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Gilly Lugo

@gillygeeart

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Illustrating style,sculpting stories, painting visions

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Florence
Acrylic on Canvas, 30 x 40 inches October 7, 2026

(Click on photo to see full painting)

#7

As I age, I think often about legacy and the mentors who have shaped my life, many of whom are no longer with us. While I have been fortunate to have supportive parents, college professors, fellow artists, and extended family members who believed in me, the person who stands out most is my Aunt Florence. Through her kindness, generosity, and unwavering faith in who I was as a person, she changed the course of my life. She helped me find confidence in myself by just loving me, it was that simple… Auntie Florence often told me that I was special, and those words made all the difference. As an educator, I am reminded that kindness, encouragement, and belief in another person can truly influence a life. We all need to be loved. We all need to be needed. We all need encouragement. This painting honors Florence's enduring legacy and serves as a reminder to invest in future generations, to be kind, to be understanding, and above all, to be a mentor it makes a huge difference in a person’s life.

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Exuberance
30" x 40" Acrylic on Canvas October 7, 2026

(Click on the photo to see the full painting.)

#8

This is the eighth painting in the flower series I've been working on. Originally, I said I was going to do twelve, but I may just keep going and see what happens. I've really enjoyed painting these, and I'm glad they're making people happy, especially during a time when the world can feel completely chaotic.
With Exuberance, I wanted joy, and then more joy. When I painted this, I wasn't interested in giving the eye a place to rest. I wanted movement everywhere. I wanted the viewer to travel from flower to flower, discovering new colors, shapes, and details with every glance.
This painting is about abundance, energy, and finding moments of happiness in the middle of all the madness. It's bright, crowded, unapologetic, and meant to be experienced rather than analyzed. Sometimes joy is enough, and that's what I was after here. I hope you feel it too.

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@drawingcabaretcouture attended the @breakfreenyfw runway again this year and created these stunning drawings featuring some of this year’s looks! Thank you for these beautiful pieces @cecilialehar @gillygeeart @pontariver

Designers: @renhaixi @tracytoulouse @eesha._.patel @mohi_kas

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Recap + a sneak peak of the fabulous artwork that’s come out of another gorgeous NYFW season! Big hugs and thank you to all the amazing artists who illustrated with our New York team this September ❤️🗽

Couldn’t have done it without our generous artists sponsors @carandache @blickartmaterials Thank you for your support! ✏️✍🏼🎨🩷✨

LONDON FASHION WEEK HAPPENING NOW! 🇬🇧❤️🔥🔥🔥
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#DrawingCabaretCouture #NewYorkFashionWeek #LiveSketching #FashionIllustration #CarandacheNYFW

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The Flowers We Keep
30 x 40 acrylic
September 6, 2026

This is the fourth installment of a series that I’m doing on flowers. My goal is to complete at least 12. Although they’re rather large paintings, they are so fun and joyful to create. #4

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Summer’s End
30 x 40 acrylic
September 1, 2026

Click on the photo to see the full painting.

When I start a painting, I always tell myself I’m going to paint the most beautiful painting in the world ha ha ha . It may sound bold, but it puts me in the right mindset. When I began this piece last week, I knew almost immediately that I couldn’t connect to it. It’s a strange mystery when that happens. I had something on the canvas, but I couldn’t catch it or resolve it, and in my frustration I brought it to the sink, scraped it down, cleaned the canvas, and started all over again.

I think the problem was that I was looking at a photo of flowers. I wanted it to inspire me, but copying something never works for me. The painting has to come from my imagination. After I block in the colors, I’ll look at other paintings or different shapes and let them guide me a little, but the real work comes from inside. Outside references help me only with things like shadow, shapes, or colors, but the heart of the painting comes from imagination.

This is what I came up with after many hours and many drafts. I’m pleased with how the colors came out, and it feels like it represents the end of a really good summer. I took trips to Maine and Western, Massachusetts, and I ate a lot of lobster. This painting carries some of that feeling with it.

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Night Sail
Acrylic on canvas
30 × 40 inches
Completed August 10, 2026

When we hit this point in August, we’re sailing into fall, another chapter opening. I’m always looking forward to the changing of the seasons, and to the quiet beauty that comes with the ending of one season and the beginning of another.

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Nature can be one of our greatest teachers. 🌱

Not every lesson begins with a book.

Some begin by preparing the soil, planting a seed, and discovering that growth takes time, care, and dedication.

Urban Gardening invites students to learn through hands-on experience, transforming green spaces into places where creativity, curiosity, and teamwork naturally flourish.

When creativity and nature come together, learning extends far beyond the classroom and becomes an experience that grows day by day. Every garden becomes a place to explore, experiment, and understand that caring for our environment is also a way of building stronger communities.

Because the cities of tomorrow won't just need more technology.

They'll also need people who know how to care for the spaces they share—and who can imagine a greener, more connected, and more compassionate world.

🌿 Discover how Urban Gardening is part of our arts education and community programs.

🌐 www.artelatam.nyc

💬 If you could design a community garden, what would you include? Tell us in the comments.

#Artelatam #UrbanGardening #CommunityGardens #ArtsEducation #CreativeLearning

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Pulse
36 × 48 inches
Acrylic on canvas
July 26, 2026

People often ask me what my abstract paintings mean. The truth is, I don’t usually start with a story. I start with color, shape, line, and movement, and I let the painting tell me where it wants to go. If you see something in it, that’s wonderful. If you don’t, that’s okay too. You don’t have to solve it. Sometimes a painting is simply about the experience of color, energy, and emotion. I hope you’ll just spend a little time with it and let it speak to you in your own way.

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Today, we celebrate 10 years. 🎉

A decade ago, a group of Latin American artists in Queens decided that New York needed more art.

Not just in galleries.
But on neighborhood walls, inside public schools, on improvised stages, in spaces where it didn’t exist before.

Ten years later, that impulse has grown into something larger.

Murals that transform spaces.
Educational programs that bring together visual arts, dance, theater, film, and photography.
Festivals that activate entire communities.
A collective of artists creating, researching, and exhibiting across the city and beyond.

Thousands of students, schools, and communities have been part of this process.

To every principal who opened their doors,
to every teaching artist who brought their practice into the classroom,
and to every partner who believed in this vision—thank you.

New York is different when art becomes part of it.

The next chapter starts now. ✦

If Artelatam has been part of your story over the years, share it with us.

#Artelatam10 #NYCArt #ArtEducation #PublicArt #LatinxArt

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A decade ago, we started as a dream in Queens.

Today, we are a fully bilingual, M/WBE-certified organization walking with pride across New York City’s five boroughs.

From day one, our team has worked with a clear purpose: to transform spaces and connect realities. What began as a local initiative has evolved into projects that directly impact public schools, inspire students through multidisciplinary programs, and open doors for Latin American artists to thrive in the city’s most demanding cultural arenas.

This month, we officially kick off our 10th Anniversary celebration. Ten years of bringing communities together, supporting creators, and delivering arts education where it matters most. Thank you for being part of this journey since the very first brushstroke. The best is yet to come.

Have you joined us for one of our murals, classes, or festivals over the years?

Let us know in the comments which borough you’re tuning in from!

#ArteLatAm10 #NYCArt #NYCSchools #PublicArtNYC #ArtsEducation

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