Maria is a creative entrepreneur and surface pattern designer with over four decades of experience turning art into sustainable creative businesses.

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She has built a thriving design practice with more than 4,000 original patterns available on platforms such as Spoonflower and Amazon Merch on Demand, giving her a deep, firsthand understanding of both the creative and business realities artists face.

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In November 2025, Maria launched Create Courageously, a platform focused on helping artists streamline their workflows and make smarter creative and business decisions. She is currently beta testing Future Canvas, a decision-support platform designed to help creatives cut through noise, evaluate options, and choose clear next steps using future-self perspective and structured strategy.

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Future Canvas is shaped by Maria’s experience navigating creative direction and platform change as a working designer. It is built for artists who need practical direction, not generic advice.

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Based in Tucson, Arizona, Maria is a certified trend forecaster who draws daily inspiration from the desert’s bold colors and natural patterns. Guided by her mantra, Create Courageously, her work reflects a commitment to clarity, resilience, and intentional growth in creative life and business.