Ylona Maria dela Cruz
Ylona Maria dela Cruz is an extradisciplinary artist and bodywork practitioner based in Amsterdam, with parts of her spirit rooted in Zambales, Pangasinan and Panay. Her practice bridges visual storytelling, ritual, and ancestral connection, centering themes of memory, identity, and community care.
She is a co-birther of the Balikbayan Collective, a platform for diasporic cultural work and community projects, and currently develops her practice ARUGA at Heesterveld’s Creative Hub, focusing on community care and art-making with and for Bijlmer communities with roots in the Global Majority.
Her artistic and care practices often intertwine: As a developing tattoo practitioner and student of craniosacral therapy, she explores the body as a vessel of ancestral memory and omens.
Recent evolving projects, such as Binhi ng Gunita [Seeds of Remembrance] highlight diasporic narratives through layered visual storytelling, honoring ancestral lineages and fostering space for intergenerational healing.