“It’s like your first love - you don’t fall out of love with it, you’re always in love with art,
even if there’s a bad situation you keep going back to it.”

Crystal Mayes was born in Chicago where as a child she quickly developed a passion for art. Mayes attended our open studio once a week for 5+ years and states that producing Artwork provides her with a positive distraction from any negatives in her life. Her style favors Landscape paintings and she includes a small cottage in her work which is inspired by her own desire to own a house with a garden one day. Mayes says one of her larger goals in life is to see more of the majestic natural landscapes of America. “Life can draw you away from your real talent, and AFTS helped me to rediscover the old talent that I had, and gave me the opportunity to rekindle that talent.”