Life, Values & Legacy: Our Chat with Ana Luisa Rincon of Tucson

We’re looking forward to introducing you to Ana Luisa Rincon. Check out our conversation below.

Hi Ana Luisa, thank you for taking the time to reflect back on your journey with us. I think our readers are in for a real treat. There is so much we can all learn from each other and so thank you again for opening up with us. Let’s get into it: What do the first 90 minutes of your day look like?
Upon waking up, I thank God for a new day and count the beautiful things in life, like loved ones around me, my cats, meaningful work, health, and above all, a healthy soul. I catch up with the news and pray that things straighten up in the world.

God to me means a mix of influences. My mother read the Bible and studied the teachings of Jesus, but remained wary of religious institutions due to abuse. Later personal experiences proved that to be true. Early on, I explored other spiritual viewpoints, specifically Buddhist, and other teachings that conveyed authenticity and genuine peace. To me, God is a personal experience that doesn’t have to be defined by a religion; I always go by feeling.

After a normal morning routine, I stretch, drink apple cider vinegar with water, and cook an awesome breakfast -my favorite parts of the day. I also take the time to appreciate the morning sun and the beautiful scenery around me. Outside of my art activities, some of the classes I teach involve matters of the law, protection from abuse, and first responders’ care. For this reason, this subject is constantly part of my daily activities and influences my personal life in multiple ways.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Ana Luisa Rincón Roldán, and my business, Rinconart, honors both my mother’s name and the beautiful places across Arizona and California, from the Rincon Mountains to Rincon Point near Carpinteria and even up to San Francisco. My background as a Mexican American artist involves art school in oil painting/photography, and a variety of art-related jobs and projects through the years. Having owned a couple of galleries in Arizona and California a few years ago, having been featured in publications, managing other artists and participating in art fairs has expanded my art life into the business side of it as well.
My work is mostly oil paintings based on my own images or random references. Some people comment on my colorful style and indigenous or eclectic subjects, though I am not limited to any particular one; inspiration is spontaneous.
My commissioned projects include murals, decorative designs, magazine covers, and more. Rather than having a physical retail space, I am enjoying participating in art events where I travel, meet amazing people, and talented artists from whom I can learn and enjoy building community.
I maintain an online presence and a store that continues to be updated and modernized; I invite you to visit www.rinconart.com.

Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. What was your earliest memory of feeling powerful?
Here is an interesting one: Once upon a time, in high school, I needed to pass a challenging geography class to avoid repeating the year. The teacher did not seem to like me and strategized petty provocations to sabotage my efforts to excel in her class. To ensure success, I studied rigorously for a month for the mid-term exam, working under pressure that even resulted in illness. When the test came, I was surprised to see it was identical to the study guide I had memorized, and I aced it before anyone else in the room. I felt pretty good about myself at that moment.
But instead of praise, I was called to the Principal’s office and accused of cheating—simply because my teacher insisted there was “no way” I could score perfectly. I told him she’d been targeting me all year—marking me late without cause, taking points for things others did too, and creating problems where none existed. He didn’t believe me and recommended that I complete a verbal exam. I marched into her class and asked her to test me on the spot. Question after question, I answered correctly until she finally had to stop and admitted she had created this story without a basis. She surprisingly confessed to sabotaging me.
She apologized, cleared me with the Principal, and proposed a collaborative approach from there on. I was also named “Student President” for the rest of the year by the Principal, placed in charge of organizing events and fun activities with my classmates. So it all came out OK.
Rather than feeling powerful, this was an opportunity to learn my power, and I did learn it.
Lesson: Narcissists will set traps, recruit “flying monkeys,” and create conflict to point fingers when they can’t find real flaws. Their goal is to dim your light. But the universe is righteous.
I now work in the education field, where I’m in a position to make a real difference—empowering others to learn, strengthening their confidence, and encouraging them forward. That’s what an instructor should do.

What have been the defining wounds of your life—and how have you healed them?
Let’s see, there are a few to mention.

I grew up in the world’s largest city in the 70s and 80s—a place of intensity, beauty, and brutal realities, especially for an only child of a working single mother. Life taught me early to be street-smart, and by age ten, I had already mastered survival, including riding public transportation. I was popular in my neighborhood, skating backward in the parks, jumping building roofs, and beating every boy at Pac-Man in the corner pharmacy. Sadly, I was also sharp at escaping weird predator-men following me on my way home from elementary school. Few years later, I experienced further attacks by men. I learned men were not trustworthy early on.

I was often judged by other families, including some relatives, because my mother didn’t fit traditional Catholic norms. I received plenty of attention and was well-liked by others, yet despite my good grades and talents, I was often excluded from school and family celebrations and activities. It took years to accept that my path was different, a bit like a Cinderella story with cousins and siblings in the mix. Accepting that kind of darkness in people’s souls was painful, but I learned to detach and let God.

Being seen as beautiful and intelligent, rather than a blessing, often brought harassment, jealousy, false accusations, and unwanted attention in multiple settings in my life. For years, I struggled to find balance in that world until I stopped. I recognized that the imbalance was never created by me; therefore, it was never my issue to resolve. Other than securing my safety, I focused on growing and developing my education and making a living out of that. I actually enjoy ageing away from that kind of attention, a total abuse of women’s personal space and treatment based on looks.

I’ve said before that my mother was beautiful, with a kind and generous soul. She suffered much abuse during her life, and she became a strong woman. By default, I learned to be the same. The challenges of caregiving alone were outweighed by the joys of having such an amazing lady around me all the time. She had excellent grace and style, and supported all my endeavors with a great eye for what’s beautiful. Honoring her has been a way to heal this part of my life.

Another event to mention is that as an immigrant, I faced years of sustained harassment, identity theft, and financial harm by individuals who misrepresented themselves while assigned to assist me. These actions included organized efforts to undermine my reputation, interfere with my employment, and place my safety and life at risk. The related matters are now before the courts. Through this experience, I learned to assert my rights and access legal protections against what amounted to a form of human trafficking. This process became deeply healing. For this reason, my achievements reflect resilience, perseverance, and survival. Rinconart is a quiet miracle that grew despite every obstacle, by God’s will and through the support of good souls who made a difference.

Work has also been a great outlet. I started at 14 as a receptionist at my neighborhood AC/VAC shop and never stopped. Earning my own money kept me out of drama, focused, disciplined, and independent all my life. There are many of us in the USA; we share our challenges and heal collectively from the dark stories we left behind. We learn to love those who love us, and focus forward and away from those naysayers who neither built nor contributed but rather judged, obstructed, and provoked conflict. We just let go. Immigrants are survivors, and much of my healing happened here.

Ultimately, I heal by stepping back and remembering that God is in charge, and I’m not meant to understand everything. Good and evil exist, people make choices, and they face the consequences of those choices. I focus on being productive, addressing my healing, and helping others, which takes me outside of myself and gives me purpose and perspective—everyone is carrying something. Helping, in healthy measure, is quite therapeutic.

Sometimes that shows up as listening without judgment or staying loyal during a crisis. Other times, it involves sacrificing time and effort to intervene in someone’s life to make a positive change through education or advocacy. Other times, it means helping financially or standing up for the underdog when it’s uncomfortable. Helping is not a formula; we help when we are involved and realize it is needed. We simply step in. Sometimes it’s not easy to help someone, but if it were, anybody would do it. Anonymous generosity is unpopular but needed everywhere.

God responds to righteousness—and that’s the real beauty of it all. Life is absolutely worth living.

I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. Where are smart people getting it totally wrong today?
The fact that many smart people overvalue intelligence and undervalue heart-based wisdom. To start with, both the mind and the heart are organs of the body, and they need to be used properly.

Overvaluing intelligence while ignoring heart-based wisdom creates a deep imbalance—emotionally, spiritually, and even physically. Pure intellect can become cold, competitive, and disconnected, causing people to analyze life instead of truly living it. Without compassion, intuition, or spiritual awareness, intelligence alone often turns into ego, judgment, and even manipulation. The heart operates on a higher energetic frequency—empathy, integrity, and alignment. When heart energy is blocked, vibration drops, leading to fear, anxiety, resentment, and spiritual confusion.

This imbalance can also manifest physically. Long-term emotional suppression and disconnection from the heart are linked to stress-related illness, cardiovascular problems, chronic inflammation, and a weakened immune system. The body keeps score when the heart is ignored.

Many Native American communities understand this well. Traditionally, they honor the heart as the true center of wisdom—valuing intuition, humility, emotional balance, and connection with all living things. Intelligence is respected, but it is guided by the heart, not elevated above it. Decisions are made with spiritual awareness, listening, and relational harmony, reflecting a worldview where heart wisdom is the foundation of health and community.

In the Art world, Art with heart comes from emotion, intuition, and lived experience. You feel it more than you analyze it, because it carries authenticity and soul. Smart art relies on technique, concept, and precision. It speaks to the mind through skill and strategy. They are both important, but I think too many people focus on the intellect these days.

Okay, so before we go, let’s tackle one more area. When do you feel most at peace?
Well, I am actually a very disciplined person, and on a daily basis, I follow my routines. So when I am behind on paperwork or personal affairs, I can get anxious. I am at peace when there is order around me, when I am on top of my responsibilities and actively pursuing my goals, and when I have confronted unresolved issues so I can move forward.

When I make a decision based on what I really want (rather than others’ ideas of what I should do), and it’s in alignment with my growth, I feel peace.

It’s peaceful when painting, listening to classical music or other relaxing music from he 70’s. Cats are also peaceful, hanging out in nature and spending time in silence are great.
I am at peace when I help others and when there is justice. Also, letting God is peaceful.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.rinconart.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rinconartrocks/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/analuisarincon/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rinconart

Image Credits
Ana Luisa Rincon
1. Enchanted Rock, Oil on Canvas 2. Light Codes of the Fifth Dimension, Oil on Canvas. 3. The Reunion, Oil on Canvas. 4. Ana at Vendor Event. 5. Piano Blues 6. Mayan Mas 7. Ana at Drikung