Local Artist Feature: Silvia Lopez Chavez

Featuring Silvia Lopez Chavez | Photo Credits of Dominic Chavez

By Anita Goharfar, Columnist

Photography by Dominic Chavez

Photo Credits of Dominic Chavez

Perhaps you’ve walked past Ryder Hall and glanced at the intricate hands holding a paper crane. Or you’ve exited Ruggles station to be welcomed by jubilant bubbles and brightly-colored clouds. Or, on a stroll along the Charles River Esplanade, you’ve came across the multitude of patterns bringing the underpass of a highway to life.

These iconic works of public art are that of Boston-based interdisciplinary artist Silvia Lopez Chavez. Chavez is a studio artist and muralist who is formally trained as a graphic designer and illustrator. She combines her education with her passion for painting to deliver beautiful, provocative public art that enlivens the walls of Boston.

Chavez’s works are one of a kind. She draws inspiration from the Arts and Crafts movement, music and poetry, and Austrian art that mixes line drawings with graphics and illustrations. Bold and bright colors, natural motifs of flowers and plants, and highly detailed patterns are distinct qualities of Chavez’s work.

“I’m a colorist for sure. I love color. The color in my work is very much influenced by my upbringing back in the Dominican Republic...the nature, the flora and fauna, all the way to architecture and the way people wear clothes. Everything is an explosion of color,” Chavez explained.

And although a recognizable style is crucial to establishing an artistic identity, Chavez’s artwork draws from urban spaces as much as it delivers to them. “I really want to understand the context of the space,” Chavez said.“That particular wall [where a mural is to be painted], where is it located? How is the light hitting it? Who uses that space? What happens there?” Her approach is one of awareness — understanding the story behind each surface and painting a picture that helps people connect to the space and to each other.

Patterned Behavior is a public art project along the Charles River Esplanade that celebrates the day-to-day life of the people who live on the Boston waterfront. Notably, Chavez employs an all-female crew on large projects such as this. Boston has a vibrant art scene, but women artists often remain underrepresented. As a successful muralist, Chavez uses her platform to enable others. “I tend to prioritize [employing women],” she explained. “I think it’s just a way for us to take up more space in this realm as women. Literally.”

In the process of painting Patterned Behavior, her team was definitely noticed. “When we first started painting, people were like, ‘Are you a female construction company?’ They see that we’re all women and immediately you know that people are paying attention,” Chavez said. Unfortunately, unsafe conditions and harassment are a reality female artists have to face, especially when working long hours on urban projects. With an all-female crew, there is safety in numbers.

Photo Credits of Dominic Chavez

Photo Credits of Dominic Chavez

In September 2020, Chavez was commissioned to paint a mural for SeaWalls Boston Artists for Oceans initiative to bring awareness to climate change and its effects on our oceans. Chavez’s mural is located at the Boston Harbor Shipyard in East Boston and is reflective of her upbringing. She approached this commission with a mindset of environmental consciousness, something she associates with her upbringing in the Dominican Republic and being the daughter of an active environmentalist.

The mural is a tool for storytelling that pays homage to the native and Latinx community of East Boston and addresses the issues of climate change and sea level rise. “I call the piece Rise,” she explained. “[There is] this woman who is both surrounded by water, but in some way or form she is still able to manage — in a calm and powerful way — to help, by caring for this North Atlantic whale and pulling this net of debris.” Chavez hopes that as people spend more time looking at the mural, they continue to uncover new meanings. Rise is a story of awareness, but it is also an optimistic outlook to a future brought about by change.

Photo Credits of Dominic Chavez

For Northeastern students, Chavez’s work is part of their daily commute. The Joy mural, completed in spring of 2019 at Ruggles, is a continuation of 999 Cranes, painted the previous year on the adjacent wall. “The lines that flow from the upper part of the hand holding the crane, I wanted to bring them back into the wall and that’s how the movement started happening from the right hand side to the left,” Chavez said. 

She painted a different energy on the Ruggles entry facade, one that is influenced by her experience as an artist-in-residence at the Boston Children’s Hospital. “The whole idea came about because some days were so hard, working at Children’s. It was so sad seeing kids be so sick… and sometimes, kids dying,” Chavez recalled. “That shuttle ride from the hospital to the train station was ten minutes where you just sit and think about all the things that happened throughout the day.” 

The mural represents the long-held tradition of a bubble parade at the hospital for children who are discharged after treatment. With bright, colorful paint, she hopes to cheer up the artists, staff, doctors, and even students who come across this wall in their daily lives. “It’s the idea of being able to — even though we all experience hardships — find joy in the small things, and find moments that help us get through those times,” Chavez said. ”Whether it’s a student going through finals and stressed out, or a staffer or resident, my hope is to bring some wondrous joy into their day.”

As Boston’s art scene continues to grow, artists like Chavez find more opportunities to share their craft and receive support from the city. “It is something I say with pride, that I am a full-time artist in Boston,” Chavez said. She remains true to her roots in the Dominican Republic as well. 

“I would love, love, love to paint a mural — or a few — back home. There’s this positive outlook towards life in the people of the Dominican Republic that I really value. I would reflect on the people, the culture, and the music.”