ODESSA, Texas — If anyone can picture doing what they love, it’s Madison Guerrero.
“I realized I wanted to become an artist more or less when I was probably ten years old. I was always kind of pushing it aside because I was like that's not going to pay the bills. I came to the conclusion I was like no, this is what I love to do and I shouldn't do something I love every day for the rest of my life,” Guerrero said.
She picks up some of her inspiration from her Hispanic heritage.
“Yes, I do just because I feel like the Westerny and like Mexican side of it. I feel like that feel kind of goes into some of my art,” said Guerrero.
Her talent seems to have rubbed off from family.
“My dad and my grandpa do draw. They've been drawing since forever too. So it's just kind of been down the line,” Guerrero said.
She also pulls inspiration from her aunt.
“I have an aunt and her name is Tina Fuentes. She was the art director at Texas Tech for a long, long time and she's very known in Santa Fe. We have a very artistic family. So she's definitely somebody that inspires me,” said Guerrero.
It's her vision for other women like her to draw a path for their future too.
“I hope to bring awareness, more awareness to female Hispanic artists. I think we need a lot more Hispanic female artists out there,” Guerrero said.
It's in art class at UT Permian Basin where she feels free to express herself.
“They always never try to restrict you from, you know, your mind and how you want to create your art and who, like, how your art represents you. So definitely they are always encouraging you to be the best. Not what they want you to be, what you want to be,” Guerrero said.
Madison is definitely making a mark, and not just on canvas. You may have seen her creation driving around town on the health department's mobile unit.
“Some family friends recommended me like the ad like hey, you should do this. This would be a really great opportunity. And I was like I’m not really a graphic design person, but I still ended up doing it because why not just try it out? So when I got picked for it, I was like oh my goodness, like, this is big. This is cool. My name is getting out there. That's what I want it to be. So this is just like another step to getting out there and getting my name put out and hopefully becoming bigger,” said Guerrero.
She’s already laying out plans for what she wants to do next.
“A mural maybe in a big city, or maybe just for the university, just a mural for sure. I would love to do that. If I can do stuff for our community, whether it's paint the library or just something like that. I would, I would definitely love to do that. Not just for me to sign it at the bottom, just to know I'm helping my community, bring art into our community,” Guerrero said.
Madison also envisions a space for artists just like her.
“I would definitely tell them do not hold yourself back. Do not give yourself limits because as female Hispanics, we can do it,” said Guerrero.
Madison says she would like to become an art professor at UTPB so she can help other artists flourish.