BIOGRAPHY
I was born in Cali, Colombia, and arrived in the U.S. at the age of fifteen. My thirst for knowledge and discipline was instilled in me from an early age by my father, who was a Rockefeller Foundation Scholar and Professor of Virology and Bacteriology at the Universidad Nacional de Colombia in Bogotá. D.E. Education, culture, human welfare, and communication through the arts have always played key roles in my life. Living in New York City as a young and wonderstruck immigrant, the energy of the sleepless city fed my limitless dreams and silently made me aware of being part of a global community. While my single mother worked as a gas station attendant, housekeeper, taxi driver or street food vendor to sustain us, I benefited from the unparalleled educational opportunities and resources the city offered me. I met people of different faiths, cultures, races, backgrounds, and gender identities who shaped my notions of diligence, justice, tolerance, respect, equality and creativity. For this, I am eternally grateful.
Decades after NYC, having worked as an animation and freelance artist, corporate ambassador, and educator, and after raising a family, I reentered academia to pursue an MFA degree in Studio Arts. My body of work explores and celebrates the analogies and relationships between humans and Nature, and how these relationships (or lack thereof) affect our mental health. My interest in this subject originates from a transformative experience I had by walking the entire 1,180 miles of the Florida National Scenic Trail (FNST) in 2020, after dealing with prolonged depression caused by divorce. On the trail, curiosity and wonder returned to me with every step I took. Once again, I became energized and felt part of a larger and formidable living system. Eager to experience new environments, adapt to unexpected challenges and push my body outside its comfort zone, I removed boundaries set by my own fears on a daily basis. Mile after mile, sweat cleansed my vision, fresh air cleared my mind, and I remembered that being alive is an extraordinary gift. Having experienced these benefits while living out of a backpack for three months, I now seek to understand, learn from, connect to, and work with those who respect and prioritize Nature’s voice, because I experienced it firsthand as an essential life force.
My works reflect my lived states of mind while in Nature or away from it, with the goal of fostering understanding, wellbeing, awareness, and cohesiveness. Working as an educator nourishes my altruistic nature and supports my life goal of creating a service oriented studio practice that connects people through common threads to create positive changes in their lives. I know that change only happens through the relationships and interactions established while leaning into our strengths and truest convictions. Acting in a peaceful yet compelling way, I am driven to make a difference through my work. As an woman and artist, I see myself not only as a member of a global community, but also as an essential part and voice of our living planet Earth.
