Gabriel Cárdenas holds a Master’s Degree from Cal State Northridge with an emphasis in Chicana/o Studies and Visual Art; and he received a B.A. in Sociology, Art and Education from UC Santa Barbara. He has taught in various settings including drawing and painting skills to Santa Paula youth aged 13-17 at the Cole Educational Center, part of the Santa Paula Museum; a grant-supported Urban Art Mural Course at UCSB; culturally sensitive arts and education lesson plans, taught through a Mesoamerican calendrical mythology and reality practice, to students of color in Oxnard via the Cabrillo Economic Development Corp; and visual art at the One Step a La Vez Evening Reporting Center (ERC) in Fillmore. He has led multiple mural installations in Santa Barbara with Santa Barbara Arts Alliance, and he led youth art classes focused on cultural knowledge activities and behavioral studies at the Boys and Girls Club in Carpinteria.

Gabriel has had numerous exhibits of his artwork, and he has painted over a half-dozen murals locally. One of his recent shows focused on campesina/o working and living conditions in Fillmore. He presented a slideshow of artwork and literature and included his research on living and working conditions of field workers.