Bio Summary:
Born and raised in Chicago, Illinois. David is a self-taught artist, identifying as a gay, cis-gender Latino male. David discovered his passion for youth development and community engagement right after high school when he worked as a student mentor and community coordinator, bringing resources and opportunities to high school for teens. David realized that art is a tool, not only for self-exploration, but to also nurture, engage, educate, and spread awareness too. David developed his own programs, “BLOOM”, designing a curriculum that mentors high school teens within identity, community building, and exploring social issues. Funded by After School Matters, David ran BLOOM from 2016 to 2020, roughly serving over 100 Chicago teens per year. David later transitioned, passing the program to his mentee instructors, youth who have graduated from high school and BLOOM, to continue leading the program. While organizing art programs for teens, David has a background in advocacy work, advocating on the rights of equity and equality for the Latinx LGBTQIA+ community, serving as a Board member of the Association of Latinos,as,xs Motivating Action (ALMA), from 2016 to 2022. David became the Professional Development specialist for After school Matters in 2020, creating workshops for professional adult youth educators across the city of Chicago by exploring best practices in engaging teens, and cultivating a safe, warm welcoming space for youth. He balances his career in the non-profit sector with freelancing as an artist and consultant. David works to continue expanding his artwork by collaborating with local community organizations. Additionally, David continues to challenge himself in developing artwork that can be used as platforms for dialogue, specifically within the Latinx LGBTQIA+ community. David sees his artwork as seeds, seeds for thoughts, conversations, ideas. Seeds for healing, and most importantly, seeds for visibility. “To BLOOM, is to embrace all that you are '' - David Gauna.
