Meet Kayla Cruz, a self taught abstract artist from Roseville, California whose inspiration comes from the abstraction of colors, movement, and storytelling yet other times she is moved by the music playing in the background, emotions or pure daydreams. Using acrylics and a mix of different mediums, she is able to create unique, one-of-a-kind masterpieces.  

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Kayla's painting process is seemingly chaotic and unpredictable, however she always seems to pull everything together in perfect harmony. Her painting style is constantly changing and evolving as she thrives off trying new things and experimenting with different mediums. She's never liked sticking to the same thing for too long but art sure has stuck around for quite some time...let's rewind a bit.

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Growing up, Kayla was surrounded by creativity. Her mom, a talented faux painter at the time, brought her along painting jobs where Kayla watched her precision as she hand painted plaster columns into solid marble. Instantaneously, a fire inside Kayla was ignited and she was hooked; captivated by the power of creativity.

 

By first grade, her school art teacher brought one of her drawings to a national teachers conference to share her artistic advancements. The lesson was to draw the shape of a guitar that the teacher propped up in front of the class. Majority of her classmates drew the outline of the shape as they saw it but not for Kayla. She drew the guitar laying down on its side at an angle, giving it a 3D perspective, and a dark shadow casting behind it. She didn't see herself standing out, it was just the way she saw it.

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Throughout the years Kayla attended different art classes such as pottery, oil painting, cartoon drawing, as well as private lessons. Her and her mom also shared their love for design which extended to visiting model homes just for the joy of exploring interior spaces and discovering fresh ideas. These childhood experiences laid the foundation for her creative future. 

 

Developing a passion and appreciation for the world of art and design, Kayla was led to pursue a Bachelor's degree in Architecture and Interior Design from the Academy of Art University - San Francisco and the Art Institute of California - San Diego. At 24, Kayla started her first LLC design business in Florida which started out flipping homes and later on became a sub to bigger residential remodeling projects for builders and contractors. Her favorite part of a job was rendering concept drawings, demo day, the final reveal where she made her "idea" a reality and complimenting that vision with her home staging. ​She dedicated several years to home design and the construction industry.

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As a few years followed, Kayla returned to California taking some time off and eventually found herself working for a home builder in 2019. She transitioned from high-end custom homes to your cookie cutter track homes where detail and personalization seemed to be irrelevant. While excelling at her position, she found herself unfulfilled and not using her full potential. She started doing acrylic pours as it became the new thing during the pandemic, to destress after work and be in her happy place. Kayla realized how much she missed creating and that's when she made the biggest career change, taking her from the world of architecture to artistry. ​At the end of 2022, Kayla quit her nine to five job and decided to take on an unknown territory, trading in her hardhat and drafting tools for a paint brush and canvas to become a full time abstract expressionist artist.