Aaliyah is a proud 22‑year‑old Puerto Rican artist and full‑time Fine Arts student at UMass Lowell. Her work ranges from bold 3D sculptures to expressive paintings, driven by a lifelong love of creating and a fearless urge to push the mind in new directions. Blending meaning, movement, and a modern edge, she aims to make pieces that feel both thought‑provoking and unmistakably her own. Through her art, she’s building her name while inspiring the next generation to believe in their own limitless potential.

Aviv Hirsch is an illustrator from Arlington, Massachusetts, focusing on digital painting with a special love for portraiture. He gravitates toward high saturation and bold color contrast, bringing an energetic, contemporary feel to his work. With a minor in Art History, he’s fascinated by how historical art is interpreted and how those ideas evolve within today’s online spaces.

Defne is a Boston-based artist and computational biologist who loves blending the serious with the silly. Their paintings often feature skeletons, animals, and odd little scenes that mix humor, curiosity, and emotion — like a possum trotting along holiday lights, a skeleton lost in thought, a cat mid-yawn. Much of their work plays with color and gesture to explore how something strange can still feel familiar or tender. Their background in science shows up too — in the way they experiment, observe, and let each painting evolve in its own direction.

Eli is an art student at MassArt on the path to becoming an illustrator. He’s been creating art for as long as he can remember and has no plans to slow down. He’s taken part in Art Battles at Lamplighter before and loved the fun, welcoming atmosphere. He’s excited to join more events with other artists and people who simply enjoy being around art.

Erik is an artist from Rhode Island that creates in many different styles and uses many different mediums that emphasizes bright contrasting colors. He is a graduate from the University of Rhode Island. When not creating art, he enjoys local music and films.

Jess, also known as Pickles, has been an artist as long as she can remember. She focused on ceramics but also studied being an art teacher with a focus on painting and sculpting./sf

Liz is a bold, colorful, and fun artist whose work bursts with personality. She paints murals, windows, portraits, and animals—and even painted a full‑size cow for the Dana‑Farber Cow Parade. Diagnosed as Autistic at 43, she’s been pushing herself outside her comfort zone ever since, and Art Battle feels like the perfect place to keep growing, experimenting, and showing what she can do.

Michael Kersh is a young painter living in Arlington, Massachusetts working mostly in oil. His work portrays local landscapes and views from behind the wheel of his car.

Mona Sahney is a 23‑year‑old self‑taught landscape painter who began teaching herself to paint in 2017 and quickly found art becoming the central passion in her life. In 2018, she launched an annual fundraiser selling her work to support an organization in India that helps children with shelter, education, and medical care—an effort that has since raised nearly $4,000 and remains one of her most meaningful accomplishments. Her paintings celebrate the natural beauty and brightness of the world, and she hopes her journey shows that art is driven by passion, not innate talent, and that anyone can make a difference, even in small ways.

Kevin Sullivan (Sensei23) is a professional fine artist and illustrator with over 20 years of experience creating original acrylic works. His practice centers on narrative-driven artwork, combining technical realism with expressive design to translate photographs, memories, and conceptual ideas into compelling visual pieces. Throughout his career, Sensei has collaborated with internationally recognized companies including Microsoft, Rhapsody, Audi (Seattle), and Elysian Brewing Company. Now based on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, Sensei's Art Dojo practice includes commissioned portraiture, pet memorial paintings, landscapes, architectural subjects, and concept-based works.

Ysabel is a self-taught artist with a background in economics, though her true passion lies in painting. Since childhood, art has been her way of making sense of the world. Her work is defined by vibrant colors and expressive brushstrokes, focusing on how color can convey depth, contrast, and emotion. Ysabel enjoys working across various mediums, including acrylics, oil pastels, and digital media, but is most drawn to the boldness and intensity that acrylics offer.