Maria Schechter (b.1976, Pasadena, CA) currently completed the Symbiosis residency with Ayatana's Biophilium: Science school for artists, Maria is known for growing her paintings and sculptures from mycelium the same material used to fruit mushrooms. As an eco artist she also utilizes an ancient technique known as Ikebana or Japanese flower arranging. The method itself has come a long way from its humble roots as a temple offering centuries ago. Today, it is a popular and innovative ‘living art’ primarily in Japan, but Mrs. Schechter’s work with living materials also incorporates this technique, utilizing mycelium as a medium and growing her painting palette from fruits, flowers, and vegetables. Having always been a steward of the natural world she understands the urgency to inspire other generations as the next generation of gatekeepers. Understanding that we are all a part of something much larger than human life is how she finds reverence for the natural world at the centerpiece of each work she now creates. For 26 years, her work has shown with cultural institutions, including recent pocket exhibitions with the Triton Museum of Art in Santa Clara, California. She currently has a solo exhibition on view with the California State Capitol and will be completing The Gate Project in Spring 2023 with The Museum of Infinite Outcomes in Tennessee.  Currently represented in part by The InFlux-Gallery, Notting Hill, London. Maria has achieved a number of grants that include The Gottlieb Foundation Emergency Grant 2022, The Fantastic Fungi Global Summit Scholarship 2021, Arts and Accessibility Grant, UCLA 2020 and The Center for Cultural Innovation 2020. Originally accepted into Pratt for her MFA in 1999, she changed course and initiated her graduate work with New York University in Visual Art Administration and later achieved a Masters in International Business with a published thesis on cause related marketing from Schiller International University, Heidelberg, Germany. She received her Bachelor of Fine Art in Design from Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle, Washington in 1998. She has lived in both Thailand and Germany and currently resides in Carmel, Indiana.