LEAT SILVERA

I was six when my dad came into my room carrying a sketchbook bigger than me and a broken tin box with used art pencils inside. He found them leaning on a black trash container in the back alley and thought I would like them. It warms my heart that he knew me, before I even knew myself. I drew everyday, and all day Saturdays while my parents worked. My art became the quiet place where I met my soul and life was good. 

Six years later my family went from five to four. I became the oldest child when my big brother was tragically killed by a drunk driver. Everything changed, instantly. My art changed with me. I became more abstract and visceral. I found myself in museums, studying and drinking in the emotions of other artists; connecting to our now shared experience of tragedy, turmoil and eventually triumph. Over time I consciously chose to adopt my big brother's attitude, “no guts, no glory” and began to live life with a passion that wrapped every moment in courage and love. I married at 20 and was blessed with five incredible human beings. At one point homeschooling all of them physically kept me away from painting, but the longing burned inside me… I continued to study, taking figure drawing, advanced painting, and portrait classes with master artists. Most recently heading into the High Sierra’s to study landscape painting with artist Jeremy Lipking. Another dream come true.