Claudia Espinoza-Farfan

Photomedia

Claudia Espinoza-Farfan is a Melbourne-based designer and photographer whose work bridges the realms of visual storytelling and cultural representation. With a Bachelor of Design and a Minor in Photomedia, Claudia draws upon her experiences as a third-generation immigrant woman of colour to inform her creative practice. Her artistic vision is deeply rooted in celebrating the diversity and richness of cultural identities, particularly those of women of colour, whose stories are often overlooked.

Claudia’s projects, such as Miss Understood and Banshee, reflect her fascination with the intersection of identity, beauty, and empowerment. Miss Understood challenges conventional portrayals of women of colour by capturing their strength and individuality through striking imagery. Meanwhile, Banshee merges Renaissance-inspired elegance with the haunting quality of vintage photography, creating a timeless visual narrative.

Influenced by contemporary music and fashion, Claudia’s work often incorporates edgy aesthetics and hand-drawn elements, showcasing her passion for merging different artistic styles. Her project for Platypus Shoes reflects this ethos, using collage and grunge textures to evoke an alternative aesthetic.

Claudia aspires to work in creative direction for leading fashion publications, such as VOGUE International, and to collaborate with musicians who embody visual branding, like The 1975. By weaving together her cultural heritage, personal experiences, and artistic influences, she aims to create compelling narratives that resonate with diverse audiences, ultimately fostering a deeper appreciation for the beauty and complexity of modern life. Through her art, Claudia invites viewers to engage with and celebrate the multifaceted identities of women of colour in today’s society.

Femme Fatale

Experimenting with 'Harsh Lighting' & Creative Direction/Styling. Taking inspiration from Thierry Mugler SS1997.

Miss Understood (Red)

Disrupted

A personal Collage & Self-Portrait Series. Using elements from magazines I admire and hobbies such as tarot reading. Incorporating vapor wave style and editing.

Miss Understood (Pink)

Banshee

Banshee is a visual storytelling project inspired by Irish folklore, merging still life aesthetics with vintage photography. It explores the haunting beauty of the banshee's tragic tale, creating a narrative that evokes emotion and reflection on the interplay between beauty and sorrow

Acknowledgement of Country

The School of Design and Architecture respectfully acknowledges the Wurundjeri peoples of the Kulin Nation as the Traditional Owners and knowledge-keepers of the lands, waters and sky that surround us, where we work, learn, create, communicate and make place. We recognise that sovereignty has never been ceded and this always was and will always be Wurundjeri Country. We pay our respects to Elders past, present and to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who continue to make a better world through design.

We extend our acknowledgement to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander staff, students, alumni, real-life clients, and knowledge keepers, who have contributed to our own education diversity and growth. We will continue to ensure that staff and students respectfully honour ancestral connection to Country and Place in everything that they do.

We are dedicated to the notion of design to make a better world and we acknowledge that making tools, shaping place, sharing stories, making meaning, wayfinding and collaborating have long been and continue to be both central and integral to First Peoples' cultures. We recognize that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples’ cultural contributions have continued relevance to design practice and commit to: reconciling ancestries of design and contemporary practice as well as pursuing culturally and professionally appropriate ways to engage with a diverse population of colleagues, industries and clients. In a time of treaty-making and voice we understand that there are overlaps between caring for Country and the sustainable production of goods, services, experiences, products and buildings.

Guided by the principles of respect, reconciliation, and reciprocity we undertake to indigenising and decolonising design practice by dismantling colonial structures and challenging biases that have marginalised Indigenous voices and design.

As students of SoDA you will be given opportunities to both engage with and educate yourself in Indigenous creative practices and cultural protocols through a lens of inclusivity, diversity, respect, mutual understanding, inter-cultural dialogue in all aspects of design practice. Indigenous people have been telling stories, making tools, and connecting to Country through visual media, placemaking and place marking for more than 60,000 years and these practices are part of an ongoing, evolving and live tradition.