Josias Figueirido is an artist from Spain based in Laredo, Texas. He received an MFA from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia (2017), a Post-Graduate Diploma in Drawing from the Royal Drawing School in London (2010), and a BA in Fine Arts from London Metropolitan University in London (2008). Figueirido has been an artist in residence at The Fabric Workshop and Museum (Post-Graduate Apprentice Program), Dumfries House, Moritz-Heyman Residency, Vermont Studio Center, and The Hambidge Center for the Creative Arts and Sciences. In 2022, Figueirido began creating Piri the Dreamer and Flying Coyote in the Garden, a fictional world of innocent and curious characters who playfully cooperate with one another while discovering the wonders of a new, charming, and safe environment. Inspired by biographical events and life at the Mexico-US border, his work channels personal experiences, fantasies, and reflections on topics related to immigration and community. The story of Piri the Dreamer and Flying Coyote speaks of universal friendship and the unexpected bond that grows between people who were never intended to meet or get along but are united by the same desire for a new beginning far from their places of origin. Figueirido says, “For me, fictional stories blend both imagination and reality and are capable of connecting people cross-culturally. As an artist, fiction gives me control over my stories. I enjoy the freedom of deciding what is possible.”Figueirido embraces technology. His process involves analog and digital tools. The world of Piri the Dreamer and Flying Coyote is built in 3D modeling software, and it is disseminated primarily through exhibitions of airbrushed paintings and animations in augmented reality.