Artist BIO:

Maria Napier is a Colombian-American artist who has lived in Charlotte, NC for most of her life. Maria earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology and Communication Studies from UNCC and she uses art as a way to create thought-provoking pieces that can inspire people to open their minds and seek new avenues of thinking. As a self-taught artist, she further expanded on her knowledge in color theory, perspective, form, and shape. She works primarily in acrylics, pencil/charcoal, mixed media, and digital art. She also enjoys designing murals, the most recent of which you can see at The Neighborhood Theater in Noda, and at Anuvia Recovery center in Charlotte, NC.

Artist STATEMENT:

I’m Maria Napier, a Colombian-American self-taught artist who considers Charlotte, NC my home. My first experiences as an artist developed as a need to express and confront my inner fears from a very early age. My Style can be described as a mix of Expressionism-Realism, although I also work in creating my own style by mixing different approaches to art into cohesive, colorful, and almost surreal illustrations in which inspiration comes from a deep state of meditation. I strive to help people think outside the pre-determined societal way of thinking. My illustrations are designed to make people feel slightly uncomfortable as a way to catch their attention to topics that they might not think about otherwise. I enjoy highlighting our humanity and spirituality through exploring and normalizing mental health and transforming feelings of sadness and angst into light and hope.