ABOUT ME AND MY JOURNEY Aloha! The spanish poet Antonio Machado wrote the following words, probably the most significant ones that stayed with me since my early years: "Caminante, no hay camino, el camino se hace al andar", which translates roughly as: "Traveler, there is no path, this path you make walking it". And after all these years of journeying, these words continue to be totally true. When I started developing my love for photography as a teenager in Uruguay, South America, I never dreamt I could ever make a living simply by doing what I was passionate about.Reality made me follow other roads, and after living and studying in Europe, I worked for many years as a teacher and bookshop owner in Brazil. Photography was always my hobby, and I had taken classes and workshops over the years (even had a "portable darkroom" as a teenager in my parents' second bathroom). In the late 1980s fate brought me to Hawaii - and here I finally found my own "Paradise on Earth" and the best nurturing environment for my soul. Kauai is my home since 1989. And this most significant event opened the doors for me to develop my passion for photography, knowing that it was in my path to dedicate myself fully to create beautiful, touching images to share with all people who came across them. Taken by Kauai's lush nature I became an avid hiker and began working the first years exclusively in color. I learned color printing in the local community college and sold my work at first in Arts and Crafts shows and through galleries and shops. In 1995, having found a tiny community darkroom in the storage room of a neighborhood center, I realized that my soul needed to express itself more through black and white. And I have been printing my work there ever since. My imagery is always changing - from bold, saturated color images to soulful, ethereal pieces in infrared and multilayered collages. I have experimented with alternative techniques as Image and Emulsion Transfers, SX70 Manipulations, special printing techniques and hand coloring. But I have not yet felt inclined to go digital in any way, and don't even know how to use Photoshop!!! At least, when people ask me "what kind of tricks" I use to "enhance" my photos I can say that it is all in the negative! I have always been very involved in our thriving arts community, have served many years as a director in our Kauai Society of Artists and have participated in most juried and non juried shows on Kauai and in other select shows in Honolulu and other islands. Throughout these years I have won many awards and prizes. In this year's most important all media juried show (Art Kauai 2002) the State Foundation for the Culture and the Arts has honored me with two acquisition awards.(The last four awards I received can be seen in the KSA page mentioned above, under Art Kauai 2002, Membership Show 2002 and Art Kauai 2001). My imagery keeps evolving as my life does. I just click when it feels right. No outside pressure, just an internal need. I follow my guts and my intuition; let the right side of my brain work as much as possible. I realize that more and more of my images reflect my inner world and the voice of my spirit. I believe art is essential to the human soul, and I see it when my work "clicks" and touches people from all around the world. Since 1993 I have been lucky to show my work at the Princeville Hotel, which enabled me to support myself and to keep evolving in the search for those special images. Click here to see where you can find me on Kauai. What I had never imagined possible is actually a dream come true. So, enjoy my images and follow your dreams! Aloha and Mahalo! Lilian Demello
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