhibits discuss their work. How does their art comment on, reflect and give voice to immigrant diasporic communities amid the uncertainties of living in the heart of empire?

Artist Biographies

Francisco Franco
Francisco approaches his work by blending dark, human themes with playful visual elements challenges our societal tendency to avoid discussions about death. By bringing the topic into the light with humor and beauty, Franco’s paintings give us permission to laugh at what we all must face eventually. They offer a form of spiritual renewal—a way to come to terms with the unavoidable end through the playful, almost mischievous spirit of art. Thus, Francisco Franco’s work becomes a symbol of healing and self-expression—both for himself and for his audience. His art speaks not just about death, but about the resilience of the human spirit in confronting it, making his pieces not only visually striking but emotionally transformative as well.

Max Marttila
Max Marttila is a fine artist/muralist born, living and working in San Francisco. His work examines urban folklore through a range of mediums engaging with satire, nostalgia, digitalism, street trauma, fashion, crime and resilience.

Safi Kolozsvari Regalado
Safi was born and raised in Santa Ana, California. She has been an artist/muralist based in San Francisco for 15 years, where she graduated from the Academy of Art University with a BA in Fine Arts. Growing up, her artistic abilities were constantly nourished by her mother, a fellow artist, and her uncle, a master muralist. As an artist, she feels it her duty to reflect on the world she lives in. The result is a body of personal work fueled by satire and cynicism. Change and adaptation are a foundation to her art practice, rooted from an upbringing of constant movement, the results are a fluid and changing style. Her work focuses on culture, injustice and current events. Having art as a constant in her life since an early age has driven her to engage in community-based art programs that empower youth and give them an outlet, as her community did for her.

Vida Kuang 鄺楚瑩
Vida Kuang was raised by a Toisan matriarchy and Chinatown. She is a muralist based in San Francisco, unceded Ramaytush Ohlone land. As a visual storyteller, her work centers her communities' movements led by working class women of color for racial, gender, and economic justice. She uses public spaces, audio, illustration, and mixed media as tools for storytelling. Her work has been featured in the SF Public Library, API Culture Center, Mission Cultural Center, KQED, SF MUNI, SF Anti-Displacement Coalition, 41 Ross, Ella Baker Center for Human Rights, Coalition on Homelessness, and more.

Fernando Martí
Fernando Marti is a printmaker, writer, community architect, and housing activist based in San Francisco, unceded Ramaytush Ohlone land. His work reflects his training in urbanism, his roots in rural Ecuador, and his experience of migration and residence in the heart of Empire. His poetry, prints, murals, altar ofrendas and public constructions inhabit the space between Latinx ancestral traditions and a liberatory futurism. The subjects of his artwork often grow from a process of working with communities reclaiming and remaking of space. His artistic home is the political arts collective justseeds.org.