Leylis MR shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.
Hi Leylis, thank you for taking the time to reflect back on your journey with us. I think our readers are in for a real treat. There is so much we can all learn from each other and so thank you again for opening up with us. Let’s get into it: What are you chasing, and what would happen if you stopped?
I’m chasing the quiet, almost invisible thread that connects our inner world with the outside one (that moment when emotion, memory, and imagination merge into something tangible). Every painting, every sculpture, feels like a step closer to understanding that connection, though I know this world is ample and mysterious.
If I stopped, I think the world around me would lose some of its depth and dialogue. Art is my way of breathing — a language that helps me process what it means to be human, to be both rooted and uprooted. Stopping wouldn’t just mean putting down the brush; it would mean silencing that conversation between myself and the world, and I don’t think my spirit could bear that silence.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I am Leylis Burnette, also known in the artistic world as LeylisMR, a Peruvian-born, Atlanta-based visual artist and educator. My work explores the surreal and emotional dimensions of human experience in its different spheres and dimensions in this world and the unseen, weaving together painting, sculpture, and mixed media to reflect themes of identity, hope, essences, fears, love, and resilience, etc
Beyond my studio practice, I’m the founder of Art Lingo Speak, a bilingual art enrichment program that introduces young children, teenagers and adults to the beauty of Spanish language through the world of art. What makes this work unique is how it blends language immersion with creativity, allowing children to learn organically while they create, explore, and express themselves.
Right now, I’m developing new mixed-media pieces and relief sculptures; and expanding the reach of Art Lingo Speak to connect with families, schools, cultural institutions and community organizations.
At the heart of everything I do — whether it’s on the canvas, in a classroom, or within my community, it is the belief that art is a bridge: between cultures, between languages, and between the seen and the unseen.
Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. Who were you before the world told you who you had to be?
Before the world told me who I had to be, I was a quiet observer… collecting colors of nature, curious for people interactions and dreams, tracing shapes in the sand, and listening to the silence left by the wind. I was curious, unafraid to dream, and deeply connected to the stories and rhythms of my surroundings.
I think that version of me is still here, beneath the layers of expectation and experience, the part of me that creates without fear of judgment, that trusts instinct over logic, and that finds beauty in the overlooked. My little me reminds me why I make art: to stay rooted in that pure, unfiltered sense of wonder and truth.
If you could say one kind thing to your younger self, what would it be?
If I could say one kind thing to my younger self, it would be: “Protect your fire and sparks. It’s rare, it’s sacred, and it will guide you through every storm.”
I would remind her that the doubts of others are not her own, and that the path ahead doesn’t need to be rushed. Every challenge, every detour, will one day become part of her language as an artist and a human being. Trust the process, trust your roots, and never forget that what feels different about you is exactly what will make your voice irreplaceable.
Sure, so let’s go deeper into your values and how you think. What’s a belief or project you’re committed to, no matter how long it takes?
A belief I am committed to, no matter how long it takes, is that art has the power to reveal what words cannot. My practice is about chasing those hidden layers of emotion, memory, and identity, the things we carry but rarely speak about. I believe art can hold silence, grief, resilience, and hope all at once, and in that space it creates a mirror for others to see themselves and wake them up!
No matter how long it takes, I’ll continue building this body of work piece by piece, fragment by fragment, as a record of what it means to exist, to breath, to transform, and to dream. For me, the act of creating is not about quick recognition but about leaving behind traces of truth that endure beyond time.
Okay, so before we go, let’s tackle one more area. Could you give everything your best, even if no one ever praised you for it?
Yes. I think I’ve always created from a place where praise or recognition didn’t exist where the act of making was enough. For me, art it’s about dialogue between human kind, nature itself, about release, about tracing the intangible threads between my inner world and the world outside.
Even if no one ever noticed, I would still give everything my best, because the process itself is what keeps me alive. The silence of working, (its intimacy), the hum of an idea becoming form… that is the reward. Recognition fades, but the truth of creating, of giving yourself fully to what you love, and the world stays eternal.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.leylismrart.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leylismr.art/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leylismr/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/leylismrart/
- Other: https://www.artlingospeak.com/
Image Credits
Photo Courtesy of LeylisMR Visual Artist
