Limited Ed. Print 4/50 - "The Man In The Cigar Shop" Painting

Having grown up in New Mexico, lived 45 minutes from the Canadian border as well as on both coasts, I recently settled in Mississippi and am loving it. Originally studying the performing arts and dabbling in film, I obtained my Bachelor of Fine Arts in graphic design with a minor in studio art at New Mexico State University in Las Cruces, New Mexico. It was during these college years that I found my love of drawing and painting. Living with mental illness, painting is therapeutic and helps me rise above and explore not just the darkness I feel but the overwhelming beauty and light in this world. This light juxtaposes the darkness (both literally and figuratively) and causes the viewer to see clearly the drama and hope that is a part of everyday life that can often be overlooked. I hope that my paintings not only impart beauty but this underlying hope, and with it peace.