Bruja Prieta is a revolutionary trans, non-binary spiritual artist and activist based in Mexico City. By channeling her feminine energy, she creates enticing, magical depictions of human gender and sexuality. When she is not expressing herself via her art, she is a dedicated activist in LGBTQIA+ communities within her city, constantly fighting to have the voices of transgender children acknowledged.

Bruja Prieta is an astonishing example of how we can all make use of what we have to express ourselves and make a difference. From her humble beginnings, she has grown into a force to be reckoned with, and she is only getting started. We went on an adventure with the artist to Desierto de los Leones in Mexico City, Mexico, where we had the opportunity to envision the creative in an atmospheric, mystic setting that was once an operating convent.

How did your journey into artistry begin?

I have been drawing and creating for as long as I can remember. I studied communication so I have always been interested in expressing what I think in different ways. I started illustrating fashion, but when I realized that there was no POC and LGBTTTIQA+ representation I believed that it was necessary to give us a voice and tell our stories with our own resources.

So, I started creating self-portraits, working with my friends, painting, doing some photoshoots, poetry, workshops, creating parties, and djing. Now I see myself as a mixed media artist, I use the resources I have to materialize my ideas.

Your art is incredible, exploring a range of themes including decolonization, trans rights, and the importance of ancestry. What are the key messages that you are looking to convey with your pieces?

The conception of our lives is important told from our own words and colors, the mass media in Mexico (and the rest of the world) have historically caricatured and ridiculed our identities. This cis-tematic thing called colonialism limits our way through the world and reduces the human experience to being heterosexual and binary, so the importance of safeguarding the collective memory of our trans ancestors is important to have a free path for ourselves and for the new LGBTTTIQA + generations. It is really meaningful to know that we can all create different narratives with art without the need to be in a museum or gallery or having “art skills” or rich parents.

Exploring future worlds is a large part of your work. How far away do you think we are from achieving these potential future worlds?

Nothing far away, the future is already happening, we have to use weapons in our favor, this system wants us dead.

What mediums do you most enjoy using to express yourself as an artist?

I like everything, I can be analog and digital, it depends on my possibilities and what is in my hands, with whom I work, and whatever the purpose.

Were there any artists or creators who played a significant influence on your development of style?

Everything that surrounds me, not just people, as a neurodivergent person everything creates a stimulus for me and I think I transform it into something positive. It’s therapeutic.

Can you share more about your involvement in Divas Nos Queremos?

Divas nos querems is an initiative that supports trans artists and activists who have been directly affected by COVID-19, created by Sofia Moreno’s “s + s” project and Anobis García’s “Baby Ratta” project, my role here is to manage social networks and create a support circuit for us. 

You have protested in Mexico City with Infancias Transgenero A.C., an association dedicated to accompanying transitions of trans children and adolescents in Mexico. Can you share more about the importance of this protest to receive reform from the government? 

The “Ley de infancias y adolescencias* trans” is a reform that seeks that minors who identify with a gender other than the one assigned to them when brought before the Civil Registry can change it on their birth certificate, in order to be registered with the name and gender with which they recognize themselves. The reform was approved by the United Commissions for Administration and Procurement of Justice, and Gender Equality on February 14 (2019), and in the last two sessions it has been relegated, despite the pressure exerted by parents of transgender children, LGBTTTIQA+ groups, and the legislators who promote this law.

It has been 20 months and the reform continues without being discussed in the CDMX congress. Trans children exist and matter, trans children cannot continue to wait for the guarantee of their right to identity, CDMX is not a city of rights as long as they are not guaranteed for everyone.

You previously shared an Instagram post with the caption “no hay futuro sin magia” (there is no future without magic). How does the embodiment of magic guide your spirit day by day?

All the time, life is an eternal and sacred ritual full of magic; our words are spells, our thoughts and dreams can be portals of energy as our own bodies. Let’s start to think we’re energy and we cannot share ourselves with all the world: mind and mouth have power.

As a tarot reader, what do you see in the cards for this coming month?

In my reading: the tower, five of cups and ten of wands, which for me symbolizes a great constant change, the world we knew no longer exists, we are evolving physically and spiritually in a very fast way and with a lot of uncertainty. The great changes are always accompanied by a strong shake; it is not the end of the world, it is the beginning of a new one where our voice matters.

How can people continue to support you and your work?

Buying my art, commissions, designs, and paintings, sharing what I do in my profiles @brujaprieta, @paraiso_artificial, @circulodedibujoparasanar, @wwwcoyota, https://linktr.ee/jovxn

Credits

Photographers: Sahar Nicolette @theyshootthem & Gustavo Oliver. @g.0liver

Stylist & Creative Director: Tibor De Laminne @tibordelaminne

Makeup Artist: Juan Peralta @juanperaltamakeup

Location: Desierto de los Leones

Featured brands: Scent @shopscent, Juan Worley @juanworleymx, Alejandra Quesada @ale_quesada, Pixie Shop @pixie__shop, Guillermo Jester Mx @guillermojestermx, EGR @egrbyegr, TUZA Jewelry @tuzatuzatuza