Art found me as a child and never let go. It's how I process the world, express what words can't hold, and connect deeply with others.
You decide who will appear in Artforum Magazine, take home $25,000, and display their work at The Art of Elysium's Salon!
I am primarily a figurative artist who works across graphite, charcoal, ink, and mixed media. My greatest passion is portraiture, not just capturing likeness, but excavating emotional truth. I'm drawn to the duality within people: beauty alongside darkness, calm alongside chaos. Whether through hyper-realistic charcoal drawings or surrealist mixed-media pieces, I use the human face as a canvas to explore what we feel but rarely say.
Where do you find inspiration?My inspiration lives everywhere, in the faces of people I love, in strangers I pass, in the quiet moments of everyday life that most people overlook. I'm deeply moved by human emotion in its rawest form: grief, joy, rage, transformation. I also draw from storytelling and the subconscious mind, that shadowy space where who we present to the world collides with who we truly are.
What would you do with $25,000?Winning $25,000 would be a true turning point in my life as an artist. I would invest in bringing my dream of publishing illustrated books to life, I have stories and characters inside me just waiting to get out, and this would give me the resources to finally make that happen. The rest would go toward my art, better supplies, equipment, and the foundation I need to one day create full time. But this prize wouldn't just be money, it would be the launchpad for everything I've been building toward
Vote for Renee Shockley to become The People's Artist while supporting a great cause! Cast your free daily vote or make an even bigger impact when you vote by donation, supporting The Art of Elysium in their mission to use art as a catalyst to help people triumph over difficult life challenges.
Register now for your opportunity to appear in Artforum Magazine, take home $25,000, and display your artwork at The Art of Elysium's Salon.
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