Sunshine Art Therapy is not only Sunny’s artist name, it is also her creative and emotional outlet and the name of this website, which is currently in the final stages of completion with the goal of giving all artists, regardless of their chosen art form , a platform to express themselves without judgment. A truly safe creative space and artist community.
I’m Not the One, Sunshine Art Therapy’s debut release, is a raw glimpse into Sunny. It highlights her wide range of musical influences. While the track is probably best described as having roots in old school RnB and connections to modern Hip Hop, Sunny’s musical roots are way more complex. She was introduced to self expression as healing through exploration of individual creativity at an early age. Every Sunday, growing up, music filled her house. Sunny was introduced to every genre of music from Blues to Opera, from funk to Country, from spoken word to Musicals, and much more. Sunny’s mom would spread newspaper all over the living room floor, give the kids fingerpaints, and tell Sunny to “go crazy” and “make a beautiful mess”. Her dad would try to play records that were so infectiously joyful they could entice her beautiful mother into unabashedly dancing around the house. Sunny connects deeply and emotionally with all genres of music to this day. She feels that art is one of the only places where there is no right, there is no wrong, there is no judgement, there is only self expression. Sunny’s unique perspective and ability to paint a picture with words come from her love of all types of music. Sunny’s natural storytelling abilities come from her belief in the fundamental power and undeniable beauty inherent in speaking one’s own personal truth.
Sunshine auditioned for, and was accepted into, Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music, Art and the Performing Arts, AKA the “Fame” High School, one of the top 10 Art high schools in the United States located in New York, NY. LaGuardia High School was a unique experience because the school puts an equal emphasis on art education with more traditional subjects of education. Because of LaGuardia’s focus on the arts many brilliant artists have emerged from this school including alumni Robert De Niro, Jennifer Aniston, Al Pacino, Liza Minnelli, Nicki Minaj, Lady Gaga and Awkwafina. Sunny started commuting 4 hours daily on the NYC public transit lines into Midtown Manhattan from the “suburbs” of Jamaica, Queens to take advantage of this opportunity at the young age of 14. Sunshine was immersed in the Arts. She fell in love with the healing, supportive and therapeutic nature of the Arts. She graduated and was accepted at multiple colleges and universities, including receiving a full scholarship to NYU to continue her studies in the arts.
Sunny decided to continue her Art education at MICA; The Maryland Institute College of Art, located in Baltimore, Maryland where she majored in Photography and minored in creative writing with a focus on African American Studies. The experience was life-changing. For the first time Sunny was completely immersed in art and surrounded by like minded artists that helped her embrace and explore her creativity and personal journey. Sunny graduated from MICA and was the recipient of the Meyer Traveling Fellowship; a grant that offered her the opportunity to travel through West Africa for a photo editorial project on the people of West Africa and how their identities and ideals of beauty, are tied to slavery, colonization and the many slave forts that still exist on their land to this day. She has continued to work in the arts her entire life and is currently a working graphic artist and designer.
Sunshine prides herself on her unapologetic ability to speak her truth, which is absolutely necessary and essential to her as someone who lives daily with the challenges and struggles of Borderline Personality Disorder, a mental illness that affects over 4 million people in the USA alone and breeds in shame and darkness. Sunshine Art Therapy was created to support all people in speaking their truth in a safe, supportive, and nurturing environment with the use of creativity as self expression by creating a welcoming, safe, judgment free online artist community. Sunny’s goal is to help the world realize that there is no wrong way to feel your feelings, or make your art. Stay tuned for the official launch of the website and in the meantime check out Sunshine Art Therapy’s first release I’m Not the One, and follow Sunshine on social media for the latest news and music updates.