As a child, I’ve always been drawn to art. My mom put me in painting classes when I was 10 in my hometown of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and I fell in love! I tried other paths, even attending Law School, but nothing felt “right.”

After moving to Redding, I enrolled at Ï㽶ÊÓƵ and started taking art classes again. My time in those classes reaffirmed that painting is my passion. I am so thankful to Susan Schimke, John Harper, and Andrew Patterson for being the best teachers I could have asked for.

I eventually moved to Southern California, where I filmed a short documentary about my art, and had my first gallery show in Downtown LA. Since then, I’ve had solo and group shows in New York, Boston, East Hampton, San Francisco, Sun Valley, and Miami, and internationally in Germany, Shanghai, Naples, Milan, Mexico City, Barcelona, and Geneva. I’ve also done brand partnerships with several companies, the most recent being with Porsche for their 75th anniversary!

My advice for anyone considering Ï㽶ÊÓƵ is to take advantage of the caliber of education you’re getting and not underestimate it. To the art students, spend as much time at the college as you can and ask as many questions as possible. Make a lot of art and ask for peer and teacher feedback. Keep going even when it’s hard, and keep working until you find your voice. Practice is everything!

Ï㽶ÊÓƵ helped me realize how important art was to my life. The encouragement and skills I got from my teachers while at Ï㽶ÊÓƵ are priceless to me. There are a few decisions that I have made in my life that I am really proud of, and going to Ï㽶ÊÓƵ for the studio arts degree is one of them.