About the Artist

Julianna was born and raised in San Jose, California and spent the bulk of her time playing organized team sports as a latch key kid. Upon graduating high school, Julianna earned a field hockey scholarship to Northwestern University, where she began taking creative writing courses and took just one painting course before diverting her efforts to a new degree in the school’s Education and Social Policy program. Julianna was accepted into the Master’s in Social Work program at New York University in 2003 and after completing her degree, continued to live and work in New York City as a licensed clinical social worker for over 10 years, engaging various under served populations such as street homeless adults, families in DV shelters, adolescents aging out of the foster care system and individuals seeking outpatient mental health treatment. Julianna also met and began to work with abstract artist, Nuala Clarke in New York City for weekly, small, group workshops.

In 2011, Julianna met her husband and relocated to the Philadelphia area, having applied and been accepted into the City of Philadelphia Mural Arts program (MAP) as an Artist Intern. Julianna soon found herself working with MAP as an Artist Assistant on various projects connected to mental health and substance abuse treatment organizations, helping execute mural work while engaging the community in the creative process. Julianna eventually returned to social work full time, serving as a school counselor at a boarding and day Quaker high school for a couple years before finally making the decision to give herself a full year, in 2015 to focus on her artwork.

2015-2016 proved to be a fruitful year. Julianna secured a studio space in Port Richmond, Philadelphia and applied to a summer art residency through Starry Night retreat, and was accepted for residency July, 2016. Shortly before the residency was to start, Julianna also earned a place to show her work at Art Basel, Miami art fair this December, 2016 with Exposure Gallery. Julianna continues to work at her art each day and now maintains a private psychotherapy practice.