In his first solo institutional exhibition, Blood Be Water, on view at ICA San Jose from March 22 – August 24, 2025, Esteban Raheem Abdul Raheem Samayoa presents an immersive installation featuring new airbrushed paintings, charcoal drawings, oil pastels, and ceramics. Drawing from muralism, street art, and Latin American folk traditions, Samayoa constructs a visually striking, deeply personal exploration of heritage, identity, and transformation.
The exhibition’s title challenges the saying “blood is thicker than water,” which prioritizes familial bonds over chosen relationships. Instead, Blood Be Water reflects on the power of community as a form of family, questioning how identity is shaped by both lineage and lived experience. Inspired by the biblical act of turning water into wine, Samayoa sees transformation as a sacred force—one that allows individuals to redefine themselves despite inherited circumstances.
Samayoa’s monochromatic airbrushed paintings and charcoal works possess an ethereal, almost ghostly quality, evoking memories, ancestral ties, and shifting identities. His ceramics and mixed-media pieces incorporate raw textures and organic materials, grounding the exhibition in physicality and tradition. Together, these works form an environment that blurs the boundaries between past, present, and future, inviting viewers into a space of reflection and communal dialogue.
At its core, Blood Be Water is about resilience—the ability to pull through adversity, to embrace change, and to build connections that transcend bloodlines. Through his art, Samayoa creates a space where personal and collective histories intersect, fostering a sense of belonging and self-understanding.
(Pictured: Esteban Raheem Abdul Raheem Samayoa in his studio | Photographer: Cinque Mubarak)
