Torres, Leyla

I have always loved to paint and to read. When I was a young child growing up in Bogota, Colombia, my parents ran an elementary school that exposed me to all kinds of wonderful books. One day my mother gave me a small easel and a box of paints. My first painting was a group of six tall, thin, dark green trees. I didn't have many friends, and my two brothers and one sister were much younger than I, so I spent a lot of time alone either reading, painting, or making rag dolls.
When I went to college, I decided to study fine arts, which at that time was not a popular choice amon...