Monks’s paintings have been the subject of numerous solo and group exhibitions including “Intimacy” at the Kunst Museum in Ahlen, Germany and “Reconfiguring the Body in American Art, 1820-2009” at the National Academy Museum of Fine Arts, New York. Her work is represented in public and private collections, including the Savannah College of Arts, the Somerset Art Association and the collections of Howard Tullman, Danielle Steele and Eric Fischl.

“My intention is to transfer the intimacy and vulnerability of my human experience into a painted surface. I like mine to be as intimate as possible, each brush stroke like a fossil, recording every gesture and decision.”

Alyssa Monks earned her B.A. from Boston College and she studied painting at Lorenzo de’ Medici in Florence. She went on to complete her M.F.A at the New York Academy of Art, Graduate School of Figurative Art in 2001. She teaches and lectures at universities and institution nationwide. Alyssa has been awarded the Elizabeth Greenshields Foundation Grant for Painting three times and serves on the New York Academy of Art’s Board of Trustees. She is represented by Forum Gallery in New York City. Alyssa currently lives and paints in Brooklyn, New York.

Born and raised in Washington D.C, Chris grew up under extremely difficult circumstances. Poverty, drug addiction, and gun violence was the everyday norm in his community. At the age of 17, he was charged with a crime, convicted, and sentenced to natural life in prison. It was during times of isolation that he decided to not only to turn his life around, but to make a difference in the lives of people who currently live in poverty-stricken communities similar to his childhood surroundings. “Many years ago,  I committed my life to self-improvement and helping others. I sat in a dark cell and wrote up what I now call my Master Plan. A plan to build a business empire and help others.”

While imprisoned, he earned his high school diploma, graduated from all of the vocational shops, earned an Associate of Arts Degree in Sociology, from Anne Arundel Community College and taught himself to speak and write in several foreign languages. He became a mentor, started a career center, book club and after serving 16 years in prison, he has returned to society a changed man.

He now resides in Baltimore City and is the owner and founder of the Barclay Investment Corporation,  a multi-service social enterprise, specializing in residential and commercial contracting work. Barclay works closely with local workforce and social service providers to connect unemployed Baltimore City residents with clients who are in need of a number of services.

His other business ventures include The House of DaVinci, a high-end furniture restoration  and design company and Master Plan Productions, a social impact content development company.

https://www.instagram.com/ChriswilsonBaltimore/

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