{{Short description|Multidisciplinary artist}} '''Manuela Soto Sosa''' (born February 8, 1991) is a Swiss-Uruguayan multidisciplinary artist. She is known for her work in tattoo, illustration, design, and art direction. In 2018, she designed the cover art for the single "When the party's over" by the American singer Billie Eilish.
== Early life == Manuela Soto Sosa was born in Yverdon-les-Bains, Switzerland to a Swiss mother and a Uruguayan political refugee father of Charrúa descent.<ref>{{cite web |title=Manuela, 26 ans, un peu à Lausanne et beaucoup aux USA |url=https://www.rts.ch/play/radio/a-labordage/audio/humans-of-suisse-romande-manuela-26-ans-un-peu-a-lausanne-et-beaucoup-aux-usa?id=8936075 |website=rts |access-date=27 January 2021}}</ref> She was raised in Lausanne, Switzerland where she studied illustration and started tattooing in 2010 at age 18.<ref>{{cite web |title=Découvrez l'univers fascinant du tatouage |url=https://www.20min.ch/fr/story/decouvrez-l-univers-fascinant-du-tatouage-692265136293 |website=20 minutes |access-date=27 January 2021}}</ref>
== Career == === Tattoo ===
Soto Sosa began her career as a tattoo artist in 2010 under the name "Soto Gang". Her artistic style is influenced by Japanese anime, Chicano fine line tattooing and an aesthetic from the 1990s and 2000s promoting self-love and empowerment.<ref>{{cite web |title=Soto Gang |url=http://officemagazine.net/soto-gang |website=office magazine |access-date=27 January 2021}}</ref> In 2018, V magazine described her as "The Cardi B of Tattoo Artistry".<ref>{{cite web |last1=vmagazine |title=Meet the Cardi B of Tattoo Artistry |url=https://vmagazine.com/article/manuela-soto-lubov-gallery/ |access-date=July 2, 2018 |archive-date=January 19, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190119121226/https://vmagazine.com/article/manuela-soto-lubov-gallery/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> From 2014 to 2018 she went on a world tour tattooing in Europe, Asia and the United States. In 2018, she moved to Los Angeles, California and co-founded Sang Bleu LA, the third branch of the Sang Bleu tattoo studios.<ref>{{cite web |title=LA-based tattoo artist Manuela Soto on embracing self-love |url=https://www.sohohouse.com/en-us/house-notes/issue-3/my-creative-space-manuela-soto |website=Soho House |access-date=27 January 2021}}</ref> In the same year, she designed Billie Eilish's "When the party's over" single cover.<ref>{{cite web |title=Hear Billie Eilish's Pensive New Song 'When the Party's Over' |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/billie-eilish-new-song-when-the-partys-over-739034/ |website=Rolling stone |access-date=27 January 2021 |archive-date=21 April 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190421150057/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/billie-eilish-new-song-when-the-partys-over-739034/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> Two years later, in 2020, she stepped down from her position as co-owner of Sang Bleu LA and opened Softflex, a multi-disciplinary creative studio located downtown Los Angeles.{{Citation needed|date=May 2021}}
=== Fashion ===
In 2019, Soto Sosa launched a clothing brand named Soto Worldwide. She has collaborated on capsule collections and merchandise design with Billie Eilish, Lil Miquela,<ref>{{cite web |title=Lil Miquela Interviews Tattoo Artist Manuela Soto |url=https://vmagazine.com/article/miquela-interviews-tattoo-artist-manuela-soto/ |website=v magazine |access-date=27 January 2021}}</ref> Flossgloss, Sean Pablo's Paradise NYC.<ref>{{cite web |title=Here's What PARADIS3's Sean Pablo Has Been up To |url=https://hypebeast.com/2017/3/sean-pablo-union-los-angeles-interview |website=hypebeast |access-date=27 January 2021}}</ref>
== Art exhibitions ==
{| class="wikitable" |- ! Date !! Location !! Gallery !! Show |- | October 2020 || Los Angeles, CA || New Image Art || "Part of who you are is who you will be"<ref>{{cite web |title=Part Of Who You Are Is Who You Will Be |url=http://www.newimageartgallery.com/soto-solo-exhibition |website=New image art |access-date=27 January 2021}}</ref> |- | October 2019 || Paris, FR || Paris Internationale || Group show curated by "Sang Bleu" |- | July 2019 || Zurich, CH || Lubov NYC x Mikro ZH || “6 Hours, 42 Minutes, 12 Seconds”<ref>{{cite web |title=28 Days, 6 Hours, 42 Minutes, 12 Seconds at Lubov & Mikro |url=https://artviewer.org/28-days-6-hours-42-minutes-12-seconds-at-lubov-mikro/ |website=Artviewer |access-date=27 January 2021}}</ref> |- | May 2018 || New York City, NY || Lubov NYC || "Meant to be"<ref>{{cite web |title="Meant to be" |url=https://lubov.nyc/manuela-soto |website=Lubov NYC |access-date=27 January 2021}}</ref> |}
== References ==
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Soto Sosa, Manuela}} Category:1991 births Category:Living people Category:21st-century Swiss women artists Category:Swiss people of Uruguayan descent