Candice Chovanec was born in Catania, Sicily, and lived most of her life in Southern California. In 2008, she completed her BFA in Drawing and Painting from Laguna College of Art and Design. In 2017, she completed her MFA from California State University. Candice has won numerous awards and shown in group exhibitions throughout the United States. In 2017, her work received 1st Place from the Portrait Society of America in the Members-Only Competition and “Best in Show” from the Wausau Museum of Contemporary Art for portraiture. Candice is an Assistant Professor in the departments of Arts and Letters and Integrated Arts and Humanities at Michigan State University in East Lansing, MI where she has taught since 2019.