about
Laria Saunders was born in Boston and grew up equally there and in New York and Los Angeles. Since 2012, she has began experimenting with mobile art. This new mobile medium has enabled her to stay creative despite chronic daily migraines.
She is a summa cum laude, UCLA graduate in World Arts & Culture and an Alumni Arts Scholar recipient. She was a professional photographer and classical dancer/ teacher (Classical Indian /Odissi) until she became disabled in 1998.
For the last twenty years, she has been suffering with a mysterious illness that includes ten recalcitrant pain syndromes such as daily migraines, demyelinating disease and Fibromyalgia.
Severe pain has caused over eight months of hospitalization and she has sought treatments all over the world and continues her daily fight to manage the pain despite multiple severe drug allergies.
After near total isolation in India for many years, she says she could no longer do normal photography. Laria started her artistic path off with alternative photography creating a five-year abstract collection by moving with her camera and called it, "Despite the Pain" - see statement for more information on this series.
Since 2012 she has been exclusively creating digital collages that look like paintings (see statement for details). She lives in Denver, Colorado with her partner, James, who has been devotedly by her side for thirteen years.
education:
Bachelor of Arts - University California Los Angeles - World Arts & Culture - summa cum laude - alumni arts scholar recipient.
Laria's artwork has been purchased by:
Google
Microsoft
Warner Media
Woodlands Resort
Chicago O'Hare Airport VIP Suite
Slack Denver
and more...
awards:
2014 Light & Composition Magazine - Top 100 Photographers
2012-2013 The Peace Project Exhibit
Deep Ellum Artwalk, Dallas, Texas Landmark Arts Building, Chelsea, NY The Whole 9 Gallery, Culver City, CA Gallery Expo, Long Beach, CA. Showcase Gallery, Santa Ana, CA. Art4All People, Malibu, CA. Swarm Gallery, Oakland, CA.
2012 The Abstracts, Group Show at Linus Gallery, Pasadena, CA. 2012 Get Real 1650 Gallery, Silver Lake, CA.
2011 Two Artists Show, GrooveWorx Gallery, Santa Monica, CA
2010 Eden Arts, UK - 3rd place
2010 Momentum: Images of Dance, CT - Honorable Mention
2010 Art Scene Today - Honorable Mention, published
2010 Art Slant - Showcase Finalist, published
2010 Projekt 30 - Awarded online exhibition- group show group shows:
2010 Photos with Words, Photo Place Gallery/VPW, Vermont USA