Guadalupe Maravilla’s Volcanic Rock Sculptures Invoke Resilience and Regeneration

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  • Dec 13.

Guadalupe Maravilla’s Volcanic Rock Sculptures Invoke Resilience and Regeneration

With the region’s smallest geographic footprint, El Salvador boasts the second-highest number of volcanos in Central America. The country is located on the Ring of Fire, a tectonic band that encircles the Pacific Ocean and houses about two-thirds of all volcanos worldwide. Given its eruptive landscape, much of the soil is rich in ash.

In a series of sculptures, Guadalupe Maravilla (previously) draws on his home country as he sculpts backpacks and enlarged hands from volcanic rock. The works reference the artist’s migration from civil war-era El Salvador as an unaccompanied minor, a traumatic journey that remains a central theme in his practice.

a concrete hand sculpture holding a rectangular form with a birthday cake and o candle, blue snack, symbols, rabbit, and corn painted on it. lightning bolts are painted on the fingernails
“Luz y Fuerza” (2024), oil on volcanic rock, 14 x 14 x 4 inches

A trio of pieces, titled Dream Backpacks, refers to “how we immigrate to the U.S. by land and carry everything we own in a backpack in search of the American Dream,” Maravilla writes in a statement. Embellished with pink, purple, and blue paints, the poignant works display a variety of charms—feathers, a small cat figure, and metal details like a spigot—the artist collected while retracing his childhood route.

Other works take the form of a burly hand cradling smooth shapes featuring pieces redolent of retablos, small devotional paintings often invoking protection during times of hardship. Lightning bolts, stars, and snakes recur throughout the compositions, along with references to the artist’s colon cancer diagnosis, which he has long linked to the trauma he suffered as a child.

December 12 is special to Maravilla and titles one recent work featuring linked wishbones, crystals, and the children’s rhyme “Sana, sana, colita de rana,” which translates to “heal, heal, little frog’s tail.” As Maravilla shares on Instagram, “On 12/12/12 I found out I had cancer. 12/12/13 I overcame cancer. Today, I am starting a new chapter 12/12/24 with a special meditation.” Similarly, a cake with a “0” candle appears in “Luz y Fuerza,” which resembles a pastry the artist once used to celebrate both his birthday and what he considers his rebirth as cancer-free.

Citing resilience amid struggle, Maravilla’s sculptures call on healing and regeneration. Volcanic ash, after all, is one of the most potent natural fertilizers and a key factor in sparking new growth.

Maravilla is represented by P·P·O·W Gallery in New York, where you can find more of his work.

a hand sculpture with wishbones, sparkles, a hand holding a lightning bolt, a hand painted with various symbols, numbers, gems and text painted on
“12/12/24” (2024), oil on volcanic rock, 13 3/8 x 13 3/8 x 4 1/8 inches
a concrete backpack with a pink mouth and an orange feather
“Dream Backpack 3” (2023), volcanic rock and objects collected from a ritual of
retracing the artist’s original migration route, 16 1/4 x 12 x 4 3/4 inches
a concrete sculpture of a hand holding an angular form. symbols, hands, and snakes are painted on
“Self Love” (2024), oil on volcanic rock, 13 3/8 x 13 3/4 x 4 7/8 inches
a concrete hand with a figure with a flame head riding a blue stingray and holding a pink lightning bolt painting in the palm. "back" is painted on the fingernails
“Heal Seven Years Back” (2024), oil on volcanic rock, 13 3/8 x 13 3/4 x 5 1/2 inches
a concrete backpack with two blue feathers, a black cat sculpture perched on top, and a gem medallion dangling from the handle
“Dream Backpack 2” (2023), volcanic rock and objects collected from a ritual of retracing the artist’s original migration route, 16 1/2 x 12 1/4 x 4 1/4 inches
a concrete hand sculpture holding an ovoid form. a character with shackles and flames for a head, a frog, a hand holding green plants are painted on
“Sana 7 Años Atras” (2024), oil on volcanic rock, 14 1/8 x 14 x 4 3/4 inches
a concrete hand sculpture cradling a round form with a snake painted in the center
“Si No Sanas Hoy Sanarás Mañana” (2024), oil on volcanic rock, 13 3/8 x 14 1/8 x 4 3/8 inches
a concrete hand sculpture cradling a circular form. paintings of hands, text, and various symbols cover the concrete
“Sana Sana Colita de Rana” (2024), oil on volcanic rock, 14 1/8 x 13 3/4 x 4 7/8 inches

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