Cindy Macias’ introduction to art came through therapy.
After an incident of sexual violence, Macias said she was looking to heal and found art therapy most effective.
The daily outfit checks she posts on her Instagram stories serve two purposes: to show off her latest look and to give her the “ability to feel seen without being harmed,” Macias said.
She continues to draw inspiration from that healing process by making collages or designing and carving out prints.
“I think a lot of my work is meant to comfort a part of me that was hurt,” Macias said.
Her art medium fluctuates from project to project, but they all follow a similar theme of healing her inner self.
“It’s for the child within me, for the teenager within me,” Macias said. “It’s to affirm to myself, ‘that s*** sucked and you’re going to be OK.’”
Every Monday night, Macias teaches a class at Place LB, a volunteer-run community print studio in the Wrigley neighborhood.
Each week, she welcomes artists of all skill levels and helps them decide what project to embark on or gives tips on their works in progress.
She shows beginners how to carve to make a print and how to collage. Her latest art piece features prints of four Bratz dolls on a set of playing cards.
Macias said she her inspiration for the project came from always wanting to own a Bratz doll as a kid. Growing up, she would visit her cousin’s house and play with their neighbors’ collection.
Macias said she was always drawn to Bratz dolls because of “their confidence and their attitude.”
Contrasting from the “put together, clean career girl” that Barbie represented, the Bratz dolls had an edge to them, Macias said.
“They were so sassy,” she said.
Macias also teaches art to children through Stay Arts, a nonprofit organization providing arts education to schools in southeast Lost Angeles.
She said her goal is to expand that teaching to “a bigger scale” and help other victims of sexual violence.
“I want people to be able to trust themselves again or trust the world and others,” Macias said. “I don’t want people to feel alone on their journeys through healing.”