I started making Gemstone, Glass & Metal jewelry in 2007 for healing and my love for rejuvenating through meditation, gemstones and alchemical metals. This creative blessing has completely changed my life! I am very passionate about creating art art especially colorful & tactile art. 

I dedicate everything that I create to my family lineage for they have cultivated my vision, this artistic passion & living dream. My lineage is one of my biggest inspirations to me along with living on The Island of Maui for 16 years now. The majority of my lineage, is more than 70% Italian. Three parts of my family migrated from Southern Italy originating in Caserta & Cosenza/Calabria, Italy. I am also a true descendant of Slovak Bohemian European heritage. One of my Great Grandmothers was from the Prešov & Košice Region, Slovakia. She was blind and lived with my family when I was young. My Slovak family was one of the many families that founded a Slovak church in Youngstown Ohio, where I was born. I was brought up in the church and taught to sing Slovak hymnals. I tried learning some of the language. I would ponder very deeply about the depths of my eyesight at a very young age. Also how my great grandmother found calmness in many situations by prayer while touching simple beaded bracelets she wore. She and her sisters made sure we grew up close to the church & learned how to pray. She was married to an English, French, Native American man who past away before I was born. His lineage is known to be from France, Hadleigh & Suffolk, England, United Kingdom. One of his grandmothers was an "unknown" Native American woman that to this day I am still searching for her tribal lineage. My mother was obsessed with sewing, creating and filling our house with Native American art. This part of me & my search has filled me with a deep yearning to embrace and learn more about the Native American culture. Its a real passion for me to find out more about my Native Tribal lineage. For over a 13 years now I have participated in Native American Church ceremonies on the beautiful Island of Maui. This way of prayer and life is the closest I have found to my Bohemian upbringing. 

 

I have been a painter, illustrator, designer & admirer of beauty & body adornment my whole life. All Pastels, Paintings and Drawings on this site are the original ideas acquired through meditation, studying nature, intuition, love and creative exploration. My creative passions led me to Maui Hawaii 16 years ago which helped cultivate my spiritual path practicing meditations & prayers, being deeply healed & inspired.

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In 2001 after receiving a Bachelor's Degree in Fine Arts with emphasis in Graphic Design, I established Swan Designs. Since the completion of my undergraduate degree, I peruse a career working as a freelance artist, illustrator, graphic designer & jewelry artisan. In further pursuit of peace, I continued my education towards an MFA in Art Therapy & Dance & Movement Therapy which later evolved into a certification in Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy, several other Yoga teacher trainings & a deep passion for healing the body, mind & spirit. I plan on continuing my education even more in fashion design & techniques in metal smithing. I have experienced working with museums, universities, various interesting businesses, and also for prospective art lovers. Within the last 26 years I've accumulated thirteen awards of recognition internationally through juried exhibitions and portfolio reviews, including 1 gold & 3 silver key awards through The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards. With 20 years or more experience in realistic Life Drawing Skills/Portraits, Watercolor, Oil and Acrylic Painting, Pastels, Airbrushing, Artisan Jewelry Design, Modern Art, Dance and Yoga Therapy, Traditional Graphic Design, Digital & Fine Art Photography, Gicleé printing, Creative Design, Website Design, Marketing & Advertising. My jewelry works have had honorable recognition in gallery exhibitions in Miami, New York City & Paris since 2012!!!!