Rodrigo “Rico” Alvarez was born in the border town of Rivera in the country of Uruguay. At an early age, Rodrigo noticed the richness of multicultural fusion and the importance of co-existence in everyday life. Rodrigo lived in Uruguay for fourteen years and found art to be a natural comfort and a good way to ease economic hardship. Unable to overcome the country’s economy, it later resulted in pushing Rodrigo and his family to relocate to the United States of America.

Rodrigo attended Paseo Academy of Fine and Performing Arts in Kansas City and, after graduating in 2007, attended Penn Valley Metropolitan Community College. Limited by his immigration status, the dream of education faded and his artistic abilities would soon be affected by his legal impediments.

After obtaining the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) status, Rodrigo was free to focus on his love of art once again. In September of 2017, Rodrigo was presented with the opportunity to make a mural for the Kansas City Public Schools District for Richardson Early Learning Center, which later proved to be a turning point in his art career.  Website: https://www.itraicons.com/ 

Axel Rios was born and lives in Overland Park, KS. He is a 10th grader at Shawnee Mission East High School. He has been drawing since the age of three and a summer Intern at InterUrban ArtHouse since 5th grade. He likes to draw cartoons and practice realism when he's a bit stressed or when he's excited or happy.  Since elementary school he has been a regular at InterUrban art classes and events. He intends to work with InterUrban to create his portfolio and website for his work in 2021-22. In the future, he wants to study art and science.

Born in Mexico City, Mexico, Isaac Tapia moved to the United States in 2000, at the age of nine. He now lives in Kansas City, Missouri. He paints his surroundings which usually incorporate the people and events he connects with.

Isaac studied at the Kansas City Art Institute from 2010-2012. One of his most acclaimed works is "Virgen de Luz," created in 2011 at the Kansas City Art Institute, and he was honored to exhibit a solo show - “Soul of a Dancer” - in the summer of 2016 at the Mattie Rhodes Art Center.

Isaac can tell the story behind every person he paints. He works predominantly with oil, but also enjoys working with watercolors. In addition to portraits, he also enjoys painting landscapes on occasion.

Website: https://itapi7.wixsite.com/isaactapia

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tapia.isaac/?hl=en

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/artisaactapia/ 

Kansas City native Lynell Diggs is a self-taught artist. Since age 5 he has created using charcoal or acrylic paint. He occasionally airbrushes, uses soft pastels and watercolors. Lynell is inspired to create images of realism and focuses on art that is visually stimulating. His works have been displayed in The Negroe League Baseball Museum, The American Jazz Museum, The El-Scari Harvey Art Gallery and many Kansas City businesses. Lynell has been commissioned for several custom pieces which he specializes in creating.

Website: https://rawartists.com/lynell-diggs- 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lynelldiggs/?hl=en

Clarissa Knighten is a designer in Kansas City, MO, specializing in wearable art. Her designs and jewelry include both commercial and bold expressive pieces for fashion show runway and gallery exhibitions. She calls her work "sculptural art," finding her direction in natural elements such as shells, bone, and driftwood in combination with stones and manmade elements like buttons, bike chain, and leather. The foundational inspiration for her work is a combination of nature and American roots. The repurposing of objects and the use of bold textures with crocheted wires and natural items create a stunning effect.
Website: www.RissasArtisticDesign.com