Artists Bios

Colette Acra
Colette Acra is an American-Lebanese artist, born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA, and raised in Beirut, Lebanon. Her passion for art has been evident since her early childhood. From a very young age, she began by sketching her family members at home, her mother knitting, her father watching TV, and her brothers reading or studying. Throughout her school years, she consistently utilized any free space in her notebooks to draw. She developed into drawing portraits and figures of friends and relatives, and everything she finds along the way.

After graduating from the American University of Beirut, Colette enrolled at Academie Michelange des Beaux Arts, then at the Lebanese University to study fine art. She opened her own Studio in Beirut, where she invited art professors and artists to work and exchange ideas.
She has lived in San Diego, California, since January 2013, where she continues her journey inspired by the beauty in the little things of the world around us.

Ray Khalife
For over 40 years, Ray Khalife has explored how art can transform the ordinary into the extraordinary. With a portfolio of more than 1,000 works, his paintings reflect a lifelong search for beauty and meaning in everyday moments. Since moving to San Diego in 2018, Ray has continued to find new inspiration in his surroundings. Previously, he spent two decades in New Bedford, Massachusetts, where he was deeply engaged in the city’s art scene. His work has been shown in galleries, museums, and embassies worldwide.