We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Lupe Lawrence a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Lupe, appreciate you joining us today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

I was working at the City of West Palm Beach, and one day I saw a special on PBS on degenerate art. My heart broke as I saw the art, and I remembered the art of John Constable and Rembrandt and others like them, and I prayed to God, if you can use anyone, use me. The next day I took my dog for a walk in the park near my house. Unbeknownst to me, there was a festival, and I saw a man selling art; I approached and told him I was an artist and asked if he was interested in seeing my art. He said yes, and the following week I brought my art over; he accepted five of my paintings. I was overjoyed when he called me and told me that he had sold two of my paintings and would send me the check the next day. Well, I never received payment, and I began to call him, but no one ever answered to my dismay. I went to the gallery, and it was closed. I became suspicious and started visiting the gallery frequently, but no one was ever there. I became scared and started praying; I almost gave up until one day I heard a voice say get up and go to the store; I had just come from work and was tired and refused. But the voice was persistent. To go to the store, I had to drive by the gallery, and to my horror, I saw the gallery owner packing up the store and putting art in his van. Immediately I pulled into the parking lot, went into the gallery, and picked up the remaining paintings. As I was leaving, the owner followed me and said he had all intention to call me and tell me he was closing the store and would soon pay me. I ignored him and drove away with my art.
I thought for sure that my art career was over. Until one day at work, I got a call from a woman that used to work at the gallery. She introduced herself and said she had been calling Human Resources for weeks looking for me. She would ask for Lupe, but no one knew who I was, but she was persistent until a friend of mine that worked in that dept answered the phone and realized that she was asking for Guadalupe instead of my nickname. She also told me the gallery owner had stolen her supplies and several thousand dollars from her. She had also found out that he was addicted to crack, lost everything, and lived on the streets.
The reason that she was calling was that she loved my art and wanted to invite me to be part of a show.
I did the show and imagined my excitement when I sold a piece. I met several other artists at that show that would be instrumental to my future art career.
A few weeks later, I received a call from a lady I had met at the show, and she said that she had called the City of West Palm Beach looking for Lupe, but at this point, Human Resources knew how to find me, and they put her straight through. She told me that she had fallen in love with one of my pieces and could not get it off her mind. She would have bought it at the show, but at the time, she was not expecting to purchase anything and had not brought any money. She lived 60 miles away and would meet me at my job.
After the transaction, I went into my office, meditated on everything that just had happened, and decided that being an artist was a career path.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

I am originally from Havana, Cuba, and came to the U.S. at five. I saw the painting Haywain by John Constable, and I knew then that I wanted to be an artist and create paintings like the painting I was viewing. I told my mother about my desire, and she told me no; we had just come from Cuba, and we did not have the money for me to go to art class. Several years later, I took my first art class in high school and was enamored. I told my teacher that I wanted to get a degree in art, and she told me that I did not have what it took and that I should consider another vocation. I forgot about my dream and started working for the City of West Palm Beach. There, I experienced a crisis, I became suicidal, and when I failed, I realized that I had to find something that would bring meaning to my life. I remembered my childhood desire to be an artist and decided to start art classes at a local craft store. The first class was great, but by the second, I realized that I was the only Afro-Cuban in the class and that every time I had a question, the teacher would ignore me and answer the other student’s questions. I had enough by the fifth class and decided not to return. In the parking lot, another student approached me and told me that she saw what was happening and that I should contact another instructor named Robert Watler. My first class with Robert was incredible, and I learned how to paint through his tutorage. A few years later, I left my job at the City of West Palm Beach and started painting full-time and exhibiting professionally.

I believe that art, in general, solves many problems. Take, for example, my experience. John Constable lived in 1800, and one hundred years later, a five-year-old child saw his painting and was transported to a different dimension. That is the power of art. In this chaotic world, we all need mental vacations. I believe that my art fulfills that need; my art transport you to the vista that I paint. . I am most proud when a viewer sees my art and tells me they feel like they are part of the vistas I have painted and like that five-year little girl that saw a print of a scene from England, they are transported too.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

In 2008 the market crashed, and all of the galleries representing me went out of business; I decided soon after to close my business, gave away all of my art supplies, and sold my paintings for pennies on the dollar.

More than a decade later, a friend invited me to an art show at Zero Empty Spaces (Zero Empty Spaces is an organization that rents empty storefronts to artist at a reasonable price.) After leaving the show, I realized how empty my life was, and through a series of miraculous events, I began renting an artist space there. For me, it took guts to get back into the business, and quite frankly, I thought I was done with art, but apparently, art was not done with me.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

I am a landscape artist, and I am concerned about the future that we are leaving to our children and grandchildren. I think about my childhood and the beauty of the earth that I enjoyed, which is disappearing because of my generation’s carelessness. My goal and mission are to showcase the wonder and beauty of our world, and through my art bring awareness of how fragile that beauty is.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://arttimesbylupe.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lawrencelupe/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lupe.lawrence
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lupe-lawrence-31644714/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/LawremceLupe