“As a small girl I would spend my summer vacations drawing at my father’s desk. In my hometown of Neiva, Colombia, there were no art schools at the time; however, my parents kept me well stocked with art supplies, and I taught myself. Later a family friend returned from art school in Bogotá, the capital, and started a summer art camp. This was my introduction to the formal elements of art. From our family friend, I learned about art theory: form, light, shadow, color, and perspective.

When I finished high school in Bogotá, I decided to major in commercial art. During the first years of my career, I spent most of my time working in commercial art, but I also took classes from some recognized art teachers in Colombia.

During the ‘80s, after the birth of our second child, I decided to dedicate all of my time to both my family and my art. Nature has been my favorite theme: plants, and, more specifically, flowers and the wide variety of fruit. I am impressed with the strength of the colors and the sharpness of the shapes under the tropical lights. I have chosen to work with oil, as my main medium. My reasons being its brightness and flexibility make it easier to perform changes in my art. I had several exhibitions in Colombia and also taught art classes.

Three years ago our family moved to Dallas due to my husband’s career change. Upon moving to north Texas I have found new and challenging things to paint in my favorite theme because of the diversity of seasonal plants that North America offers. They present to me a beauty and perfection equal to the tropical plants of my homeland. On the other hand, I was surprised to find that some of the plants here are the same ones I had in our yard in Colombia.

I hope I can transmit, through my paintings, the great love I feel for all things of beauty, and I will always cherish the beautiful plants of Columbia.”