Biography
Born in Havana, Cuba, Raida Lopez is a renowned abstract expressionist whose paintings, prints and mixed media have appeared in galleries and museums around the world. Her approach delivers colorful, intriguing works of art: "I always let my subconscious lead the way until the image talks to me, and then I answer."
Lopez's art often includes the human form, sometimes interlaced with vegetation or unidentified objects, always flowing, as if in motion. Lopez leaves the message of each piece up to the beholder: "I like how each viewer makes their own determination or interpretation of what they are seeing or feeling. The ambiguity of each piece is what captures the viewer's interest. My challenge is to cause a reaction -- this is what keeps me creating."
Lopez grew up in an artistic home atmosphere cultivated by her mother, also a talented visual artist. At an early age, Lopez expressed her artistry through dance, which may explain why movement is a key element in her paintings today. Lopez loved to experiment with paint as a child, but it was not until high school that she began taking painting more seriously.
Lopez began her formal study of art with a Bachelor in Fine Arts from the Ringling College of Art and Design in Sarasota, Florida. Since graduation in 1992 Lopez has exhibited her art throughout the years in individual and group shows , as well as in national and international competitions. Her work has appeared in cities across the United States, and internationally in Madrid and Barcelona, Spain; Frankfurt, Germany; Saint Amand Montrond, France; and Livorno, Italy.
Lopez' works have received numerous awards and critical accolades. Several of her pieces are included in esteemed public and private collections, among them: Museum of the Americas, Miami, Florida; Galerie Thomas Lang, Hanau, Germany; Full Sail University, Orlando, Florida; Leibniz University, Santa Fe, New Mexico; Charlotte Heart Vascular Institute, Port Charlotte, Florida; and the Ringling College of Art and Design, Sarasota, Florida.