Honest Art is Westchester’s premier creative space for kids and adults of all skill levels. We’ve shaped our programs to inspire and delight young minds through a variety of engaging lessons, classes, camps, and activities.
Our team of talented artists are passionate about igniting that creative spark in children and adults. Research has proven the benefits of artistic expression go far beyond the canvas with increased levels of empathy, compassion, critical thinking, and overall academic performance. When you introduce your child to painting, sculpting & design, you’re opening a door to self confidence and personal growth.
What makes Honest Art unique is our focused dedication to children. We’ve designed our entire facility around the young artists of tomorrow. Our curriculum and offerings provide a wide range of creative experiences for kids—from painting and pottery to animation and slime making.
Founded by Liza Cruz, Honest Art was built to serve this community and its families. We hire local up-and-coming artists, each an accomplished expert in their own craft. Our scholarship programs, non-profit contributions, and dedication to the special needs communities ensure creative learning is accessible for all, regardless of socioeconomic status or physical ability. We live here; we work here; we love what we do.
OUR TEAM
Liza Cruz
Founder/ Creative Director
The original founder of Honest Art, Liza Cruz, a designer and professional artist, received her formal training at the School of Visual Arts in NYC. After many years designing clothing for many of the world's top selling brands, Liza decided to fully pursue her lifelong passion for painting, and began selling her paintings at galleries and expos all over the country. When COVID hit, Liza decided not to join the herd of artists developing an ecommerce model, and transitioned into a passion project, teaching art to children. Liza's model for teaching resonated with both kids and their parents, and word quickly spread through Westchester, when Liza soon found herself training other artists to learn her style of teaching. In addition, Liza has also taught at The School of Visual Arts and Katherine Gibbs Design School in NYC.
Liza and her husband, Gabe, decided to open a physical studio in 2021, opting for a large, prime retail location to fulfill Liza's vision for the studio. Liza currently leads the creative team at Honest Art, and is also the visionary leading the business. Despite Liza's significant workload, Liza always finds time to spend in the classroom, as she never wants to feel too removed from the students she built this studio experience for!
Liza's own paintings and work are concentrated in oil and acrylic paints, though also incorporating other recycled materials such as woods, metals, paper and other textures to enhance the depth and emotion of her work. She has also always been inspired by Surrealism, Cubism and Abstract art. Please see the artist's personal website to view her talent here www.lizacruz.com .
Gabe Cruz
Co-Founder
Gabe manages the business side of the studio and is focused on developing Honest Art into a national franchise. In addition to Gabe's work at Honest Art, he is the co-founder and CEO of Parrot (www.languagetest.com), a leading online language assessment company headquartered in New York, with offices in Kazakhstan and Mexico. Prior to Parrot, Gabe led a three-year successful turnaround effort as CEO of Quesbook, a smart test-prep company. Additionally, prior to Quesbook, Gabe was the VP of Sales and Marketing for Language Testing International, a company he joined early on and through 12 years of nurture and growth resulted in its acquisition by Samsung.
Gabe is a board member of Harvard Business School's Alumni Association and has been a guest lecturer at their leadership module on three occasions in the past 2yrs. In addition, Gabe dedicates his time and energy to advising non-profit organizations through HBS Community Partners, as well as being an active member of the HBS Angels Association of NY. In addressing other social issues he feels deeply for, Gabe supports efforts towards education, prison and criminal justice reform and the arts, for which he sits on the Board with Rehabilitation Through the Arts (https://www.rta-arts.org/) and is on the Strategic Advisory Committee for GCI (https://www.globalci.org/).
Iviana Rexach
Senior Art Instructor
Iviana Rexach is our highly accomplished Senior Art Instructor and Creative Director for Special Events. Iviana received her artistic and professional training at the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD), earning a BFA in Fashion Design with a concentration in Fibers/Textile Design. Iviana has received many design awards, ranging from local to national levels. Iviana currently works with a renown textile company in New York City, designing their jewelry and textile collections.
Iviana works with acrylic gauche and watercolors to achieve a graphic feel to her paintings and illustrations, yet her medium of choice is yarn, creating both knit fabrics and artwork.
Not only does Iviana have a love and appreciation for the arts, she also has a deep care for sharing artistic knowledge with others. Color is her main source of inspiration, which is why her favorite painter is none other than Rothko, the "Master of Color."
Our Team of Teaching Artists
With years of experience and most importantly the commitment to nurture your child's creativity and artistic skills, our Teaching Artists play a huge role in making Honest Art so special!