From Us With Love Cast

Rosa Henriquez, also affeconately known as Cocó, discovered her love for painting inspired by her mother's artistic pursuits as a watercolor artist and pianist, and her aunts sewing and dressmaking abili�es, inspiring her to try her hand at watercolors, a technique that she finds beautiful and challenging. Coco developed her passion for art during the COVID-19 pandemic. Cocó creates a variety of artwork, including landscapes, botanicals, structures, and portraits. In addition to watercolors, she also includes other art mediums such as acrylic paints, crochet, embroidery, fabrics, threads, and natural fibers.

I am Janelle "EXTRAordinary-J" Fulford, the Artist from West Palm Beach, Florida. My entire life and career has been immersed in the arts. From attending the school of the arts, to founding Press Play & Create; a non-profit organization edifying each other through the arts. Currently I am a resident teaching artist at the Norton Museum of Art. My true passion is sharing the beauty of self-expression. My spectrum of talent include visual, graphic dramatic, musical and poetic artsy.

Picardo was one of the most vivid local Latino artist representations in West Michigan for over two decades; currently living in Miami FL. Picardo is a professional artist who graduated in 1995 as a Visual Artist and Illustrator from UNIVERSIDAD AUTONOMA DE SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic. The Afro-Caribbean artist has been participating in three of the most important venues during ArtPrize, Michigan for 8 years and in numerous regional art competitions – Muskegon Art Museum and Grand Rapids Regional Art Competition as well. His work has been exhibited in many collaborative exhibitions in New York City, Art Basel Miami 2022 under Redwood Group, and Art Basel 2023; a collective art exhibition in Torino Italy, from February 3rd to 18th 2023. From May to June 2023 - Vernissage 26 Maggio, Roma – Italy. Collective Exhibitions under White Gallery, Miami Fl. From October to January 2024. For over two decades, the Afro-Caribbean artist has done twenty-one outdoor and indoor murals in many important locations like Grand Rapids Children’s Museum, METRO Hospital, 21 Monroe Live, and three outdoor big-scale murals in downtown Grand Rapids.

BIO Katya Neptune is a Filipina diaspora (b.1976 Angeles City, Philippines) based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. She works as an interdisciplinary artist with a socially engaged practice. She is currently a resident artist at Arts Warehouse in Delray, Florida. Neptune has exhibited her work in various public spaces that include the Coral Springs Museum of Art, Cornell Museum of Art, Bailey Contemporary Arts, Hatch 1121 Gallery, Mifa Gallery, Arts United, Ali Cultural Arts, 1310 Gallery, and Miami Independent Thinkers during Art Basel. She has also been featured in various periodicals such as the Sun Sentinel, Broward Palm Beach New Times, Pelican Newspaper, Pompano Beach Magazine, RiverWalk Fort Lauderdale, and Voyage Miami. Neptune’s work is process-oriented, reflective, and introspective. Her work explores the complexities of mental health. Neptune uses personal and intimate visual narratives to share her struggle and healing to normalize conversations around this topic and to de-stigmatize mental illness. Overall, the heart of her practice is a commitment to authenticity and vulnerability and to serve as an advocate for others. In addition to Neptune’s art practice, in 2009 she founded ArtHeart. A non-profit organization that aims to empower artists of all levels to inspire healthful and imaginative growth in her community. As the Creative Director and Chief Curator for ArtHeart, Neptune has curated numerous exhibits in South Florida featuring emerging and established global artists. In addition, ArtHeart serves as a fundraising mechanism for orphans in Rwanda, Africa, by partnering with We Are Zoe, a non-profit organization that strives to break the cycle of poverty through education initiatives for orphaned children.

Simone Rosia, a Detroit-born artist, specializes in oil painting. Her art beautifully captures Black culture through vibrant colors and storytelling using memorabilia. From a young age, Simone's passion for art was ignited by cartoons and graffiti. She pursued her artistic education at Michigan State, focusing on Painting and Photography. Simone's work evolved to incorporate old family photographs, infusing her paintings with nostalgic tones and placing herself within these moments. Her artwork often explores her family and intimate relationships. Recognizing the lack of representation of Black culture in paintings during her adolescence, Simone aims to amplify the voices and personal stories of Black people through her work. Her art has been showcased in various galleries and exhibitions, including , Chroma Detroit, Design Studio 6, Gallery 46, Hatch Gallery, Norwest Gallery of Art, Scarab Club Detroit and Womanhouse Detroit.