“My name is Yaneris Gonzalez Gomez, also known as Goga. I have been a visual artist for over 20 years, working primarily in graphic and T-shirt design, branding, painting, stencil art, and digital illustration. Since 2022, I have identified as a low vision/blind visual artist.
Yaneris Gonzalez Gomez
I have the honor of creating a piece that tells the story of Blanca Angulo, a blind woman who survived two earthquakes, one of them being the devastating 1985 earthquake in Mexico City.”
The Process: A Transformative Touch
The first step in my creative process is attentive and empathetic listening. As I listened to Blanca recount her experience, I paid close attention to the emotion in her voice and the details she emphasized: coming down from the 14th floor during the quake, falling, and losing her white cane. Some initial ideas start appearing in my mind’s eye. Length, width, depth, time and texture.
Doodling and Sketching
After letting a few days pass and allowing ideas to settle and evolve, I feel ready to begin sketching. Here are some of my initial concepts, created using charcoal on paper:
PAINTING
After considering options to represent Blanca’s story, I decide on acrylic paint on canvas, a familiar material that invites both exploration and surprise as I adapt to my new way of seeing. This medium creates a space where I can work within the realities of my low vision. It challenges me to make the piece as perceptible as possible for people with visual impairments, considering elements like texture and high-contrast colors, and the use of royal blue, which some individuals with low vision as myself can perceive sometimes.
The painting process unfolds in phases. First, I sketch directly onto the canvas using charcoal and pastels. Then, I begin applying paint. To help with the details, I use magnifying lenses and lighting, and I place tactile markers that help me navigate the surface, covering some areas while painting others.
Below are pictures detailing the painting in progress:
The Final Piece
Now take a moment to meditate on Goga’s mesmerizing final piece!
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Praise for the Final Piece
“The picture really spoke to me. I love the canes representing the time. The colors are beautiful.”
“This is fascinating!”
Biography
Yaneris González Gómez (Goga) is a Dominican activist and visual artist. Her greatest joy lies in being both an artist and a social justice advocate, using these roles as tools to resist the various oppressions shaping her reality and identities: as a woman, a lesbian, Black, and disabled. Goga’s work emerges from a place of resistance, rooted in her belonging to a rural and marginalized community and her own survival. Her graphic design has been featured in calendars addressing issues such as HIV, women’s rights, violence, and safe abortion. She also held a solo exhibition in Santo Domingo titled “Trazos de Ellas,” honoring the voices of Black women who have profoundly inspired her.
After a long career as a visual artist using her craft for social justice, Yaneris lost 95% of her vision in 2021. Despite this, her drive and creativity continue to thrive as she explores new ways to express herself in graphic design with assistance, as well as drawing and painting through muscle memory and novel approaches to interpreting the world around her.
Portraits & Portals 