Taking the leap
Betting on herself, artist Noelia Nuñez is reaping the rewards and learning more about herself in the process.
In a city that is 262 years old, the historic architecture of Staunton, Virginia almost begs to be painted. Seated in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, Staunton was established in 1761 and has a long history stretching the past two and a half centuries. Now, this small town is a hub for incredibly creative people including artist Noelia Nuñez.
Nuñez, 31, is a full time artist and yoga instructor based in Staunton. She immigrated to the United States with her family from Uruguay when she was 9 years old and moved to Staunton in 2003. Growing up, she always loved and created art and found herself becoming more interested in middle and high school. A bit reluctant to show her work, she was always encouraged by her twin sister Sophia. After a drawing class at Blue Ridge Community College she delved in painting and began showcasing more of her artistic skills in her early 20s.
“I worked downtown at The By&By [coffee] and that’s when I would get custom painting requests from people,” she said. “I remember thinking that people were just being nice or encouraging me, I didn’t think they actually wanted my paintings. So, it was cool to see that this was something people were really interested in.”
Nuñez was working as a barista and as the cross country coach at Riverheads High School in 2020. When the pandemic hit, Nuñez felt that it was finally time to commit to art full time.
“I thought, this is my chance to jump,” she said. “If I don’t do it now, I will always find something else to do, which is great because we all want to be secure in what we are doing, but I realized that I am an artist, I can do this.”
It was around the same time when Nuñez started getting into yoga and is now an instructor with Aligned Yoga. In both her painting and in yoga, she enjoys practicing mindfulness and meditation and even did a series of 30 Days of Art and yoga. She feels herself growing as an artist, becoming more grounded in where she is and where she has been.
“I love that yoga and art make you stop and take in the moment,” she said. “With my art, I can physically capture a feeling or a moment. My goal overall is to create art where people feel something and feel centered.”
In the stress of everyday life, Nuñez’ paintings can be a retreat. Whether sitting in a coffee shop or having a small print framed on a desk, the act of observing her work can be a daily practice of mindfulness.
With bold colors and incredibly expressive brush strokes, Nuñez brings life to every canvas and piece of paper she touches. Creating work in a post-impressionistic style with fluid compositions and conscious use of color, she draws inspiration not only from her travels and other local artists like Sage Latane Hastert, but from historic artists as well as other creators on social media like abstract artist Heather Day.
“Van Gogh is the number one painter that I’ve gathered inspiration from,” she said. “I have always been drawn to his use of movement and color. How he saw the world was so different and he was pushed out of society for it. But he’s able to live on through his work because he didn’t do it for anybody else, it was for him and his story.”
Family is incredibly important to Nuñez and her four-year-old niece is one of her top sources of inspiration.
“When she comes into my studio, she is so expressive and just thinks that everything is possible,” she said. “Kids are so crazy cool because they don’t think ‘Oh, I can’t do that,’ so she reminds me it’s possible to dream bigger and just paint for fun.”
Growing up, Nuñez saw the ambitions and big dreams her parents had to make a better life for their family. Their perseverance through language and cultural barriers have instilled an amazing drive and work ethic in their children. When she decided art was going to be her future, her mother sat her down and made sure she understood that it would take more than just passion to become a successful full time artist.
“Now that I get older, I see that it was so brave for my parents to dream and tell us that we could,” she said. “I am inspired by their story because they did a lot while they were in survival mode and now we get to choose certain things. When I decided to become an artist, I thought, ‘I get to choose this.’ And I know it will be tough and there will be some days I don’t know how I’m going to do it, but it’s a choice I’m really thankful they gave me.”
Transitioning from being a virtual art and yoga instructor to being back in person, Nuñez enjoys teaching painting at private events, art camps for kids, and doing live paintings at local fundraising events. Her paintings and prints are for sale in locations all over Staunton and Waynesboro, with the most recent addition of Farmhaus Coffee Co in downtown Waynesboro.
Typically working in pen, pencil, charcoal, watercolor, gouache, pastel, and acrylics, she wants to start working more with oil paints.
“This year, I want to let myself experiment more, almost like journaling,” she said. “And letting myself understand that it doesn’t have to be perfect for someone else, those are the best kinds of projects, when you can move through the creative process with no restrictions.”
While she is working on some commission work, Nuñez is thinking ahead to doing another series of 30 paintings in 30 days for the month of February. Make sure to follow her on Instagram @noelianunezart to see updates on her projects and follow along on her amazing journey.
“It’s been fun to realize that we create a lot of our world,” she said. “Sometimes we don’t think we’re in control, but we can be. We can shift things around even if it’s not exactly the way you envisioned it, it may be a good shift in your life where you become more aware of how much control you really have.”