BIOGRAPHY
Mona Lisa Aspiras, from the Philippines, was born and raised in Rome, Italy. She is the daughter of a retired economist of the FAO/UN and artist-painter. Mona Lisa holds a B.A. in Interdivisional Studies/Psychology from Virginia Wesleyan College, a diploma in Computer Programming from ECPI, and an Associate degree in IT/Internet Specialist from Tidewater Community College.
While in Rome, Mona Lisa was introduced to art and studied basic elements such as color theory, perspective, line, form and design while also exploring etching and silkscreening under the guidance of her high school art teacher, Mr. Dennis Cigler, an American painter. She then furthered her studies by taking a certificate course in Figure Studies at the Accademia di Belle Arti (Academy of Fine Arts) di Roma under the tutelage of Professors Avanessian, Ballestrelli, and Berdini. Later in Virginia, she took several art classes such as Visual Arts Foundation, Drawing I and II, Three-Dimensional Design, and Computer Graphics I and II at Tidewater Community College and Virginia Wesleyan College.
In Rome, Mona Lisa has exhibited with her mother at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the Philippine Embassy to the Holy See (Vatican), and the Spanish Cultural Center. In Virginia (Norfolk and Virginia Beach), she has exhibited in occasion of events such as the Philippine Centennial and Philippine Independence Day at the Chrysler Museum of Art, Harrison Opera House, MacArthur Museum, Filipino-American Student Cultural Center of Old Dominion University, and the Huff, Poole, and Mahoney Lawyers Building. Mona Lisa was a member of the Chesapeake Bay Art Association, Tidewater Artist Alliance, and Chesapeake Bay Watercolorist Society. In the spring of 2004, she has participated in the juried exhibition "Spring Fling" at Studio 107 in Norfolk, VA, the Spring Members' Show at TCC's Roper Fine Arts Center also in Norfolk, and the TAA Members' Show at the Barry Robinson Fine Arts Center at Virginia Beach.
She paints in acrylic, tempera, watercolor, pastels, and would like to experiment more with oils when time permits.
