About Bezert

about Maria

Maria Knier has a BFA in illustration and has been hired by companies around the world for her talent as an illustrator. She’s a three-time Indie Book Award winner and two-time author. She’s spent more than 20 years studying the ancient practice of Ayurveda, and her love of the healing arts bleeds into all aspects of her life, and is especially apparent in her art. Maria has been painting, drawing and sculpting as long as she can remember, and says all of her creations come from her heart as much as they do her hands. She loves creating work that’s quirky and emotionally challenging. She lives in Milwaukee, WI with her husband and teenage son.

The creative journey (the long version)

All my life I’ve been encouraged to pursue the visual arts. Expressing myself through painting & drawing has been my passion since I decided my career path at the age of 4...tirelessly drawing and entering the "Art School Contests" in the back pages of our TV Guides (even though I was 14 years too young to actually do so). Art school was an easy choice after high school and a degree in illustration/Design seemed a guaranteed way to build a livelihood in the arts.

My art school training carried me along and I used it not only as a means to make a living but to communicate and to heal. I worked as a freelance editorial illustrator & Graphic Designer for several years and then at some point I realized I was creating and making money, but not really art from the heart as I had originally intended. So I sat down to create a series of paintings inspired by seven simple universal laws. Once they were complete, I spread the paintings out on the floor of my studio to write a few words about each of them. Eight hours later emerged the basis of The Bezert. I found it refreshing, yet odd, that my urge to pick up a pen was stronger than that of a paintbrush, yet I thoroughly enjoyed both sides of the creative process. And even more interesting was seeing how the influences and inspirations in my life had affected this story.  It wasn’t until over a year of writing and revising that I felt ready to go back and rework the visuals of the book and bring the text to life. At the point I felt that all was complete enough, I sat to write 2 sequels to the first book and put all three books on a shelf to "simmer" for the next 13 years. During that time I developed a deep love for the beauty of Ayurveda, tapped into that beauty to begin raising a family, and have been studying and practicing this "knowledge of life" ever since. 

It is time to pass this inspiration along to others.

My intent is for this book to reach "children of ALL ages". Maybe it will awaken a spark of self trust in others–an endless resource that we all need to remember is always available to us. In this case it is a sort-of "reassurance in a Bezert suit". ​
 

I believe that everyone has a gift (or several) to share in this lifetime. And everyone has at least one book inside them just waiting to be revealed. This book, and those that follow, are my way of giving back a bit of the encouragement and support that was given to me in my life. A way to let others know that they can unlock their own "trust egg" and find direction in this wonderous, crazy world. 

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Enjoy the journey!

Maria