Karen Gilinski

 
I was born in Minnesota, USA to a Venezuelan/American father, who is a Neurologist, and an Argentinean mother, who is a Speech Therapist. I was raised in Caracas, Venezuela. When I turned 18, I decided to move to the USA, to start my career as an artist. 
As a young child, I expressed interest in art and this allowed my mother and both of my grandmothers to motivate me in the art field. They encouraged me to take several different types of art classes. Both of my grandmothers are artists and more specifically one is also an Architect and the other one is a poet. 
In 2001, during my first college year in Venezuela at the Metropolitan University, I decided to move back to the US as the Chavez government was creating political unrest. I was looking for a successful future as a student in a politically stable country, so I moved to Miami to obtain a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts in Graphic Design. I graduated with Honors in 2004. 
Leaving my family behind in Venezuela was hard, but rewarding, as learning to live on my own was definitely the best way to understand myself and really focus on all the strong feelings I needed to express, in order to create a career as an artist. My first art pieces convey feelings of loneliness and lack of identity. As I developed my career as an artist, I gained more confidence, and now I am at a different stage in my life. My art now portrays happiness and celebrates life, so it now transmits positive vibes wherever it goes.  
As the daughter of medical practitioners, I can say that my artwork was definitely influenced by their jobs. I learned to understand the “REAL problems” human beings face and, therefore, I learned to enjoy life in whatever form it comes. My upbringing definitely influences my artwork and allows me to reflect and portray happiness.