![\"Artist](\"https:\/\/sduptownnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/07\/web-9202437552_32999e1b23_o.jpg\")
<\/a>Klos gravitates toward musicians and artists from the 1960s and 1970s, and the bold black lines that capture each subject\u2019s face reflect what motivates her to paint them: their power as performers, the intensity of their songwriting and the passion that drives them.<\/p>\n
Although she\u2019s been sketching her whole life, Klos, 33, began painting in earnest about seven years ago. She took an introductory art class at City College, and while her assignments included still life work, she was most drawn to pop culture and celebrities.<\/p>\n
\u201cI really enjoyed painting people and trying to get the expression in the face,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Since then, she has painted about 60 canvases, with most of them hanging on the walls of Rebecca\u2019s and South Park Fitness for about four years. In the last two years, she began receiving offers for her paintings, including the one of Jimmy Hendrix.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis couple came in, and I swear, 10 minutes later, they\u2019re like, \u2018We\u2019re just going to get the money,\u2019\u201d Klos said. \u201cTen minutes later, they were taking it off the wall.\u201d<\/p>\n
They came in a month later and told her it was a house-warming gift, the kind of story she said she loves to hear about her artwork.<\/p>\n
\u201cI know what it looks like here and in my room, but I used to wonder where it ended up,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s neat to see that it\u2019s on someone\u2019s wall and how it fits in the room.\u201d<\/p>\n
Two paintings, however, are not for sale. One depicts Andy Warhol, whose life and art fascinate Klos so much that she has read 10 books about him and collects Warhol memorabilia. The painting is the first that she completed that she was \u201ccompletely happy with,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Klos was equally satisfied with her painting of Steven Tyler singing \u201cDream On,\u201d but that is not the only reason the painting holds special meaning. Dream is her favorite word; it is why she wears a \u201cdream\u201d necklace and has a shooting star tattoo. \u201cDream On\u201d is also her signature karaoke song.<\/p>\n
Klos began dreaming of leaving her small Michigan town in her teens, and planned to go to New York City. Instead, she came west to visit friends, and said she loves working in South Park, which she described as \u201cidyllic,\u201d \u201ctight-knit\u201d and it\u2019s own \u201clittle entity,\u201d like a Norman Rockwell painting.<\/p>\n \u201cEveryone looks out for each other,\u201d she said. \u201cI was always trying to escape to a big city and then I ended up right back in a small town in a big city. It\u2019s like I\u2019ve kind of come full circle.\u201d<\/p>\n Klos paints in her room at home, and she always listens to the music of the artist as she works.<\/p>\n \u201cI never paint without music,\u201d she said. \u201cThat\u2019s a big part for me. It sets a certain mood.\u201d<\/p>\n She uses a photograph as a reference point, and while she was taught in art class to sketch the shape of the face first, she said she has her own way of doing things, always starting with the left eye.<\/p>\n Klos works at Rebecca\u2019s 40 hours a week and is a full-time student, taking business classes at City and Mesa colleges, so there is not a lot of time to paint. But painting is when she said she is happiest. When she does, she moves furniture out of the way, throws down a black tarp, turns on the music and gets inspired.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I\u2019m painting, that\u2019s when I feel most like myself,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<\/a>