In 1993 I took an art 101 class my senior year of high school. My art teachers encouraged me to consider continuing with the art after graduation. I ended up attending the local college in my hometown in NW Florida, and was awarded a work scholarship as gallery assistant through the art department. A couple of years later I held an AA Degree in Studio Art.

In 1997 I then married and moved to 4 different cities over the next 6 years working in the the non-art fields of retail distribution, retail management, property management, and then radio engineer assistant. Over the course of all the moves and jobs, I was becoming a self taught web designer and eBay powerseller. I was chosen by eBay one year for their annual Best in Stores contest for Best Shopping Experience. Between my day job, and night hobby - there was really not much time for painting.

In 2004 our family started to grow and so I decided to quit the "9 to 5" job and stay at home with my kids. I realized I needed to find or invent a creative outlet, and so revisited my art. It started out as a hobby, and I was creating ACEO's (artist trading cards) and selling them on eBay. I then wanted to see these tiny ideas on a larger scale, so I opened a shop on eBay and began to offer originals on canvas.

In 2008 I decided to move my online shop from eBay to etsy. From that time on I continued to create original works and connect with collectors. I've had the opportunity to create works for Boston's Children's Hospital, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, create paintings for private collectors around the world, illustrate a children's book, receive gallery representation in Asia, as well as participate annually (6 years in a row) in a juried international art show in Taipei. On occasion I've been known to participate in art festivals located here in the southeast corner of the US.

I'm busy now with 3 teens, painting, life - etc. Due to my current schedule, I am not able to take on commissions at this time. However, new art is always being added to the shop. If you would like to be inboxed when original paintings are made available, you can sign up here: https://bit.ly/2zixzHi - people on this list are always the first to know! For other in studio happenings visit my website at www.cindythornton.com
Thanks for stopping by! -Cindy