COL is pleased to present Esteban Samayoa: Somethin’ Bout the East on view through July 11th.

Through new paintings, collage and sculpture, Samayoa reflects on the lived realities of communities pushed to the eastern edges of cities through displacement and gentrification. Often labeled as marginal or neglected, these neighborhoods reveal something else when lived in and moved through: resilient ecosystems of culture, food, family-run businesses, and tightly woven community life. Drawing from his own experiences of the “East,” Samayoa presents a group of works that vary in structure, material, and form, mirroring the diversity and complexity of these places. Together, these new works consider survival, adaptation, and the beauty that persists outside the center.

Samayoa (b. 1994) is an Oakland-based artist whose practice moves fluidly between charcoal drawing, airbrushed painting, ceramics, and installation. Rooted in memory and community, his work weaves together his personal history, explores his Mexican/Guatemalan heritage, and process-driven experimentation to explore how meaning accumulates through use, labor, and time. His work has been exhibited widely throughout the Bay Area and beyond, with notable presentations at the ICA San Jose; Charlie James Gallery, LA; Andrew Kreps Gallery, NYC; and Good Mother Gallery, LA.