Latino Catholic artist designs Logo for the V Encuentro

Cristobal Almanza, Soulpainter, lives in Austin, TX with his wife where he has been a freelance designer and artist since 2005. Cristobal was born in the U.S. and grew up in a small country town called Muleshoe located in the Texas panhandle. Cristobal has also been involved in ministry since 2003 coordinating and leading retreats for parishes, private schools, and other religious organizations. Cristobal is a graphic designer and traditional art is his passion. He works with many forms of new media and design primarily for digital formats, and has experience with design for print. Cristobal graduated from The Art Institute of Colorado, and also attended St Mary’s University in San Antonio and John Cabot University in Rome. He speaks English and Spanish fluently and speaks conversational Italian.

"I am passionate about the value of beauty and faith, and give presentations for all ages about the need for beauty and evangelism through art. Being Roman Catholic is as much an inseparable part of who I am as my Mexican roots and Texan heritage. All three enrich my identity and influence most of my artistic works. I actively promote the need to increase beauty through sacred art and music."

He is excited to be the selected artist and expresses,

"I love the opportunity to bring a voice of today’s American Latinos while respecting the concepts of the past visual identity of the Encuentros. Representing the visual language of our faith and culture for the V Encuentro is an honor and blessing.

Dr. Patricia Jiménez, Co-chair for Communications stated,

"Since the majority of U.S. Latinos are born in the United States, it is fitting that a U.S.-born Latino Catholic artist would be selected as the designer for the V Encuentro logo. Cristobal did a beautiful job of capturing the spirit of the previous Encuentros while presenting a logo that is also modern and appealing to younger generations."

Cristobal was one of three artists recently asked to submit a logo that captured the theme of the V Encuentro. His submission was presented in two versions for voting to the National Team and Regional Chairs. 2016 © ENAVE. All Rights Reserved.