ASHLEIGH B.
✧ Visual Artist - digital & traditional illustration | conceptual art | design
✧ Storyteller & Creative Writer
✧ Made in the U.S.A. - 1989
There is light in the darkness, and it’s worth fighting for across every realm. My battles often take me where the rest of the world can’t see, and I’ve cultivated the creative spirit I was given to connect with purpose and hold to the goodness of existence. Whether digitally, traditionally, or in another world entirely, the expression of this spirit will champion the starlight of life even if, like a distant star, it must shine through shadow.
L E T T H E R E ✧ B E L I G H T
Since age six, I’ve dedicated as much time as life will allow to a wide spectrum of creative pursuits, inspired by the beauty and intricacies of Creation and my experiences therein. While I’ve received formal art education, I am largely self-taught in the areas of illustration, drawing, and creative writing. The internet and I were "kids" together, and so I had the opportunity to grow up with the digital age and its ever-expanding artistic platform - starting with Microsoft Paint and an old ball mouse.
My preferred artistic outlet is anime and fantasy illustration as its unique charisma piqued my interest back in 1996 and still strikes me as a stunning, expressive way to use imagination. Instead of merely drawing what I see, I enjoy expanding upon our universe and bringing to life that which doesn’t yet exist. And I value fantasy as it opens us up to concepts and sensory inputs that inspire us in unique ways. I love how God can breathe life-changing power through this genre.
In my late high school/early college years, I developed an affinity for artwork that wasn’t “boxed in,” or squared off by an angular canvas, digital or traditional. I began creating more work that took its own shape and am still very fond of the approach as it evokes a sense of freedom.
Storytelling was one of the creative outlets I adopted as a six year-old. I created short stories to accompany my illustrations and vice versa. Since then, I’ve explored storytelling in the forms of comics/manga, a children’s book project, animation, photo manipulation, photography, design, videography, and a variety of personal creative writing pieces such as poems, fan fiction, and unpublished novel drafts.
Education:
✧ California State University, Sacramento - Bachelor of Arts: Studio Art w/ Electronic Art focus and some Graphic Design; 2008-2013
✧ Liberty University Online - Master of Arts: Executive Leadership; 2016-2021
✧ The Starlight ✧
Have you ever heard the quote, "We are made of star stuff..."? An astronomer coined that phrase in the 1980s when he made the connection between the stars and human beings. Quite literally, the components that make up a good portion of our bodies were first formed by early generations of stars going through their life cycles and eventually dying to create metals and other elements that made their way to our planet. We were then formed out of the earth with those precious materials within us. That historical nugget, along with the sheer power and beauty displayed by the celestial bodies, is only partially why I am so drawn to the stars.
The other and arguably more prominent piece has to do with what the stars are and do for us today - particularly with their light. I’m sure you’ve heard the analogies on how that light can inspire us to remain hopeful despite the odds, and I often turn to that sentiment in difficult times. But my favorite star doesn’t need the darkness to bring hope and life. I love our sun. Might be a little obsessed with it. I grew up in California and Texas, so sunshine needs were met back then. However, having often lived in places where over half the year is overcast during the day as an adult, my Mediterranean blood has developed a powerful craving for revitalizing sunlight, and I internally mourn when it sets…despite how my creative juices flow best at night… It’s a strange dynamic.
In 2013, at the end of 5 years of undergraduate studies, a culmination of varying traumas in my life collided, and without the mental tools or guidance to handle it all, my world imploded on every level - physically, mentally, socially, and spiritually. I came face-to-face with my very mortal humanity and would spend the next decade hitting rock bottom, re-learning how to live, figuring out who I was, and discovering what it meant to live in humility and compassion for others suffering. Truly, I wouldn’t wish this hell on my worst enemy, but I have learned so much through the experience that I also wouldn’t trade it for anything.
We aren’t born knowing how to expertly handle unrelenting stress, and mind management skills are scarcely taught before we really need them. Looking around at our world today…I can no longer keep what I’ve learned to myself. I am not a doctor, nor do I by any means live flawlessly, but…even if only for those who resonate with my artistic genre, I’m gonna bring the starlight the best I can.
Unbound ✧ Numinous ✧ Inspiration
The UNIesque name meaning is two-fold. Initially, the concept stemmed from a character I created at nine years old, born from a protective light in my nightmares, a connection with my Creator, and an empowerment garnered in the uptick of Japanese animation in North America. The character embodied my hope, values, and spirituality. I called her Universe for her ability to traverse between worlds and dimensions, and, over the years, she became my muse. My artistic journey was not separate from what was arguably this extension of my spirit, and people began to refer to me as “Uni.” Eventually, I adopted the nickname in acronym form to describe my work, which, like Universe, isn’t bound by the borders of dimensions, such as the digital and physical realms, and is largely inspired by divine influence.
