Leila Martini is a local artist specializing in the use of color. From abstract to landscape, she uses color to create feeling with her art. From the early age of 5, when she got her first typewriter, Leila was always writing stories and poems, and drawing. When her sister was taking dance classes, Leila preferred drawing lessons at the Tampa Museum of Art. 

Leila was introduced to painting with acrylics by her grandmother when she was 12. She wrote her first children’s book in her 20s called Where the Light Shines Through and her second in her 30s called Juni and Freska.

Born and raised in Tampa, Leila is no stranger around town in St. Petersburg, her favorite place to hang out. She has shown her art in WADA member shows, at Black Crow Coffee, and at Tampa Bay Home Furnishings. She has WADA member since 2017.  "WADA gives me a sense of community and connection," Leila said. "I love the members and the opportunity to show my work."

While Leila’s academic background was firmly rooted in science not art, she always retained a creative side. She has her Doctorate in Public Health, Masters in Public Health in environmental health and toxicology, and a Masters in Library Science. During one of her jobs designing training manuals for public health workers in epidemiology, a training participant saw Leila’s sharpie doodles and suggested that Leila share them publicly. So, she started creating mulicolored geometrical works with markers.

Always a scientist, Leila was fascinated by the neuroscience concept of synesthesia- a condition in which one sense (such as eyesight) is simultaneously experienced by other senses (such as sound)- so the person with synesthesia might hear color and see sound. Because of the colorful and flowing look of her creations, Leila decided to call her art Synesthesia Artwork. 

During a trip in 2016 to Asheville, Leila discovered alcohol ink and fell in love with the medium. Leila currently experiments with using alcohol ink on a variety of surfaces to design colorful abstract artwork.

For more on Leila check out:

Her website: Olive Branch Research, LLC http://olivebranchresearchllc.com/

Her artist page on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/synesthesiaartwork/