Avalon Paradea was raised in Waikōloa and has been passionately making art since childhood. Always fascinated in human culture and our relationships to the world around us, she immersed herself in the realms of anthropology and ethnobotany as a college student at UHMānoa. Since graduating in 2014, her knowledge of Hawaiʻi's many plant species and their functionality in the arts has expanded through working as a conservationist and archaeologist, as well as through mentorship in making kapa and plant dyes. Avalon sees herself as both alifelong student and budding teacher in using locally-sourced plant materials to create sustainable, meaningful artwork.