I started this shop to share with others, the beauty of Mexico I've translated through my art. I fell in Love with Mexico when I was 18 years old traveling for the first time across the border between Arizona and Mexico. Experiencing a world I had never known before, except from the stories my mother told me about my grandfather.

My grandfather was an actor, and an academic playwright, teaching drama at a private college in Davenport, Iowa, where I grew up. In the 1940's he would journey to Santa Fe, and Taos, New Mexico, and further into Mexico to discover the lives and cultures of people he was so inspired to learn about. He wanted to write plays so he could share these incredible cultures with others. He consulted, and hired Native American and Mexican actors to come to Iowa to create the most authentic representations as he could. He was a believer in educating others, to inform and to learn and to respect and understand we are all the same no matter what our skin tones.

So, in a way I was following in my grandfathers footsteps, though it didn't occur to me until I was actually in Mexico, long after my grandfather had died. I created this loteria project to show the rich culture of Mexico in a fun way, through the traditional and much loved Mexican Bingo game called "Loteria". Most Americans are unfamiliar with Mexico's rich history and the amazing depth, love and strength of it's people who make up this culture, and I wanted to express this in my paintings. I hope you can feel the love that I hold in my heart for this culture, and for my grandfathers vision.

This shop sells limited edition prints from the series of 54 original oil paintings from the installation titled "La Loteria: An Exploration of Mexico" that has been traveling around the states for the last 10 years. Because the original artwork is a large installation of 54 oil on wood paintings, they are not for individual sale, and can only be purchased as the whole installation. That is why I had these high end giclee limited edition prints made. Because of the limited edition, some are more in stock than others. Some of these prints only have 1-2 left. When they are all gone, they will never be made again.

For more detailed information about the original work please visit my website: www.teresavillegas.com

To see my other shop of relief prints: http://www.etsy.com/shop/TeresaVillegasPrintsFor more information about my work, please visit my website: teresavillegas.com