Born in the 1990s in North Carolina, I knew I wanted to be an artist in elementary school. With the love and support of my family and community, I studied Spanish and Fine Art at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In high school and throughout college, I began volunteering with my local Buddhist community — supporting event planning, marketing, and teaching meditation — and the seeds of my spiritual path took root alongside my artistic one.

In 2014, I moved to Baltimore, Maryland, drawn by a deepening devotion to both my practice of awakening and my art. These two paths have never truly been separate for me — each one has always informed and illuminated the other. From 2016 to 2018, I spent time in Washington, D.C. working at National Geographic in their travel department, before feeling a clear call back to the arts.

In January 2019, I began the Art Education Bachelor’s program at Towson University. My love of working with children and the joy of making art led me toward becoming a teaching artist and educator. I graduated in May 2020 as a Maryland Teaching Fellow, and that August began teaching visual art at ConneXions: A Community Based Arts School in Baltimore City, where I continue to work full-time with middle and high schoolers. Over the years I’ve had the honor of teaching hundreds of students from across the city — 6th through 12th grade — and I’m deeply grateful for every one of them.

In 2023, I began a Master of Fine Arts degree at Towson University. My developing body of work investigates the intersection of compassion for personal and collective suffering, calling for an end to the Palestinian genocide. Working in mixed media, painting, collage, and drawing, my practice is a political call to peace and accountability.

My art and my spirituality have always grown together — rooted in the same longing for truth, presence, and connection. I also offer 1-on-1 sessions for those drawn to the path of awakening. You’re warmly welcome to explore both at monicaheiser.com.