Jackie Valadez is a visual artist, writer and teacher based in Milwaukee, WI. She writes, creates sculptures, books, and works on paper that explore play as a way of understanding ourselves and the world. Drawing from the visual language of toys, craft, childhood iconography, and popular culture, her work considers wonder as a practice of attention and transformation. Valadez earned her BFA in New Studio Practice from the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design in 2019. Her work has been exhibited both nationally and internationally. She runs the bookstore Melon, which focuses on alternative comics, books on visual art, spirituality, philosophy and more.