Elsa Muñoz

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The Great Turning 4 - Oil on panel, 30x30in

The Great Turning 5 - Oil on panel, 30x30in

Fire Follower Nicotiana - Oil on canvas, 13x16in

Flowers of Rage (after Joy Harjo) - Oil on panel, 30x36in

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Artist Statement

The Great Turning draws inspiration from Joanna Macy’s vision of a global shift from an industrial growth society to a life-sustaining one rooted in interconnectedness. In these paintings, I translate her call for inner and outer transformation through the language of my Controlled Burn and Fire Follower series, where fire becomes both ecological force and spiritual metaphor. Each burn clears space for renewal, reflecting cycles of grief and regeneration. Rooted in spiritual ecology, these works explore sacred reciprocity between humans and the more-than-human world, asking how we might join the turning—not as observers, but as kin carrying seeds of resilience.

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Elsa Muñoz is a Mexican-American artist born and raised on the South Side of Chicago (1983). Muñoz credits her interest in both nature and healing to her experience growing up in an underserved and often unsafe community with little access to green spaces. Having to spend most of her childhood indoors led to the cultivation of a rich inner world in which she was able to find beauty and sanctuary. Her work explores the threads connecting ecology, health and spirituality.