Laya Monarez

Laya Monarez is a transgender latinx artist based out of Washington DC.  Her studio is located at Hole In the Sky, a NE DC Art Collective.  She studied at the Corcoran College of Art and Design where she received her BFA in 2005.  She has had several murals in the DC area, many of which were commissioned by the Latin American Youth Center.  You can find her murals at the Park View Rec Center in Petworth and one of her restorations on Klingle Road in NW.  She previously had a mural at the National Zoo and in the Pinch Nightclub but unfortunately both walls have been remodeled.

Laya is skilled in the mediums of oil painting, acrylic painting, stone carving, wielding, drawing, ceramics and mixed media.  Her primary focus these days has been primarily Oil painting.  Laya’s work has been shown at the Greater Reston Art Center, Mclean Project for the Arts, Cheshire, and the DC Center for the LGBT Community.

Laya is currently seeking art exhibition opportunities and commissions for murals and paintings.  Her work is influenced by surrealists and other painters such as Salvador Dali, Max Ernst, Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera and Takashi Murakami.  She is also involved in activism regarding  lgbtq issues and decriminalizing sex work.  If you want her to speak at an event about trans activism or decriminalizing sex work, interested in purchasing her artwork, offering her an exhibit or commissioning her for a piece please contact her at layamonarez@gmail.com