Our October Artist of the Month, Luciana, is a new member of the ArtWorks community. Luciana has been spending a significant amount of time at two of our partnering hospitals. After hearing our name around the hospital, her family reached out to us just in time for Express Yourself-NJ!

Luciana is 10 years old and living in Belleville, NJ. She talks about how her passion for drawing “helps me feel confident and comfortable with my ideas. Art is helping me concentrate on bringing something to humanity.” Drawing characters whenever she has the chance, Luciana creates unique and cartoon specific images that are bright and colorful. Often times Luciana’s art includes texts that further describes the scene she is illustrating. She said she loves to use “as many colors as possible, creating something outside myself as an interpretation of something inside.” Luciana’s drawings will be part of the 2015 Express Yourself-NJ show. ArtWorks is thrilled that Luciana, and so many other young artists, self-submitted so many incredible works of art!

When asked what Luciana would tell others that might help them heal she said “Our brain likes to create memories and expressions.” Motivated by so many popular characters, Luciana says her motivation is “when I create, I put a concept on paper that expresses my ideas and thoughts. I feel joy in creating works of art. My imagination is alive!”

When ArtWorks debuted the first Express Yourself show in 2002 it was with the mission to give children a way to express their creativity. Luciana’s inspiration is what ArtWorks celebrates as we host our 26th show this November! Luciana shared, “Art is everything in life. My art is a window into my world. It has magic to it. When I draw, I am motivated and inspired to experience peace and relaxation while expressing myself. It is my version of an idea. I can share my emotions with other.” We hope you will come out and see Luciana’s art on November 1st at the Montclair Art Museum for Express Yourself 2015!

“Art has no rules. It does not have to look like something. It has no values or property. No expectations. The therapy I get from art can reduce stress. The feeling of achievement has a positive effect on my life.”