Esther Kovacs is a self-taught artist living in Chicago. Previously confining her work to “sketch journals” and home murals for about 15 years, she started showing her work at exhibits and art shows around Chicago in 2015.  Concepts more so than style drive the way that she produces art though she gravitates to producing works of abstract realism and surrealism with folk and mystic art elements.  Her work demonstrates the raw beauty and struggles of human life, its icons, and the layers of possible realities where time and space cease to exist.  Hungarian by nationality, she grew up in the Boston area and lived in Ghana, Denmark, India, and Thailand before moving to Chicago. Her experiences living in these countries find a place as personal stories expressed in her artwork. As a self-taught artist, she likes to utilize mediums that she considers more accessible, such as wood, drywall, mirror, and ceramic.  She works with mixed media, including incorporating wood burning into her pieces.