I took art classes in high school and went to work in the graphic design business right after graduation. I continued to pursue my personal artwork and began showing in a variety of juried venues and art competitions. I received the Award of Art Excellence from the National League of American Pen Women and won awards and recognition for my realistic watercolor paintings of high desert flowers.
In 1992 my brother Bryan was diagnosed with AIDS. He was going to Arizona State University on a full academic scholarship at the time. I quit working and spent the next two years living with and caring for my brother. In the last few weeks of his life he made me promise that I would go to college. I enrolled at ASU a few months after Bryan died.
During my senior year I was awarded a private art studio, and the art faculty designated me as the excelling painter in my graduating class. I graduated Summa Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree and began teaching art at Washington High School in the fall of 2000.
I fell in love with my wife, Liz, while attending ASU. Although it was not legal for gay couples to marry in Arizona, we legally combined our last names, and had an almost traditional Jewish wedding. Seven years later we had twins, Julie and Samuel. We were married in NY on the day that DOMA was overturned in 2013, and Liz was able to become the twins' legal other parent in January of 2015.
I received an M.Ed when I was pregnant with the twins in 2003. I continued to paint and exhibit my artwork in a variety of shows. The series of work titled Symbiosis was shown at Trinity Cathedral, Phoenix and Hilltop Gallery, Nogales, AZ in 2007. Later that year, I received the Achievement Above All, Teacher Award at Washington High School. My mandala paintings were displayed in February, 2012, at the Valley of the Sun Jewish Community Center. The Valley Honda Dealers named me the "Helpful Teacher of the Year" in 2014. The Manikin Series was displayed at the Santa Cruz Center in Nogales in 2019.
I retired from teaching in 2022. I had a blast working at Trader Joe's for a year, but I went back to education and am currently subbing part time and working in my studio on my days off.
https://www.facebook.com/Karen-Bell-Zinn-Artist-155573834556413
http://firesideeditor.com/post/100624014135/helpful-honda-award-teacher-appreciation-karen