About the Artist:  Valerie Leri grew up in Belmont; Massachusetts and attended University of Massachusetts studying Fine Arts. She graduated in 1982 and has been painting ever since. A strong element throughout her work is light; both physically and spiritually through a combination of realism and abstraction. Her mission is to capture a sense of spontaneity and tranquility or movement; energy and exhilaration through the interaction of colors and shapes. Some of her paintings are interwoven with elements from nature such as sand; bark; stones and shells to give the painting a 3D appearance. Valerie likes to work more by feeling than technique; letting the painting in a sense create itself with her as the conduit to the visual message. So it is therefore more about flow than form.