My Teacher Has Tattoos

Darren Lopez was raised in the NYC suburbs. As a bi-ethnic (Puerto Rican/Colombian) child, he lacked representation in his community and education and was acutely aware of the prejudice he faced. As a college athlete, he studied anthropology and began to reclaim the native roots his parents had suppressed in their efforts to raise an assimilated child of immigrants. Learning oral histories from his elders gave him an avenue to finetune his storytelling craft and enabled him to share his stories and adventures to the elementary school students he currently teaches in Washington, D.C.

Bhagya Madanasinghe grew up in a Tea Estate surrounded by undulating mountains to the hilly side of Sri Lanka. Her childhood was always filled with sun, green and mist. She went on to study Architecture in the most urban city In Sri Lanka. Her interest in illustrating began when she was able to grab much needed exposure and freedom while practicing as a professional architect. She began to give more attention to illustrations and working with architecture made her see things in a different perspective. Her main inspiration is her childhood which she spent with her sister and brother.