Athena Rose was born in Santa Barbara, California to a gardener and a home designer. Early on, her family relocated to the Pacific Northwest, where she attended regular meditation classes at an ashram, spent weekends at a tiger sanctuary, and received an education in wilderness survival. As a result, the natural world, but also scenes of domesticity, play out thematically in her uniquely meditative paintings.
After travelling and studying in Italy, Greece, France, Mexico, and New York City she settled in Los Angeles where she lives and paints.
In her latest works, created while under a 10-month stay-at-home order, Rose attempts to reconcile nature with an unbalanced, frenetic modern world. Hyper-focusing on tree bark engulfed in moss, and employing the same technique when depicting eroding urban walls, she creates a sort of equalizing effect, exposing how seemingly opposing parts of her world are aesthetically connected.
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