Maria Esther Panesso

María Esther Mercado is a distinguished contemporary artist who combines personal resilience with artistic expression. With a background in law, business, and social advocacy, her creations go beyond aesthetics, offering profound narratives of strength, identity, and empowerment.

Her academic journey includes degrees in International Business Administration and Law from the University of La Sabana, complemented by an MBA from IE Business School in Madrid. While excelling in the legal and corporate sectors, she remained deeply connected to art—an innate passion that ultimately became her most powerful storytelling medium.

Guided by themes of perseverance and transformation, María’s work has gained international recognition, with exhibitions at the Rockefeller Center in New York and a presence on the Nasdaq screen in Times Square. Her artistic vision has been featured in leading media outlets, including Forbes, La República, El Tiempo, El Espectador, and Semana. In 2023, Forbes honored her as one of the 50 most creative Colombians in the world, celebrating her ability to channel personal experiences into evocative visual narratives.