About AneliA

Anelia Lazaroff Torres is an interdisciplinary artist/designer based in Los Angeles. Her work is influenced by the eclectic landscape of the city as well as her passion for modern art, design, architecture, music, and fashion.

Anelia’s  love of art and design began as a child. Her parents were both ceramicists and owned a business, T.N.D Studio, specializing in handmade ceramic tile, murals, and mosaics. She grew up around the family business and took an active role as an artist/fabricator while she was a senior in high school. For over 10 years she worked on many large scale commercial projects including a monumental ceramic mural at the entrance of Disney California Adventure and the 3D mosaic entrance of the Little Mermaid Castle in Tokyo Disney Sea. Working on such projects from start to finish, she took an active role in overseeing the final installations as well.

Anelia’s educational background is in sculpture but she had originally planned to study fashion. While in college, she began to show her art in various galleries and alternative art spaces throughout Los Angeles. She graduated from California State University Long Beach with a BFA in sculpture in 2004. After graduating, she taught herself to use Adobe Illustrator and fell in love with the program and its many possibilities! Eventually, she realized that she would prefer not to be boxed into one specific discipline but would rather have the freedom to be creative in a variety of ways. Around this time she began experimenting with surface pattern and jewelry design. She continued to show her work which attracted significant attention including from Juxtapoz magazine which featured some of her sculptures in their reader art section.

In 2008 Anelia began work at L.A. Vintage, a mostly online retail/wholesale vendor of vintage fashion. She started there as a picker and a sales associate in shoes and accessories. Within a year she was promoted to Creative Director, overseeing the shops branding and overall image. Subsequently in 2010, she opened her own online shop, Funky Fondled and Fresh, selling vintage fashion and of course  creating the brand identity and all marketing materials. Funky Fondled and Fresh built a following with many repeat customers. Eventually, Anelia introduced her art and jewelry designs to the shop as well. Funky Fondled and Fresh attracted various fashion blogs and media outlets, most notably Refinery29 and New York Magazine. After several years of selling vintage goods, Anelia decided she wanted to focus solely on art and design and began working under her own name rather than the moniker Funky Fondled and Fresh. Her work continues to garner attention and has been featured on AIGA’s Eye on Design page, Voyage LA, and Shoutout LA.

“I love art that is uplifting and communicates on an abstract, emotive, and sensual level. I always strive to achieve those things in my own work!”