Statement
I am a self-taught artist. My paintings are deeply influenced by my native Trinidad and Tobago. The light of the Caribbean generates brilliant hues for the seas, skies, flowers, fruit and skin tones. These colors in turn are expressed in my culture.
My profession, as an international make-up artist in the fashion industry for over 30 years, developed in me a keenness of eye for the multiple hues of skin and the practice of observing facial features from many angles. I bring this experience into every portrait I create. My intent is to capture the emotions of the being I am painting. One could say, I am having a conversation with the being’s soul through color and perspective.
Bio
Sandra was born in Venezuela, growing up in Trinidad having moved there with her family when she was five. She spent her teenage years in Aberystwyth at a girls’ boarding school, before starting an extensive career in fashion as a make-up artist that spanned over 30 years. She has always been fascinated by the character and the soul behind the mask, which is revealed in her startling array of women’s faces. Self-taught, but guided by some considerable mentors: Boscoe Holder (Trinidad), Patrick Betaudier (Paris), Andy Warhol (The Factory) and more recently Rafael Calzada (Mexico), she also draws inspiration from one of her favorite artists, the late Alexej von Jawlensky. Her style can be described as a unique blend of abstract and soulful portraiture. Indeed, the memories of the light and colors of Trinidad and Tobago, her mother’s birth place, are also seen as the influence in her play with color.