I was once described as having "contagious enthusiasm" for even the most mundane of things. While a description like that may raise a few confused eyebrows, I took it as a compliment. I celebrate in both journey and progress; I am an artist and an educator.

I am an artist.

Growing up in a small town north of Flint, Michigan, I had a natural knack for brush and paint, and exercised that talent with frequency. At the age of 16, I began painting my first major mural commission. As experience refined my technical skills, commissions became more abundant and so did my passion for paint. Early in my undergraduate education at the University of Michigan-Flint, I earned several major local and regional awards for my art. Since my 2007 graduation, I continue my passion for and professional pursuit of the arts through local organizations: the Greater Flint Arts Council, Buckham Gallery, and LINK Community Arts.

I am an educator.

Parallel to my own education, I began to reach out as an educational representative of the local visual arts community. Since my late teens, I have taught studio painting, mural painting, and various 2D media through several local organizations including the Jim Lee Fine Arts Camp at Mott Community College, Priority Youth’s Carrera Program, and through UM-Flint’s Amaizing-U Community Outreach Program.

As a working artist and educator, I have visions for more challenging and grander endeavors. I plan to pursue a graduate education out-of-state, and following an MFA education, spread my “contagious enthusiasm” to university students as a professor of visual art.


Amanda can be contacted best by email at: amandansimons@yahoo.com.