Vanessa is a full time teacher at Artists’ Exchange. As an artist, she always used to love drawing even as a kid. She had a favorite teacher in high school who was her art teacher, who encouraged her to continue her passion for art. For a while, she used to be more concerned with gymnastics, but eventually art became her true love, and she received her associates of fine arts degree at CCRI. Vanessa fell in love with Artists’ Exchange after volunteering and working with human services at group homes. She says it was almost like a spiritual awakening. As one of the art teachers at Artists’ Exchange, she learned that you need to let go of control because if you manage too much you end up stifling their creativity, and at Artists’ Exchange we promote individuality. Vanessa wants to continue her BA at RIC and stay at Artists’ Exchange to watch it grow and watch all the artists grow as well.