hi, i'm giselle!

SICK! (03/10/2025)
a diary-style zine about how I was sick for pretty much the entirety of March 2025 through anectodes and sharpie doodles.

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Lifelong Loyalty! (10/06/2024)
a collection of monochromatic illustrations celebrating the special relationships between pets and their humans! previously displayed at Demo Spot's SPILL UR GUTZ zine expo in Sacramento :p

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MOTHERLANDS (10/06/2024)
various lived experiences from my life as a female-presenting Filipino-American from my youth to my college graduation communicated through digital illustration and written text. done in collaboration with a fellow Asian-American artist for the SPILL YOUR GUTZ zine expo in local Sacramento gallery Demo Spot.

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Sacramento State BECOMING Mural (2024)

During my final year of college, I applied to and was (miraculously!!) accepted as a muralist for Sacramento State's mural project which served as an anti-racism and inclusivity initiative. The theme for the year I participated in was "becoming". This was my first and largest-scale piece at 7x30 feet, located at the Ernest T. Tschannen Engineering Teaching and Research building alongside walls occupied by several other talented creatives. Read more about the project and find more coverage on the processes, unveiling, and more at the following:

• Sacramento State Mural Project 2024

Artist's Statement:
As a queer Filipino-American student majoring in Psychology and minoring in Women and
Gender Studies, I’ve developed a thorough understanding that has developed into an adoration
for intersectionality; the concept of the importance of recognizing the compounding identities of
individuals that result in differing life experiences. Through my four years attending Sacramento
State in both virtual spaces and physical, one commonality I have always shared with my peers
is our ultimate goal of graduation. This is reflected in my interpretation of the theme of
BECOMING - while nobody has had the exact same experiences, we all share a dream of this
milestone. The graduates in my proposal are with their younger selves, who are interacting
amiably with who they are in the process of developing into. I wanted to emphasize our pride as
Hornets through the portrayal of these students as jubilantly celebrating their future selves’
success in their own special ways, while they are all connected through the fact that they have
all worked hard to make those futures their realities. This piece also incorporates references to
the four seasons, symbolizing the paradoxical cycle of consistent changes that revolves through
our unique evolutions. I am in constant awe of how many different identities are not only
represented separately on our campus, but are able to coexist and collaborate in a way that
gives me deep optimism for the cultivation of an inclusive campus that encourages Hornets to
become their best selves together.

Acknowledgements
I am so endlessly grateful to Sacramento State for giving me the opportunity to do what I still consider to be my greatest accomplishment, as well as the staff at Blue Line Arts for all their support. I'm thankful for my fellow artists who I had the pleasure of working alongside, as well as all of my friends and loved ones who stopped by to say hi, watch me work, and even helped me paint when they had the time.I'm also deeply appreciative of my lifelong partner Ronnie, who had the patience of a saint through every hour of the process. He served as my driver, heavy lifter, and primary painting assistant even though his cybersecurity expertise attests that this was not his wheelhouse, but did everything he could nonetheless. I love you honey!

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Sac State BELONGING Mural Proposal (2025)

A year after the completion of the Becoming mural, I applied for the next phase of the project: Belonging. Although I was not selected as one of the muralists for the Belonging project, I still had a wonderful time creating a concept that would encompass the message of this final stage.

Artist's Statement:
Although I recently graduated from Sacramento State in May 2024, some of my fondest memories as both a student and a campus employee were the cultural potlucks hosted by the different departments and organizations I was fortunate to be a part of, such as the Peer and Academic Resource Center, the Women’s and Gender Studies department, and more. The concept was that everyone in attendance would bring a dish or snack relevant to their culture, and there would be an allotted time during the event where everyone was able to explain the significance of their offerings. This simple and heartfelt event was essential to both myself and my peers. Whenever I was new to a position or starting a new semester with classmates I had yet to meet, I would always look forward to cultural potlucks or similar activities. It was always nerve-wracking as a queer Filipino-American student to meet people I knew nothing about, but through dishing out adobo and handing out polvoron, I was able to find people both within my identities and bond with peers outside of them. Whether it was on the green outside Riverfront Center beneath the trees or on the shaded patio of the Library, it was always a transformative experience. Overall, these cultural potlucks granted us invaluable opportunities to learn more about one another outside of class discussions and work hours, leading to unexpected connections that I continue to cherish to this day.The concept of institutional servingness to me is perfectly captured by my experience with cultural potlucks; communities are made up of individuals of infinite identities, who all commit to providing for one another and end up receiving unconditional support in return. As we celebrate being an institution full of resource centers crafted with the purpose of uplifting the various backgrounds that our campus houses, it is essential to not only build bridges between ourselves, but to maintain the ones we have built over the years. Similarly to how you share delicious pieces of your culture during a potluck, participating in the compassionate act of serving one another through specialized programs and campus initiatives can strengthen the community care that has thrived through decades of mutual support. Whether it is through actions large or small, any effort to contribute to the interconnectedness the community of Sacramento State cultivates is key. This ensures that Hornets for years to come will harbor the same sense of empathetic, enthusiastic servingness that I have had the joy of witnessing firsthand, and am optimistic that that will be the case for years to come.

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Mural Work for Cares Car Wash (previously Turbo Shine Car Wash)

Every summer since June 2024, I've been doing freelance work for Cares Car Wash in Roseville, CA. I originally reached out after visiting the car was for the first time and seeing their request for artists, which was incredible timining as I had just finished my Sac State mural a few months prior and was missing it dearly.The owner of the car wash requested murals painted on panes of the glass windows in front of the car wash vacuuming station that promoted positive, nature-friendly quotes / messages. My work is in the company of other local artists, and as of this month, I have now completed three murals for Cares. These are on glass panes with the dimensions of about 6x6 feet.My experience with both the owner and the staff of Cares Car Wash has been absolutely delightful! This team truly cares about the quality of their work and engaging with the community through initiatives such as these murals. I'm very grateful that they've commissioned me multiple times over, and look forward to any chance of potentially collaborating with them again in the future!

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