Daniela Salgado - Colombian-born Artist, Entrepreneur, and Storyteller (Founder Daniela De Art3, 44k Followers)

“Our stories, like my art, are never just one thing—they’re constantly evolving, unfinished, and beautifully messy.”

Q. Your journey from Bogotá to the U.S. and your experiences as an immigrant deeply influence your art. How do these personal stories shape the themes of melancholy, memory, and belonging in your work?

My journey from Bogotá to the U.S. at 17 was more than a geographic move, it was a profound shift that challenged my sense of self and forced me to redefine belonging. That tension between two cultures, my Colombian roots and my American present, often weaves itself into my work as themes of melancholy and memory. 

My art explores what it means to carry your homeland in your heart while forging a new identity in a place that is or isn’t always welcoming. In every piece, there’s a conversation between past and present, an honoring of where I’ve come from and where I am going. 

Q. Your sculptural paintings combine multiple mediums and create a unique language of texture and depth. What drew you to blend these forms, and how does this hybridity enhance your storytelling? 

The choice to blend mediums is an instinctual way for me to capture the layers of my own story. Migration, memory, and healing aren’t linear journeys; they’re textured and complex. 

My sculptural paintings allow me to translate that emotional complexity into physical form. Each layer, each texture, becomes a part of the story, sometimes soft and inviting, sometimes rough and raw. 

This hybridity reflects the many facets of identity and experience that make us human. It’s my way of saying that our stories, like my art, are never just one thing; they’re constantly evolving, unfinished, and beautifully messy. 

Q. As a self-taught artist and entrepreneur, what were some of the biggest challenges you faced building Daniela De Art3, and how have these shaped your artistic vision? 

Building Daniela De Art3 has been a journey of learning to trust my vision, even when it didn’t fit the mold. One of the hardest challenges was navigating an industry that often values trends over authenticity. 

There was always that voice of doubt, wondering if I was “good enough” or if people would understand what I was trying to say. But I realized that my real strength was in telling my story honestly, in Spanish and English, and creating a space that wasn’t about fitting in but about standing out through vulnerability and creativity. 

These challenges taught me that art isn’t about perfection, it’s about presence, about the courage to be seen in your rawest form. That’s the heartbeat of my brand: truth, connection, and healing through art. 

Q. Your art beautifully bridges Colombian cultural motifs with contemporary American influences. How do you balance honoring your heritage while embracing your current environment in your creative process? 

For me, it’s never been about choosing one culture over the other, it’s about weaving them together to create something new. My Colombian roots give me a sense of color, rhythm, and tradition that grounds me, while my life in the U.S. has opened up new ways of seeing and expressing. 

In my creative process, I’m constantly asking: How can I honor the land and language of my childhood while also embracing who I’m becoming here? That balance shows up in the textures, colors, and forms of my work, it’s a dance between memory and possibility, between the past that shaped me and the present that propels me forward. 

Q. Art and poetry are sacred languages for you. How do these two forms interact in your creative expression, and how do they help you navigate complex emotions? 

Art and poetry are two sides of the same coin in my work, they’re both ways of speaking the unspeakable. Sometimes, the brush says what words cannot; other times, poetry gives voice to what color alone can’t convey. 

Together, they help me navigate the complexity of being human, the sadness, the longing, the moments of joy. I often write as I paint, letting the flow of language guide the movement of my hand. 

It’s a sacred dialogue: the image speaks, the words respond, and somewhere in between, I find my own healing. My hope is that others can find theirs too. 

Q. If you could create your dream artwork without any limitations, be it materials, size, or theme, what would it be like, and what story or emotion would you want it to convey? 

If I could create without limits, I would build “La Vida de Daniela” an installation of over a thousand artworks, each piece a labor of love and a testament to my history, woven together into one living tapestry. 

This wouldn’t just be an exhibition; it would be an expansive, immersive experience that invites you to step into my world, my story of migration, memory, and healing. 

Imagine walking through a space where sculptural paintings rise like whispers of my past, where poems adorn the walls in both Spanish and English, and where the sounds of Colombian music blend with the hum of American city streets. 

It would be a place to feel the textures of my journey, to hear the echoes of my roots, and to sense the quiet resilience that has carried me forward. More than a gallery, it would be a sanctuary, a space that gently declares: you are not alone in your search for Who am I? 

My dream is for every visitor to see themselves reflected in my story, to feel that even in our differences, we all share the same longing to belong, to love, and to find beauty in our struggles. 

Bio

Daniela Salgado is a Colombian-born artist, entrepreneur, and storyteller whose journey from Bogotá to the United States at the age of 17 has profoundly shaped her creative identity. 

As the founder and CEO of Daniela De Art3, she creates immersive artworks and content that blend memory, identity, and healing, transforming personal experiences into universal stories of resilience and belonging. 

Daniela’s work is known for its striking hybridity: sculptural paintings that merge textures and mediums, layered with bilingual storytelling and poetry. Her art is a sanctuary for those who feel caught between worlds, offering a space to navigate the complexity of migration, memory, and transformation. 

Her project “365 Days in My Life” a daily video documentation of her life as an artist and CEO, has become a testament to her unwavering discipline and her mission to inspire others to chase their dreams and embrace their own journeys.

Graduating with a Bachelor’s in Studio Art from the College of Charleston in 2021, Daniela took her passion beyond the canvas to build a brand that fosters genuine human connection. 

Through her work, whether it’s an original painting, a poem, or a video, she invites viewers to pause, feel, and see themselves in the rawness and beauty of her story. What sets Daniela apart is her commitment to authenticity. 

She does not create to follow trends, but to reveal truth, transforming the chaos of emotion into a visual language that speaks to the heart. Every piece she makes is an act of courage, a celebration of her Colombian roots, and a reflection of her unwavering belief that healing and beauty can be found even in the most challenging moments. 

For Daniela, art is more than craft, it’s a mission. It’s about turning love into legacy and creating spaces where people can see themselves reflected in her journey, finding hope, connection, and the gentle reminder that we are never alone.

Connect with Daniela on Instagram

Discover more of Daniela’s paintings at Daniela De Art3.

Interviewed By Irene Elina Eldhose