February 11, 2015
5:30-7:00 p.m.
2050 Alameda Padre Serra Ste. 100
Santa Barbara, CA 93103
About the Author
Born in Santa Monica and raised in West Los Angeles, Diana’s passion for art and music grew at an early age. For over 20 years she studied classical piano and traveled the world with her family. Inspired by both, Diana graduated from the private art school The American InterContinental University with honors in 1993. After graduating, she worked for Delta Music as their Graphic Designer. Following that, she went to the creative side of the Hotel Industry where she worked as a Floral Designer and Wedding & Event Planner for 5 Star Hotels, while building her art portfolio.
Diana exhibited her first solo art show at Tanner’s Coffee House in 1995, followed by a couple of private home shows. For the past 8 years she’s enjoyed living in Santa Barbara with her husband and twins. She’s been thrilled to be able to continue to paint and display her work at Michael Kate, Coffee Cat’s First Thursday, Bikram, and some private homes.
Her children were a year old when her father passed away after a very long and painful struggle with cancer. His passing took her from a colorful world to an unknown place. After 3 years of struggling with her father’s death, she turned to Hospice of Santa Barbara. HSB was able to help Diana find her new journey and be able to once again enjoy her family and friends to the fullest. Through her healing journey, great love for the ocean, and meeting so many wonderful people she was inspired to start her new line “Ocean Of Souls”. She expresses great gratitude for the extraordinary assistance HSB provides day in and day out to so many beautiful families, and for the opportunity that HSB has extended in displaying her “Ocean Of Souls” collection at their intimate Leigh Block Gallery. Painting is, and always will be, her passion.
“My life has always been an inspiration to me. Through family, close friends, music and travel I’ve been able to experience so many unbelievable moments - - -filled with and focused upon the elemental experiences of - - happiness and sorrow, birth and death, sickness and health, motherhood, compassion and empathy . . . I’m moved by all of it in deep levels of my soul, and this is what inspires my art. This, my loving husband, and my two amazing children who color my life every day with all the light, shadow and texture of love. Life is about challenges and change, love and compassion, pain and healing—it’s a journey that is unique to every person. My paintings reflect these important life experiences that we often have difficulty expressing or dealing with. Everything happens for a reason. Nothing happens just to happen. If you just ride the wave out as best as you can, life just gets more colorful in ways and areas that you could never imagine.” Diana Valdez