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“Julia Martinez is a Southern California artist born and raised in Riverside, now residing in San Diego. She paints in several mediums including sumi-ink, acrylic and oil. Painting is her voice as an empowered woman. Her work is often inspired by childhood memories, connections to people, guides and ancestors, spirituality and nature. She especially enjoys creating pieces that help her work through past and present challenges in life to nurture others, her soul and the universe.

“Life is a continual balancing act where light and darkness dance together.  One cannot exist without the other.  My works represent the journey deep inside to shine light on the dark parts so that they no longer dominate the light.  Fear is released through shaking hands with the dark. Wholeness is achieved by exposing and embracing all parts.””

While the subject of the painting appears lovely and content, the piece is actually a response to what I’ve felt has been a very challenging and emotionally trying time for me personally, the last year in particular. What I’ve come to realize is that happiness is a choice. So while this painting initially came from a place of pain, ultimately, it is a reminder: that I am worthy of love and happiness; that I deserve to put my needs first; to always protect my emotional and mental well-being; to create a supported space for myself that is built upon self-confidence, self-reliance, and self-awareness; to choose joy and practice gratitude for all that I am and all that I have; and that I have the power to manifest the happiness I seek. Inspired by my favorite artist, Frida Kahlo, my mural features a self-portrait, bright colors, and dramatic symbolism. With my signature braid and overalls, (where for once I am the focus and larger than life), I am painting a flower with gold leaf. The look on my face is of determination, but the gesture is unnecessary and excessive – as shown by the extra gold dripping off the petal. My brush is capable of creating beauty, and the flower glows with the effort, but the message is simply about authenticity…that the flower is already naturally beautiful as is, no need to “gild the lily”. In my hair, rests a monarch butterfly, symbolizing transformation, strength, endurance, and hope. Each of the flowers depicted were purposefully chosen for the symbolism they represent. The white magnolia represents perseverance; the deep pink rose represents gratitude; the pink chrysanthemum is symbolic of loyalty and longevity, and is the flower for my birth month of November; the meaning of the blue morning glory is renewal and resilience, with its ability to grow and thrive in challenging situations; the hibiscus represents feminine power. Above the bold colors of the sunset sky floats a gold lotus flower design as a reminder to stay grounded, while rising above muddy waters with clarity and purpose. And finally, the Chinese characters in the middle of my mandala tattoo are “zi-xin” which means “belief in oneself”. The message I hope to convey through my painting is how important it is to practice self-care, prioritize mental health and well-being, and learn to love ourselves first. We all have the power within to create our own paradise. 

I love lines. How lines can make a thing look flat or three dimensional or fool the eye has always intrigued me.

This past year COVID has turned life upside down. Some good things happened, and some bad things happened. It made us re-evaluate our past way of doing things. Lines do this. They make you flip the way you see things.

Having all this chaos and everything not making sense for a while forces us to see reality in a different way. We find ourselves having to reinvent, reevaluate. It is about things being, looking different. It is so cool that you can do that with art. I like this kind of mind-bending stuff. I also like using colors that are sided by side on the color wheel and get that shock value. I like the thought of my piece evoking a strong reaction with people either really loving or really hating my piece.

People can interpret it any way they want. There is no agenda. I want people to feel free to react with whatever comes up for them. Love it or hate it. It’s all good.

I came to art and design from studying fractals and geometry and that intersection between the laws of nature and biology and the experience of consciousness, of the ability to make choices in life.

This still influences my art and lately I have been working with flowers and abstraction. Many of my paintings still incorporate fractals, geometry, culture, biology.

[A fractal is a pattern that the laws of nature repeat at different scales. For example, trees are natural fractals; they are patterns that repeat smaller and smaller copies of themselves to create the biodiversity of a forest]

It is an amazing thing. It functions on underlying rules on the subatomic level involving physics, chemistry and biology at a higher plane of evolution. I believe that plant life forms are part of this higher evolution. Flowers attract and feed pollinators which helps perpetuate life itself. Within this relationship we detect a whisper of fractals repeating a pattern of action and reaction. There is this yin/yang.

We are here and we are conscious. We always have a choice resulting in a predictable outcome. What is not predictable is your choice. It comes down to determinism. If we have a choice, it makes every moment completely unpredictable. I love the dichotomy of that. This is our experience of life.

Similarities to that at a subatomic level are when particles pop into existence. If you observe the location and direction of an electron at that point, only by being conscious and aware of it can you know where it is. It is about being in the moment.

Flowers are self-actualization of beauty in the plant world. That is a different type of consciousness. But on some level experienced and touched by or resonating with all levels of existence. My hope is that my art helps in understanding that. It is the reason I went into art as a profession. In some small way I hope I can push that thought into the greater consciousness whether people are aware of it or not.

Ultimately if I can make someone’s life better through art, I am happy to do so. The hope is that if it touches just one person for one moment it is worth it.

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I enjoy making the digital world a fun and engaging place to use and the real world a beautiful place to live.

The only way to do that is by working together with interesting people doing good things.

We are at the intersection of multiple crises – both human & environmental – yet opportunities exist to cure most ills.

Let’s discover new paths.

My company, Love Paper Paint, weaves together the two facets of my work through the common thread of Love. My work marks meaningful events and moments in the lives of the people I create for. I love what I do and I hope that my passion and exuberance for sharing art will shine through and bring awareness to how beautiful our world is when our diversity is celebrated. My future work intends to expand upon the mermaid theme by peacefully connecting different cultures without diluting the individual strengths of their identities.

In this painting for ESCO Alley Art, I was thrilled to have the opportunity to create something meaningful to me personally. This painting incorporates many colors and design elements that I love, and reflects the pride I have for my Asian American heritage. It is about self-awareness and self-love. The piece features: a mermaid (representing my bi-racial identity), pink peonies (an important flower in Eastern art and culture), a Mehndi pattern (out of appreciation for yoga’s influence on my life), a protective and calming amethyst crystal (assuring that clarity, truth, confidence, stability, and peace are all within reach), flowing water (symbolizing tranquility and purification, but also change and movement), and my tattoo (a personal mandala that I designed with significant symbols and the number 8, an auspicious number in Chinese culture…and also meaning infinity).

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“I am a self-taught artist, muralist, decorative painter, and graphic designer with over 20 years of experience creating art throughout Southern California. After graduating from UCSD with a B.A. of Visual Arts, I worked as a digital colorist for the comic book industry and a corporate graphic designer. I decided to pursue my passion for art by transforming spaces with color, pattern, and imagery. In 2001, I started my own business specializing in decorative painting, murals, specialty finishes, and custom invitations. My company, Love Paper Paint, was founded on the love I have for the creative process and the powerful impact that surrounding our environments with art can have on our lives and communities. This pursuit of bringing beauty and joy to my clients through art has given me countless opportunities to paint murals, faux finishes, and decorative artistry for private residences, restaurants, hotels, schools, special events, and public spaces.

My work features bold, vibrant colors and patterns, and is deeply inspired by multicultural influences. In addition to painting murals and decorative finishes, I am a registered yoga teacher, certified expressive arts facilitator, and online art instructor.

Sharing my love of art and the creative process is one of my passions. I enjoy helping others explore their own creative expression when I teach. My hobbies beyond art and yoga include running and hiking, walking my dog, reading, listening to true crime podcasts, binge-watching shows and movies, and I’m a total foodie – I love to cook, eat, and experience other cultures through food. If I could pick my dream job, it would be to travel all over the world, immersing myself into each destination by learning about the culture, customs, and food….and painting murals along the way.

I live in North County ­San Diego (San Elijo Hills) with my husband, Aaron, our two teenaged sons, Mason and Isaac, and our Frenchton (Frenchie/Boston mix) named Gizmo.”

My painting was inspired by an embroidery style called “Tenango,” made by a group of people called Otomi. They embroider in this style. It is extremely specific and native to that region in the Tenango de Doria municipality of Hidalgo Mexico.

My art is inspired by what is indigenous and by my connections in life to my ancestors, to earth, my travels and whoever I meet along the way. It is all based on my experience in the world. I want to honor what is native and original reflected in my painting.

I wanted to use bright colors. I thought it would be great for the alley where typically it may be dark or dingy reserved for the trash collection. It is nice to create and find art and joy wherever you are. The bright colors evoke a sense of joy for whoever passes by and looks at it. I was thinking especially about kids.

I want people to connect with my work. We are trying to revive downtown Escondido and bring in families and kids. It is my hope to inspire them and attract them to art to help them grow and expand.

The embroidery inspiring this piece is a simplified version of embroidery done for centuries. Pieces generally have multiple figurative elements in stylized form, which are arranged onto the fabric in a geometric pattern, mostly or completely symmetrical. The most common elements are the flora and fauna found in the Tenango de Doria area including chickens, dogs, wild birds, rabbits, horses, flowers and trees. Sometimes people and other objects appear as well. Other figures include figures from amate paper cut outs made by local shamans/healers and prehistoric paintings found in local caves. These elements are most often arranged in a pattern but can be set up to form scenes from daily life, folk festival and religion. The most common background fabric colors are white and off-white, generally for tablecloths and the like, followed by black, but other colors such as reds and blues are used as well. Most often, the elements are not done in realistic colors, rather using bright colors such as yellows, greens and blues. All elements may be of a single color, or multicolored. If the latter, the colors are most often combined as a series of stripes over the elements. Better tenangos have small, tight stiches, with a well-done tablecloth or bedspread taking up to six years to make.* Source Wikipedia.”

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“Julia Martinez is a Southern California artist born and raised in Riverside, now residing in San Diego. She paints in several mediums including sumi-ink, acrylic and oil. Painting is her voice as an empowered woman. Her work is often inspired by childhood memories, connections to people, guides and ancestors, spirituality and nature. She especially enjoys creating pieces that help her work through past and present challenges in life to nurture others, her soul and the universe.

“Life is a continual balancing act where light and darkness dance together.  One cannot exist without the other.  My works represent the journey deep inside to shine light on the dark parts so that they no longer dominate the light.  Fear is released through shaking hands with the dark. Wholeness is achieved by exposing and embracing all parts.””

I just know everybody loves to come down to be part of it.

There was some concern during COVID that it would not return. Everyone was fighting to get it back.

I wanted to do something for Escondido. This is why I painted the Grand Avenue Escondido arch with a low rider car representing Cruisin’ Grand and why I called this piece “Esco Strong”, because our community is strong.

Hopefully people will want to honor the idea and take their picture in front of it.

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“I am Brenda Townsend of Brilliant Spectrum Art. I’m a California-Credentialed Arts Educator, working in watercolor, acrylic, colored pencil, pastels and more on paper, murals, and theatre sets. Some of my favorite subjects include lights, tikis, mermaids, birds, flowers, and/or shells in a fantasy setting, with an exotica/retro vibe. Major artistic influences include Disney artist, Mary Blair, The Artist SHAG, Oceanic Art and the Natural World. I work in multi-media, and my process often involves using handmade stamps and stencils and using found objects to print. I paint my current thoughts and discoveries on top of these backgrounds, in a semi-realistic style, using exciting and surprising color palettes.

I feel passionate about creating uplifting, fun, and beautiful works with broad appeal to provide viewers an emotional respite from everyday life. My work is escapist, joyous, and unapologetic, exuding positive energy which allows viewers to recharge and be transported while experiencing an enhanced reality.”

I painted the octopus the first time not only because it is my favorite sea animal, but because of how much motion an artist is able to convey with their tentacles. On top of that, you can paint them with almost any color and in theory, it’s realistic!”

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I am 18 years old and just graduating high school! I will be attending Vancouver Institute of the Media Arts within the upcoming months to pursue Game Art & Design. Although my future career path will cater towards the digital arts, traditional painting will always be my passion.

On the lower left of my piece, I wrote a biblical reference to Ephesians 6, v 10-18. It refers to spiritual armor.

[ Eph. 6 10-18: 10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.]

This painting is my interpretation of a vision a friend had of me and of these verses. It shows me walking with confidence in God holding my sword of the Spirit.

Then around me the rest of my armor: the helmet of Salvation; Faith around my hand; across my chest Righteousness which is part of the spiritual armor to guard our heart; then the belt of Truth at my waistline; finally, Peace at the bottom of my shoe.

I am walking with my armor through Escondido calling to everyone to rise and unite.

I believe we are in a spiritual battle. It is so prevalent and obvious what is happening. The world wants to take God out of everything. I am here to say not today. Not with me.

Everywhere and here in Escondido, we are called to put on our spiritual armor, to bear arms, to guard our heart, and to be all that we are called to be to fulfill the plans and purpose that God has set before us for such a time as now. We are called to rise up for each other, not against each other and let love be our battle cry. I want us to unite on our common principles, on our common ground. To overcome the divides: masks or no masks, vaccine or no vaccine, Trump or Biden. These are military tactics, to divide and conquer. You may have heard in China they are burning bibles and they want to close churches and silence worship.

We have become the common enemy amongst ourselves. They want neighbor to report neighbor. It is just so dark; when we are supposed to be borrowing milk, sugar and eggs from each other. These are tyrannical forces. It causes confusion, which is the opposite of hope and despair, but Jesus came to give us light in abundance. He gives us exceedingly and abundantly all that we have asked or hoped for.

The world is covered in fear. The enemy wants to keep us in fear where we are easily coaxed and manipulated. But God said I do not give you the spirit of fear but the power of love and sound mind and that is what I want to walk in.

On the bottom right corner, I wrote a biblical reference to Mathew 4:4. Friends of mine had a son Joey who died in Joshua Tree. He used to have this on the back of his T-shirt. It says that man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. That is the sword of the spirit. The word of God is our weapon which is why we must instill it in our hearts.

Jesus said that before he would return the world would be upside down and inside out. That is why we are seeing where there used to be a definitive line between right and wrong, we are now seeing a gray scale where anything goes. It’s a time to stand up because we know innately what is right and wrong. Those lines are being blurred and it is very dangerous especially for our children and our youth. We have to really take a stand against the powers that be because it is very sinister what is happening.

I usually wear my hair in a braid. But in the painting my hair is free. I titled my work, “Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is Freedom. We have the power to shift the atmosphere with prayer, with worship. It changes things. What is not aligned with and not of God must fall away. When we walk with the Spirit there is freedom that surpasses all understanding.

In the vision, purple smoke came from behind me. The smoke represents attunement with God which is so encouraging to me. I believe it is prophetic. It is calling me forward. Everything in my life is administering to me at such a profound level in an intimate way. God finds a way to speak to us each, whether it is through a hummingbird or something that we love. He is doing that to tell us he is paying attention and that he loves us. Nothing escapes him.
We must be open and seek Him. It is an active thing. God says seek me and you will find me, knock and I will answer.

The time is now for all of us to seek Him and put on our spiritual armor.