How did you get your Artist name?: An ex boyfriend wrote a poem for me and titled it Lidflutters

How did you get into creating?: That's all I have ever known! I have always been making something-drawing, painting, taking pictures, building-it's just in my DNA. My parents were supportive of my creative side and encouraged me to pursue it so I was always in an art class or experimenting with some new technique. In my adult life I'm an art teacher and practicing artist so it has definitely carried over throughout my life.

How has creating changed your life?: It's a purposeful thing-it keeps me grounded and sane, especially during the current state of the world. It's an outlet for expression, feelings, a nonverbal story.

Where are you from?: ATL! Born and raised and still love that city-my family and friends are there and it will be my forever home. However, I have adopted Washington DC as my second home, which I love as well, and have been here for about ten years.

How did growing up in your neighborhood/city affect you?: ATL is so rich in creative juices from the visual arts to music, it's flowing with innovative ideas. Growing up in a big city, especially one like that, really laid the groundwork for me to explore my own creative side.

What did you do to advance your skills/knowledge?: As a kid, I did everything "art" that I could-clubs at school, eating lunch with my art teachers, art camps in the summers, after school art classes, babysitting to save my money and buy new art supplies to experiment or replenish my stock. Once I graduated high school, I pursued art in undergrad as well as graduate school. I'm a middle school art teacher as my full time job, but am prolific in my personal art as well. I still collaborate with my peers and am an avid learner with a curious mind even now. I see myself as a lifelong learner and am always seeking out new challenges.

What does your current setup look like?: I work out of my apartment-I converted what would be a living room for most and turned it into a studio. I opted for a drawing table instead of a couch and wall space to hang my art in lieu of a TV. But it works for me and I love it!

Who inspires you? Why do they inspire you?: I'm honestly inspired by my students-they come from traumatic backgrounds and home lives so having an art class is a great way for them to express feelings they may not be able to articulate. It's a beautiful thing to watch and be a part of!

What is your goal when you create? : I don't always have an end product in mind-sometimes I'm just creating and am surprised by what I end up with. Sometimes I also have a very specific plan, so it goes both ways. But the universal thread that ties everything together is the process-I am forever in love and interested with the process and how to get to the end way more than the end. So I guess that means my goal is to be as present as I can be for that process.

Why do you create?: I don't know what else I would do, it's kind of all I know.

What's your go-to song right now and why is it important to you?: WAP. It's not important to me, just so good haha.

What is your dream as an artist and what steps are you taking to reach your dream?: I want people to attribute my art with positive vibes and remember me and my art as part of a community. I have donated, and continue to donate, portions of my profits to DC Central Kitchen in an effort to raise awareness on their organization.

What is the best advice you would give someone? : Don't worry about the end result-what you are learning along the way is much more important!

Tell us about your most recent release: I'm working on a series of illustrations of local Washington DC restaurants and small businesses in efforts to raise money for DC Central Kitchen.

Share a link to your most recent release: http://lidflutters.com

Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/lidflutters/

Twitter: http://twitter.com/lidflutters

Website: http://www.lidflutters.com

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