Biography: Hello I’m Alyssa! I’m a second year botany major here at OSU. Growing up on ‘Oahu, Hawaii, I developed a strong passion for native plants and ecosystems. This has led me to pursue a degree in plant science. Nature has always been a place of comfort and inspiration for me, I want my paintings to express that sense of whimsical-ness I get from being outdoors. When I graduate I hope to work in the field, rehabilitating native environments from invasive species.

Artist Statement: Growing up in Hawaii, I’ve always been inspired by nature, its resilience and diversity. It has definitely been a driving inspiration for my paintings. In addition, art has been an outlet for expressing what I cannot with words. I enjoy playing around with surrealist landscapes and vibrant colors, painting whatever comes to my mind in the moment. I add on to paintings as I go so I never really know how it’s going to turn out in the end- I think that’s the most exciting part in the whole process. I really just want to create pieces that are fun to look at but also carry ambiguous elements that can be interpreted in many different ways.

Social Media: @sweetpidge

See more of Alyssa’s art in the upcoming Prism edition, Storyteller!