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Delaware Division of the Arts
Black-and-white portrait of a woman posing with a slight smile against a plain background. She wears a dark zip-front jacket, hoop earrings, and a long styled ponytail, creating a polished, confident studio portrait.

Dayesla Ixtli

Emerging

Visual Arts: Interdisciplinary

Newark

"My practice as a visual artist is rooted in the transformative use of the human form as a living canvas."

Work Samples

Person posed against a black background in dramatic Día de los Muertos-inspired body paint, with a flower crown and round dark glasses incorporated into the face design. Bright floral details, painted skeletal motifs, and jewel-like decorations create a vivid, theatrical portrait.
Person styled as a Statue of Liberty figure, painted turquoise and wearing an elaborate spiked crown decorated with flowers and embellishments. They hold a floral torch and stand before a blurred American flag backdrop, creating a striking performance or costume portrait.
Close-up portrait of a person with turquoise body paint and bright red lipstick, wearing an oversized headdress made of large colorful flowers that drape over the eyes. Floral elements across the chest and shoulders, along with the dark background, give the image a lush, surreal, and highly stylized look.

About the Artist

Written by Gail Obenreder

The unique artistry of Dayesla Ixtli is deeply informed by ancestral traditions, especially those “rooted in Indigenous and Latin American spiritual practices.” Her multidisciplinary work is committed to “celebrating identity, reclaiming narrative, and igniting dialogue through immersive, community centered art.”

Ixtli was born in Tenancingo, Estado de México, and she moved to Delaware with her mother as a seven-year-old. She returned to Mexico in her teens, living with her grandparents as she completed high school and the first two years of college. In 2007 she returned to The First State and now lives in Newark with her husband and three children, Emilio, Sebastian, and Zyanya.

Unlike many in her field, Ixtli is a self-taught artist whose practice began not in a classroom, but as a vital form of self-care. After her youngest daughter was born, she found that she needed a way to cope with the combination of postpartum difficulties and the stress of the COVID pandemic. She began to spend time fashioning her own artistic makeup, something that gave her a feeling of accomplishment. Ixtli had always been creative, but “it wasn’t until those difficult times that I was truly able to immerse myself and dedicate myself to this discipline.”

In her early work, Ixtli simply focused on learning how to use products and sourcing items for her headpieces. She searched social media platforms for inspiration, finding it in the works of artists like Mimi Choi and Lily Martinez. Now, using body paint, unique makeup, and custom-handcrafted headpieces, Ixtli creates striking works that “blend cultural iconography with fantasy and symbolism.” 

It was only after establishing this creative foundation that Ixtli pursued formal beauty makeup training through online and in-person classes to round out her professional portfolio. Over the past five years, she has been an invited artist whose work has been seen in regional festivals, cultural celebrations, fashion shows, and performance art. She also sometimes appears as a performer, recently evoking The Magic Marigold Catrina, for the “Day of the Dead celebration at the Penn Museum.”

One of the challenging aspects of her practice is the “anxious final moment,” working to ensure that all the elements she’s created – headpieces, accessories, props, wardrobe, hair and makeup – work together “perfectly as one final product.” Seeing the result is always “incredibly rewarding,” and watching the audience enjoy the artistry that she’s created is a “moment of shared wonder that nurtures my inner child.”

Ixtli has found that “everything can be an inspiration … the world around me impacts my search for new ideas.” But her true motivation is found in her children, as she works to impart the message that everyone has a unique and valid path and that “the main goal in life is to pursue something that truly fills you up inside.”

In addition to her artistry, Ixtli is also a business owner, working as a freelance face painter and makeup artist to build the resources that support her creativity. She is deeply grateful that the Division’s Fellowship will help support and expand her current practice. She is exploring new body-safe pigments and organic adornments that will help sustainably align her work. But the award has a deeper resonance for her; it gives Ixtli validation as an artist. “Art is always saving lives, whether it is for the artist or the spectator,” and the award gives her an “essential push” to continue.