Our Lakeland, FL Painting with a Twist Artists

Kari D

Kari, the owner of our Lakeland studio, has been a part of the TWIST fam since August of 2014. That summer, Kari moved to Lakeland from east Tennessee with her new husband after teaching Middle School art for 3 years. Looking for a change, she joined our team as an artist and fell in love with Painting With a Twist, leaving her public school teaching days behind. Throughout many years and MANY changes, Kari went from artist to manager, then co-owner, to recently taking over ownership after the loss of our beloved Bert Adams, who opened our studio in 2013. She is honored to carry on Bert's legacy and continue growing and improving Painting With a Twist with every passing year. When not at her second home (the studio), Kari is sure to be found spending time with her two young children or adventuring with her husband. If you take a class with Kari, you'll either laugh along or roll your eyes at her terrible jokes and tendency to *accidentally* sing along with just about every single song on our playlist. Oh, and If you call, text, or email the studio - She's the voice on the other end! :)

Joclyn E

Joclyn has been a PWAT artist since 2015 and has taught almost 200 PWAT masterpieces! She graduated in 2013 from USF with a Fine Arts degree in drawing and painting but this artist specializes in Fun Art! With lots of patience and good humor, she enjoys teaching all ages. Her favorite part about the job is helping to build Twister’s confidence through painting. Some fun and random facts about Joclyn: she has 4 dogs, 14 chickens, she’s scuba certified, and she was on the 2009 FL Strawberry Festival Queen’s Court. You can check out her personal work on her Etsy and Facebook page!

Tori B

Tori graduated from Austin Peay State University in 2014 with a Bachelors degree in Fine Art. Whilst studying, she fell in love with painting, color theory, and art history. Her specific studies included watercolor, drawing, and art curation. She moved soon after graduating from APSU to Lakeland from small-town Dickson, Tennessee. She loves cycling, thrift shopping, and sippin sake!. Tori is excited to be a part of the Painting with a Twist family and to share the experience of FUN art with the community! Follow her on Instagram @toribradyart

Katie B

Katie joined our team in October of 2020. Originally from Vietnam, she was adopted and raised in Apopka, Florida. From ballet, painting, photography, calligraphy, piano, to digital media, she’s often referenced as “The Renaissance Girl” for her extensive interest in all things Fine Arts. Katie is currently in school at Southeastern University for a Visual Arts, BA, a Graphic Design minor, and certificate in Deaf Studies. She may come off shy and awkward at first, but she probably just needs coffee… Her free time usually consists of custom commissions, starting a non-profit organization, and prepping for her own company launch. Katie is thrilled to join such an amazing group of artists to show every Twister there’s an artist in them!

Marie T

Taylor W

Born and raised here in Lakeland, Florida; Taylor is a bundle of smiles and sunshine in the Twist family! She graduated from HSA for Visual Arts in 2021 and has been with the Lakeland studio ever since. She holds a fond love for all things art-related, and truly enjoys exploring her own creative freedom in her free time. At home she’s a figure collector for her favorite media, and is often found in bed sketching, playing video games or reading fantasy books. Her favorite part and main goal when teaching at Painting with a Twist is showing others that it doesn’t matter what skill level of art you’re at, you can always create a fun and exciting piece of work- surrounded by others who are in the same boat as you!

Abigail Estamponi

Alex Martinez