The Powerlifter who Paints!
I do other things besides being a mom and lifting. I am getting back into an old passion of mine, painting! Here are my latest paintings. I like the contrast of harsh and soft. I am doing tons of art shows and am staying busy keeping enough paintings! I also can do special requests. This is the “LOVING LIFE” part of me! Each painting expresses some emotion. Aluminum and wood prints are also available, 8″ x 10″ are $35, 12″ x 12″ are $75, and 11″x14″ are $75. Aluminum prints come with a wall hanger. Wood prints have a drilled handing hole. Greeting cards are available for $5 and aluminum framed greeting cards are $10. Mother of pearl and crystal pendants and earrings are also available for most paintings for $30. Metal bookmarks are available of the narrow paintings for $10. I also have some other specialty items available. Custom sized prints are available by request.
I wrote what the paintings mean to me, but I hope you find your own meaning in them. All images on this page are watermarked, painting and products do not contain watermark. Please contact me if interested at teresa@teresalifts.com
FEATURED PAINTINGS
“Sisterhood” 48″ x 36″ – It celebrates women and all of our uniqueness. Let’s go through the seasons depicted here…Spring, she is peaceful and nurturing. She is at peace and not bothered by much. All she wants to do is grow. Summer, she is the season everyone longs for. She is the attention seeker and quickly steals the spotlight from spring. She is happy to put herself out there and is somewhat selfish. Fall, she is joyful and appreciative. She enjoys her moments as they are limited because the cold hard days are right around the corner. She is just taking in every day. Winter, she is cold and hardened from the harshness of life. She can turn her back on others to protect herself…and just walk away. She has long hard days ahead. We are all some of these, and many of us are all of these.
“CHANGE 48in x 24in – Life has so many windows, some are full of life, others are cold to the bone. Like the seasons, our lives are constantly changing.
“Growth” 20in x 20in – Get a tissue, its an emotional one. Something old (the window) something new (the flowers) something borrowed (the rain) something blue (the storm clouds). Why is this a wedding theme? Because it represents my life. The tattered window represents my failed marriage. Its white because my wedding dress was white. The storm clouds represent the chaos of the 29 years of that failed marriage. The rain represents all of the tears I shed during that difficult time in my life. The flowers represent what came from that bad experience. You see four progressively blooming flowers, those represent my 4 wonderful kids, in different stages of growing up. The two bloomed flowers represent Tim and I. The four panes represent four points of view of the world through the four pairs of eyes of my children. Sometimes you gotta endure a storm to grow.
“Daydreamer” on wood canvas, 18in x 24in – Sometimes you just need to enjoy the view, like looking at life through a window.
“CONNECTION 2 – EARTH” 24in x 30in – Women bear so much on their shoulders, one of them being the burden of creating life. Bringing a life into this world is a heavy burden to carry on our shoulders, and only women can do it. And because we have this gift, I believe we have been feared and oppressed throughout history. Women are constantly brought to their knees, breaking through the constant walls that are put up in front of them. Women, don’t forget our struggle. Don’t forget our unique connection with the earth and the moon. This one also glows in the dark (the moon).
“CONNECTION 3 – FIRE” 40in x 16in – In this crazy world we live in, I feel women are the protectors, the nurturers. We constantly battle the fire that is trying to destroy what we love and care about. We will protect what is dear to us, even if we get burned in the process.
“CONNECTION 3 – WIND” 24in x 18in – The last in the Connection series, it incorporates the other 3 paintings….water, earth and fire (blood moon). This series has been a tribute to women. This one is all about letting go…..letting go of toxic people, letting go of insecurities, letting go of fear….it’s all about moving on. The dandelion is beautiful but fragile. One gust of wind will scatter it and turn it to chaos…some things you can’t hold onto, you gotta let the wind take it.
“Elated” 12in x 12in – With this one I was just excited to see the warmer weather come.
“Fear 3” 16in x 16in – Another tribute to Halloween, and to all the insecurities that keep us from moving forward.
“WARMTH” 12in x 24in – It may simply look like the flower seeking physical warmth from the cup of coffee, but to me, the flower is growing from the hard, cold cement, and up to a place where the sky is inviting, the coffee is warm, and there is a mental clarity, and mental warmth. It’s hard to see in the picture, but the flowers progressively get brighter. This painting embraces the mental and social aspect of why my coffee shops are so important to me.
“SERENE” 16in x 20in – This one is all about taking time to appreciate the beauty that can be right in front of us. Take the time to enjoy what you see.
“DEFIANCE” 40in x 36in – Interview required for purchase of original, please contact me using this link Sometimes our life may seem like a cold, never ending snowstorm, but you gotta grow anyway, no matter what the world says you are “supposed” to do. So grow in the snow, and stand up tall and proud, and simply ignore all the naysayers. This painting was started over 25 years ago originally and was what someone else wanted me to paint, but I changed it, and made it my own, in defiance.
“Defeated” 12in x 36in – A prequel to my painting titled “Defiance”. When the seasons change, and you want to give up…..
“IMMURE 3” 12in x 24in – Third in a series about women being held against their will, mostly emotionally, sometimes physically. This one represents the feeling of self consciousness we can be made to feel.
“SURVIVAL” 22in x 28in – You see that these thistles are growing in a very harsh environment. They themselves have prickly leaves as they feel the need to protect themselves. It’s not really an environment worthy of such beautiful flowers. As the universe around them embraces them, these two flowers represent two people who have the ability to procreate. Together they carry the DNA needed (you see the DNA helix made by them intertwining) But in the harsh world around them it’s a hard decision to make. For those of us that have children in this cruel world of today may we help raise them into wonderful, accepting people who make a difference and start the change the world needs. For those of you who choose not to have children because it is a cruel world, may you in your lifetime be able to experience some of the change.
“UNCERTAINTY” 18in x 24in – This simply represents that we are all on a path that is uncertain, and it can look scary, but we have no choice but to follow the path and hope it ends in a happy place.”SCONOSCIUTA” Prints and Cards also available. The name means “unknown”. This painting was named by my daughter, representing her future and her climb to a fulfilled life.
“DEPRESSION” 20in x 20in (measured square) – I think it is self explanatory. Depression is a deep dark hole that is very difficult to escape.
“FEAR 2” 10in x 20in – A tribute to Halloween, and to all the insecurities that keep us from moving forward.
PANDEMIC SERIES
“TRANSITION” SOLD – This is the first painting I did during the shutdown. This painting was done at the beginning of the pandemic shutdown. Suddenly everything was taken away from us and we were thrown into a period of waiting. The only thing that was going to continue as normal was the changing of the seasons. No matter what chaos was about to ensue, the season continued to change.
“SILENCE” 20in x 20in – The face, lacking any real defining characteristics or true identity, is glass like, showing it’s fragility, and predictable transparency, seeing right through it. The flower representing being masked. No matter how beautiful the covering, it is hiding the humanity. And the flower is the only thing in color, as it seems “the mask” is all we focus on these days. And the mask takes away our communication cues. The face sits in nothingness, waiting.
“SOLIDARITY” 12in x 36in – Unity and support of a feeling or action. I have never seen a person for their skin color, I see a person for who they are. It saddens me that racism still exists in 2020. I did this painting to show how I feel. The flower is black and white, one species. The moon and the stars work in unity with the night.
“MANIPULATION” 16in x 20in – Someone can be drowning in the fear you created, and you can feed them an idea, and you can manipulate the way that idea is processed through their brain with propaganda so that it comes out looking the way you want it to on the other end. Then the person becomes a machine for your agenda. The flower represents that idea, and it is transparent because it is not necessarily real.
“VOID” 16in diameter – I think it speaks for itself, as we are all trying to escape this downward spiral.
“APPRECIATION” 16in x 20in – My love always tells me, “no matter how bad things can sometimes seem, you gotta appreciate the little things. The life giving sun comes up every day, no matter what.”
“OMINOUS” SOLD – The leafless flowers are all facing the sun…the one they trust, the leader (governor). They hope the one they trust means life…..but in front of them the sky is red and signals that continuing this way means danger. They are leafless because their leaves are how they “breathe”, and people today are without freedom to breathe.
“NOISE” 16in x 16in – Noise is all too common these days, as we are bombarded daily, hourly, minute by minute, with fear and bad news disguised as helpful information. It’s not helpful, it’s all noise, and without it we would be living life just fine, but instead we are becoming broken shells of human beings.
“WOUNDED” SOLD – It represents 2020 in a nutshell. In a literal sense, statues were toppled….but so was society. Lives were toppled, friendships were toppled, health and security were toppled. The way we interact as a species was toppled. She is no longer what she was, as she lies broken and vulnerable on the ground. From her being sprouts new growth. Is the growth a sign of better things to come, or is it a celebration of all that was lost? It all depends on where you stand.
“LOCKDOWN” SOLD – She is being held from continuing the road forward by something disguising itself as beautiful and caring. She is being held lightly. She is allowing herself to be held down, the flowers really don’t have the strength to hold her, and if she simply stood up, the flower’s vines would break and she would be free to continue into the beautiful future. But there she sits, her wings, her ability to fly, becoming a mere skeleton of their former self, cracking and slowly deteriorating. She, my friends, represents us. The painting may be done, gotta let it sit for s bit. And, by the way, in the dark, her wings will give you a special surprise!
MASTERPIECE TRIBUTE SERIES
“CONFLICT” A tribute to Vincent van Gogh’s Starry Night 24in x 18in – SOLD Starry Night is one of my favorite paintings, and I really have sympathy for the mental illness that plagued Vincent van Gogh. So I have done this tribute painting, in a Powerlifter Who Paints Style.
“INTIMACY” A tribute to Gustav Klimt’s The Kiss 10in x 20in – NFS The original painting from 1908 titled The Kiss by Gustav Klimt, was one of his many controversial paintings. His work tended to show sexuality and intimacy, and was sensual in nature. Because of this, his work was labeled pornographic and perverted and his reputation was wounded. If you do a quick google search, you will see that his paintings were pretty reserved, compared to today’s standards. So here is my tribute painting to this artist’s masterpiece, and my version is way more sensual than the original, naughty me! I left the woman exposed, as she is at her most vulnerable yet lost in the kiss.
3D PAINTINGS-parts of these paintings have elevated pieces made from metal and wood.
“Loneliness” 12in x 16in on wood canvas. Sometimes we decide to grow in a place that is not ideal, isolating ourselves from other life, with only the moon to guide us. All we can hope is that others decide to grow there with us. The moon is 3 dimensional as is the flower, which is made out of aluminum.
“Adoration” 16in circle on wood canvas – This has a 3D moon. This represents the feeling on adoration to someone, or something that you love.
“Hidden” SOLD – Women, and what we really are is being veiled by a society that has an idealistic idea of what they think women are. We are not just breasts, high heels, dresses, long hair and lipstick. Adopting those things into your image does not make you a true woman, it just brings to light the false idea of what you think a woman is. Who we really are is being hidden forcefully by those ideas. The moon is 3D.
“Delight” SOLD – Yes, this one lights up! This one is just another painting of the moon, because I enjoy the moon so much.
“Scarred” SOLD – This was done to celebrate Valentine’s Day. Love will always leave a scar on your heart….there are the good scars and there are the bad scars….give your love carefully. The painting is done on an actual slice of wood, but the wood texture is painted on. The flower is made out of aluminum.
CLASSIC SERIES
“SOLITUDE” 12in x 16in – Simply represents being alone, physically or emotionally.
“LOVE” 12in x 16in – Two flowers loosely bound, not smothering each other, just giving enough support so that they can continue to grow. They face different directions, as they each have their own troubles to focus on, but their gentle loving touch remains strong. One is not as optimistic in life as the other so is drooping some. The stronger one is stretching up pulling and gently encouraging the other to continue to stay strong, and to grow, because even though all that is in front of them is a bleak white weathered wall of life, there may just be something wonderful over that wall if they can just continue to love each other for exactly who they are, and grow to see beyond it. They face a wall because they don’t need to blast it to the world that they are in love, they just need to show each other, in their own way. Its subtle, and will mean something different to everyone, which is just what I wanted it to do.
“LONGING” 12in x 12in – Simply shows the act of two people on different levels wanting for each other.
“ENTRAPMENT” 11in x 14in – Sometimes the grass really is greener on the other side and the sun is shining through. But for some reason or another we are stuck on the darker side of the fence where the shadows are cast and there isn’t much sunlight. All you really gotta do is grow in a different direction to see the light.
“ISOLATION” 12in x 16in – Sometimes, even if we have a road right in front of us that goes somewhere, we will turn away and plant ourselves somewhere that may not be ideal. This is because looking down the road is scary, and threatening at times. As precarious as that crack in the road we plant ourselves may be, we choose to isolate ourselves there, because sometimes being stuck in a bad spot is our safety net.
“TIMOROUS” 16in x 20in – Simply shows lack of confidence.
“ACCEPTANCE” 16in x 16in – So many people refuse to accept people for being different. If you let people be who they are, we can all grow together!
“RELEASE” 20in x 10in – To me symbolizes letting my 4 kids be free enough to grow into amazing little humans.
“CURIOSITY” 16in x 20in – I think it speaks for itself. Sometimes we are curious about what is on the other side of the fence.
SOLD ORIGINALS, ONLY PRINTS AND CARDS AVAILABLE
“RESILIENCE” – This is the painting I gave away to support someone who had a loss in the Ruidoso fire and flood tragedy of 2024. I felt the need to do something for the town that gave me my start in art. There was loss and devastation, but there was also survival and resilience. The tree represents Ruidoso. She was harmed so badly, but some of her beauty survived. She will always have beauty. She grieves for the loss, with tears in her eyes, but within her branches lie a glimmer of hope for recovery, and at her feet lies her community ready to rebuild. She will survive.
“STRENGTH” – There is catastrophe every week in Ruidoso, yet they still stand strong. They will get through this.
“BALANCE” – The moon is high, the sun is low. Her hair flows out, her arm reaches up. On one side there is life, on the other death…but from death comes life in the form of a flowering vine. But…both sides have mountains in the distance. Life is not perfect, yet sometimes it is, but with understanding, an perfectly imperfect life can be perfectly balanced.
“SHELTERED” – This is my first painting done on board and is my take on the red umbrella painting everyone loves. It is called “Sheltered”. At first glance, you see an umbrella protecting a delicate flower growing in a harsh environment. The flower is getting the water it needs, but is being protected….so it seems. But in reality, the flower is being sheltered, and not being allowed to toughen up enough to withstand the pummeling rain. If the umbrella blows away, the flower will not stay standing. In today’s society, kids are sheltered, and I’m seeing many of them can not tolerate the real world. Let the flower feel the rain.
“INEVITABLE” – We all exist, and life, however long or short it is, is inevitable. And however prolonged or quick it is, death is also inevitable. This painting celebrates the inevitable, life and death.
“SOMBER” – The world can se so dark, so black and white. But there is that pop of color if you want to let it grow.
“DARKNESS” – Sometimes you may feel all alone in the dark, but there is moonlight to give you hope…you just have to recognize it is there.
“ECLIPSE” – I did this funky painting smack in the middle of the Rio Grande Balloon Fiesta show, the day before the eclipse, and stayed up until 3am to finish it. It varies a bit from my style but was a fun experiment.
“CONNECTION 1 – WATER – It doesn’t seem like it’s OK these days to call yourself a woman. It’s not OK to be proud to be the gender that brings life into the world. Men seem to be trying to take away what makes us women. Well, I’m proud to be a biological woman, and I won’t hide it. We are made up of the same thing that makes the stars, and women have a unique connection to the earth and the moon, and the lift giving, flowing water. There is a direct connection — a commonality to the earth, the water and her surroundings — which is uniquely related to women. Naturally, women experience a monthly cycle. We are joined energetically to the phases of the moon. And we have a strong direct connection to the earth as we are the ones who carried the life that inhabit it. I am not sure this painting is done, likely not, but I wanted to share it on this important day. The moon and it’s reflection glow in the dark. My first painting of 2021.
“ADDICTION” – I think everyone has an addiction of some sort. It keeps us trapped in it’s web, and we try to pull away but can’t break free.
“SCONOSCIUTA” – The name means “unknown”. This painting was named by my daughter, representing her future and her climb to a fulfilled life.
“AUTONOMOUS” – This simply means having the freedom to govern oneself.
“DOMINANCE” – Many of us sometimes find ourselves in a situation where our ability to grow is being stifled by someone trying to cast their shadow on us, hiding our brilliance. But sometimes we find that opening (the crack in the road) and grow anyway. The shadow is just a shadow and will pass.
“PERSEVERANCE” – Sometimes we have to keep growing, regardless of how hard it can be.
“PROTECTION” – Sometimes we feel the need to hide behind something brighter than us to protect us from the world.
“DAYDREAMER 2” – Again, sometimes you just need to enjoy the view, through a different window.
“AWAKENING” – In this day and age, it seems we need clarity, we need to wake up and bring light to the darkness. We can only do that if we are willing to bloom and to grow.
“ESCAPE” – Life can be difficult, and sometimes we feel stuck…so stuck that it feels like we are close to being consumed by the flames of potential devastation. Those flames seem so close that even something as glorious as the moon itself can’t stop them. But…we have to yank up hope by the roots and be confident that it’s strong enough to lift us out.
“SUFFERANCE” – Simply meaning the absence of objection rather than genuine approval of your life.
“FREEDOM” – Represents all those moments of success we have, being on the outside and not trapped in the daily grind.
“MONSTER” – I was given a simple painting of a black horned monster and told to create my version of it. I am currently working on a series that is dedicated to women, and seeing that little monster made me think of how women are being demonized by parts of society. Women have been oppressed though all of history, and have been made to be the lesser sex. Beliefs have taught people that women are servants of men, and are not equals. Sometimes they are even treated as property. Also, I feel being a true woman today is not OK. It is not OK to talk about being a biological woman who can bear children, who can feed children with her own body, and who is truly a woman made by nature. We are told being a biological woman is not special at all, and calling yourself one these days is offensive to those who wish to be us, and those who wish to continue to hold us back. We create life, and because of that we are feared and demonized. We are given horns we don’t care to have, and those horns are decorated with falsehoods that are disguised as good, but are really holding us down. She is beautiful, but some parts of society are making her a monster. Hopefully someday she can be free.
“DYSMORPHIC” – It represents people seeing something different in the mirror that what we really are.
“DREAM 1” – This one represents envisioning your dreams.
“DREAM 2” – This one represents reaching for your dreams.
“DREAM 3” – This one represents embracing your dreams.
“DREAM 4” – This one represents surrounding yourself with your dreams.
“BLISS” – A warm, comforting cup of coffee is sometimes just what you need.
“RESURGENCE” – Revival after a period of inactivity. It means blooming when you have been down.
“AMPLEXARI (Latin)” – A simple loving embrace when needed most.
“RELUCTANCE” – Being unsure about where to go in the scary world around you.
“FEAR” – Barbed wire can’t go through a flower petal in real life. It’s going through the petal in the painting. It’s not realistic. Fear is like the barbed wire going through the petal. It’s made up in our head, and it traps us artificially. And we get to the point that we can’t move…mentally. The flower is also entangled in the barbed wire, as we are all entangled with fear. Even with the darkness and chaos around us, and the desire to get away from it, sometimes we just can’t change. We can’t move to a better place because fear traps us. Our petals are delicate, and we can rip away from the fear and suffer only mild damage….but many just don’t realize that.
“HOPE” – The number is a special number to me. And in a world that is not so kind, we all have to have a little hope to get by.
“DISLIMN” – It is all about living in someones shadow.
“LOVE AND LOSS” – Commissioned piece representing a painful life event.
“LIBERATED” – Growing out of a dark, uninviting place to become beautiful and strong.
“SCOLIOSIS STRUGGLE” – This was done for my daughter to represent her hard journey of being braced for scoliosis.
“TRUST” – The chaos of life can come at you like a train, and if you aren’t paying attention, it will plow you down. If you focus, pay attention and logically calculate your situation, you will still be able to grow in the tracks, and the chaos will pass right over you and fade into the distance. Sometimes you just have to have trust and grow in the tracks.
“EMERGENCE” – When we are at our lowest, we still have the ability to grow something beautiful.
“PASSION” – Represents the loving passion of a connected couple.
“IMMURE” – Being held against one’s will, usually emotionally, and wanting so bad to escape but only having the courage to hold onto the edge of our path out.
“IMMURE 2” – Being help against one’s will, usually emotionally, but starting to find oneself…even if it is just for a moment.
“DURARE (Latin)” – It is a tribute to the very first painting I did that launched my creative spirit to start painting again, a painting I had done for one of the most important people in my life. It’s inspired by my favorite place and represents enduring bad situations.
“LOSS” – This represents some loss I had in my life. We try to save people, the medicine (vase of water) tries to save people, but sometimes there is no saving them and we can just comfort them.
“SERENITY” – Just a small painting I did that felt calm and peaceful.
“DESPERATION” – Sometimes you have to pass through some uncomfortable places to leave the darkness and grow on the other side if the fence. I was feeling like doing a softer more feminine painting. You won’t see light pink in my Paintings very often so enjoy!
“ILLUSION” – This represents the comfort people get in religion, whether it is real of not, or whether it’s just a reflection of our hopes and what we want to exist.