I create art to preserve ephemeral beauty and share the parts of the world I explore, revealing the threads that tie us all together.
You decide who will appear in Artforum Magazine, take home $25,000, and display their work at The Art of Elysium's Salon!
Photographs are my favorite art to create. They immortalize moments that would otherwise be forgotten. To me, a photograph is proof that something was real: a feeling, a place, a person caught mid-becoming. I am drawn to the way a single frame can contain an entire world inside it.
Where do you find inspiration?I have learned inspiration lives wherever attention does, you just have to slow down enough to catch it. I find it in people – my family's history, sacred rituals, the clothes strangers wear, what makes someone stop or rush. And in the versions of me that surface in unfamiliar places, where everything feels a little more alive and a little harder to ignore.
What would you do with $25,000?Continue investing in my art. The world can feel uninhabitable, but artists remind us of the good still hiding in the corners, and that work is my calling. I'd use part of this to keep creating, and donate a portion to an initiative empowering young artists, because I know firsthand how equitable access to artistry and education changes lives.
Vote for Norma Mejia to become The People's Artist while supporting a great cause! Cast your free daily vote or make an even bigger impact when you vote by donation, supporting The Art of Elysium in their mission to use art as a catalyst to help people triumph over difficult life challenges.
Register now for your opportunity to appear in Artforum Magazine, take home $25,000, and display your artwork at The Art of Elysium's Salon.
Colossal is a nationally registered professional fundraiser that inspires people to advocate for themselves and those in need. Through online competitions like The People's Artist, Colossal offers participants the opportunity to make their mark while also making a big impact.