Sur Collective is an artist collective founded in 2021 out of a need to create a sense of place and redefine the space Latina artists use as migrant women in Aotearoa, New Zealand. 

Sur-Collective are 5 wahine from Colombia and Chile who work with different art disciplines such as sculpture, drawing, painting, textiles, ceramics, photography and embroidery.

Today I'm speaking with one of the collective artists Cat Guevara, a ceramic artist who migrated to Aotearoa from Colombia 8 years ago.

We have a fascinating chat about how Sur Collective came about and why, how it feels to be a Latina practising artist in NZ and how the collective artists use the arts as a tool to connect, relate and communicate, always with a focus on bringing their heritage and a certain flavour to this land.

The Collective see the all of the work they do a bit like a portfolio: the work they create as individual artists that reflects on the collective, art activations, workshops, their studio space at Corbans Art Estate, installations, artist talks, community projects as well as group and solo shows.

We talk about some of the amazing Sur Collective art activations and community projects they have delivered, the ideas and stories behind the projects, what they hope to achieve from this work and how they engage and communicate with their audience. We discuss their approaches to the funding process and Cat has some great tips for people applying for funding.

Cat talks about her own ceramic art practice and how her work connects back to her heritage, her ancestors and her culture. She shares how she finds living in Aotearoa and NZ people as a Latina wahine and what she has learnt from us, which is super interesting! I am so happy to have had this conversation with an artist and collective who have immigrated to Aotearoa and hope to speak to more immigrant artists who are building community and relationships and developing their art practice here in Aotearoa. 

Sur Collective: Catherine Guevara (Ceramist); Juliana Duran (Visual Artist); Jesu Vasquez (Visual Artist); Lina Castro (Industrial Designer, Embroidery Artist); Romina Ortega (Visual Artist)

https://www.instagram.com/sur.collective/

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