Lez Bats (Sandra de la Loza and Jess Gudiel) — LA Freewaves

Born and raised in the land of the Tongva, aka Los Angeles, Sandra de la Loza is a second generation mestiza whose roots come from the lands of New Mexico and Northern Mexico. Growing up in the shadow of Hollywood, she was aware that the many stories of this land and its people were absent or misrepresented. This discrepancy led her to the realm of art and creativity. Within her artwork, she uncovers and shares the understory of the flora, fauna and people of this land through walks, photography, video, gardening, public works, installations and deep listening.

Jess Gudiel is an LA land based artist rooted in the practice of horticulture, shadow art and puppetry. Gudiel has worked in local schools and art centers for over ten years sharing knowledge of sustainable organic growing while also using shadow art to bring light to youth's creative expression of their interaction with local ecosystems. Jess's more recent Shadow Art work honors the native Tongva in Paviinokre: We Flow, a collaboration with Tina Calderon Tongva and Chumash Culture Bearer and videographer Rosanna Esparza.

Lez Bats create performative, visual, and somatic experiences that reside in subterranean realities and shadow spaces to disrupt settler colonialist built and psychosocial environments.