Drawing, painting, or any form of art can be a great way to express yourself and your ideologies. Seventeen-year-old Olivia Romero (12) talks about the meaning behind her style of art and what she hopes to achieve with her work in the future. Most of her work portrays the beauty of spirituality and her indigenous roots; which are Ashiwi (Zuni Pueblo) from New Mexico.

She has always been drawn to art since she was a kid given she comes from a very artistic family so it really comes naturally to her. “Also my family members and ancestors were very artistic which is where I get it from” she explains. Her father would always show her his art pieces which made her more passionate and driven to draw.

Romero’s facial features influence her style of art. “I like to draw big eyes, which is one of my favorite features about myself,” she explains. She likes to draw faces and portraits because she loves capturing people’s expressions and facial features.

Alongside, she also draws and paints pieces inspired by her culture and spirituality. Her favorite drawing is one of her and her mom; the meaning behind it is to pay homage to her and her mom’s indigenous roots and the spiritual connection they share with each other. “We are Ashiwi (Zuni Pueblo) from New Mexico, which we are very proud of” she states.

She uses art as something to express her passion for her background. “I also draw and paint pieces about my culture’s and spirituality’s beauty,” she says. On top of that, Romero draws to distract herself from the difficulties she goes through in life as well. “Art has definitely been there for me in the roughest times in my life” Romero explains. The beauty and deep meaning behind art play a huge role in her life because of the many ways it has helped her, one being mental. 

She is extremely passionate about what she does which is why Romero hopes to sell her art soon on either clothing or canvas’. “I was going to start selling prints of the pieces I did and also do airbrush tees of the characters I draw” she states. She is very driven in selling her art because she wants to show respect and honor her culture and where she comes from given that her art portrays that part of her.