Long Life to the Creative Force

Along with Wayne Healy, David Botello co-founded the East Los Streetscapers, an art collective that produced murals throughout Southern California. The painterly style he has applied to murals is also visible in his approach to printmaking. In ancient Mesoamerica, Botello finds a philosophical lesson: an elder achieves a peaceful status by balancing the creative force and sense of chaos that the plumed serpent Quetzalcoatl represents. Summarizing the message of the print, Botello has asserted, “We must remain in balance, rest and soothe our hearts, not succumb to desires around us.”