About

Aria Asbury’s imagination was born in the countryside of Abingdon, Virginia, where she learned to harness her innate sense of dramatizing her outdoor play with numerous cousins and transfer it in illustration using Sharpie markers and “borrowed” fax paper from her mother’s desk. Though she has never learned how to swim well, her curiosity and desire to explore the depths of nature, namely different marine life, in her work continues to further her conquest for capturing childlike wonder in her latest pieces. As of late, she has also experimented with the concept of self-reflection in a calm, therapeutic setting, which is a state of mind she hopes to achieve.
Aria is a BA graduate of East Tennessee State University, where her fascination with the human figure, combined with the playful qualities of art, began to shape her art’s direction. She later pursued a Professional Studies Master in Education degree at Emory & Henry college to direct her talents in the classroom. A current art instructor for Bristol Virginia Public Schools at the elementary level, she aspires to further integrate her passion into young minds as they learn to play and explore different parts of their brains. Her art has received recognition in the Abingdon and Johnson City communities in several group exhibitions. Some of her influences include Agnes Cecile, Claude Monet, and all whale sharks everywhere.