The original item was published from September 30, 2020 2:14 PM to October 27, 2020 11:09 AM
"Marita Valdizan is a loving Naperville mother of two and an award-winning artist from Peru who shares the unique art form known as Peruvian wire crochet stitch technique with our community. After arriving in Naperville in 2012, she began to feature her art form in wall hangings, sculptures, wearable art and jewelry and is acknowledged as the only known artist in the world using Peruvian wire crochet technique in mixed media applications. She joined the Naperville Art League in 2014, where she met Debbie Venezia, a great supporter. She has taught classes in Peruvian techniques and participates in local fine art exhibitions and donates art to various fundraising efforts. She volunteers at St. Thomas the Apostle church’s food pantry and has organized the fine arts fair there for several years. She also promotes local artists with exhibitions at Nature’s Best Café. Marita has been featured in Positively Naperville and recently shared her life story in Jacqueline Camacho-Ruiz’s award-winning anthology, Today’s Inspired Latina Vol. VI.
Marita overcame the challenge of learning English with the help of her welcoming community and classes at the College of DuPage. Her crochet hook is her “magic wand” that helps relieve the everyday stress and brings her the opportunity to inspire others to find big solutions in the little things. With her warm heart and gentle soul, she encourages others to find their own magic wand and change the world. See her art on Instagram at @maritavaldizan_art "
Nominated by Karen Dix