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Born and raised in Spain, Luisa López Celada is an award-winning oil painter whose works have been exhibited on both sides of the Atlantic and are featured in prominent international collections.
Recognized for her exceptional and early talent, she was awarded the National Painting Prize when she was just 12 years old. She earned an MFA from the Complutense University of Bellas Artes, Madrid. She later received the FULBRIGHT Scholarship, which enabled her to pursue further studies in New York City at Pratt Institute, where she completed her second master’s degree.
Luisa initially embarked on a dynamic career in advertising, serving as Art Director for McCann Erickson’s international accounts. She crafted comprehensive global corporate design strategies for various clients, including governmental and financial institutions and consumer industries.
She later founded i-Latina, a design firm aimed at helping US companies reach Hispanic audiences through advertising, marketing, and brand communications.
She discovered a means to nourish her passion for painting alongside her professional pursuits at The Arts Student League (ASL), where she dedicated years to painting alongside esteemed artist Robert Cenedella. She garnered numerous accolades at ASL, including the prestigious RED DOT AWARD.
In addition to painting, Luisa organizes networking events, which she started as President of the Women in Design Group at The American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA) in New York. She is passionate about encouraging and empowering women to learn from influential people in the art world.
After confronting a health challenge, Luisa decided to shutter her design firm to prioritize her art, well-being, and life’s purpose. In 2012, she began her full-time painting journey at her Lower East Side of Manhattan (LES) studio.
Her paintings have been exhibited at Art Galleries in Soho, the LES, Chelsea, and ART BASEL MIAMI. Encouraged by positive recognition at ART BASEL and after receiving the NYC ARTISTS CORPS AWARD, she focused entirely on her artistic endeavors and facilitating art therapy.
In March 2024, she was one of the three selected artists for the ‘Women’s Herstory Month’ exhibition at Gracie Mansion, where her paintings were exhibited all month long. She also showcased and co-created life at the ‘Cherry Blossom’ exhibition in Washington, DC, hosted by Victor Gallery. Most recently, Luisa hosted a panel at AP Space, a prominent Chelsea Gallery, where she led a conversation about the iconic legacy of women in the art world.
As a longtime New Yorker, she is profoundly inspired by the city’s diverse and vibrant communities, which play a central role in shaping her artistic vision. Her latest paintings reflect her deep-seated commitment to spark constructive dialogue about contemporary global issues related to climate change, the migrant crisis, and women’s rights. Her paintings foster awareness, understanding, and empowerment surrounding these pressing issues.
Luisa continues to emerge as a recognized and respected artist. Her collectors include a member of the Whitney Museum board and other high-profile figures. Her work is currently showcased alongside influential, celebrated artists in the global market, including James Rosenquist, Jeff Koons, KAWS, Roy Lichtenstein and Andy Warhol.
Connect with Luisa and follow her on Instagram @ilc.arte to stay updated on her latest projects and exhibitions.
Artist Statement
Luisa Lopez Celada’s paintings are inspired by the cosmos as well as her emotions. Above everything, they are born as a result of her need for introspection. Luisa’s process is one in which she submerges in the collective consciousness in order to transmit her very own sentiments and passion, coded through color, light and movement. Luisa is a firm believer in the therapeutic effect of art making. Her practice frames her role as a painter not as a means toward a final artistic object but rather as of channeling her creative energy in ways that awaken healing, guidance and blessings.
Luisa’s process reflects her personal connection to her inner world. Her application of oil paint is intuitive, and doesn’t stop at the use of brushes, sometimes leading her to working with palette knives or her own hands. Ultimately, painting is an intimate experience in which her feelings are processed. She paints from her heart and soul.
Her work also shows the responsibility she feels to create a constructive dialogue about contemporary and global events, addressing human tensions, climate change, migrant crises and women rights. Exhibiting her series Human Conflict at Art Basel Miami 2015, the press declared her “the only artist addressing important topics,” despite the fair having attracted thousands of artists from all over the world.
