Born and raised in Arizona, Conti admits she spent much of her life taking the desert for granted. The sunsets, glowing mountains, and dramatic skies simply felt normal. It wasn't until she began traveling that she realized how unique those landscapes truly were.
"I just thought it was dry and boring," she says. "It wasn't until I started traveling to other places that I realized how amazing the desert really was."
That realization helped shape the artist she would become.
After high school, Conti attended Mesa Community College before transferring to Arizona State University to study Art History. While there, she participated in a study abroad program in Florence, Italy, an experience she still describes as transformative.
"It wasn't just the museums that celebrated art—the entire city embraced it," she says. "That's when I realized how important artists are in the bigger picture of our history."
Today, her paintings often explore two landscapes she loves deeply: the Arizona desert and the Oregon coast.
Seven years ago, Conti and her husband purchased a small, run-down cabin on the Oregon coast. The property needed extensive work, but it sat on a lake with sweeping views and was only minutes from the ocean. Despite the challenges, her husband saw its potential.
"He looked at me and said, 'I know I can do it. I can make it something special,'" she recalls.
Over time, the cabin became exactly that—a family retreat surrounded by forests, water, and the slower pace of coastal life.
"In Oregon, everywhere you go is scenic," Conti says. "We're truly surrounded by nature."
The contrast between Oregon and Arizona continues to inspire her work. Oregon offers soft light, drifting clouds, and mist-filled mornings. Arizona delivers dramatic sunsets, brilliant colors, and mountains illuminated by the setting sun.
While her paintings are rooted in real places, she's no longer interested in recreating them exactly as they appeared.
"It's more important for me to capture the feeling," she says. "There's a sense of awe that nature can
That pursuit has become the common thread connecting every stage of her journey—from discovering the beauty of the Arizona desert, to studying art in Florence, to finding inspiration on the Oregon coast. Each experience has taught her to slow down, pay attention, and appreciate the landscapes that shape us.
For Conti, painting is more than documenting a scene. It's an attempt to preserve a moment—the light on a mountain at sunset, clouds drifting across a coastal valley, or the feeling of standing quietly in nature and realizing how extraordinary it is. Through her work, she invites others to experience that same sense of wonder long after the moment has passed.