Ana Monaghan started painting with oils at age 9 with the Orlando Institute of Art and then at Rollins College, thanks to her mother's encouragement. She received art awards into college years and chose to become a volunteer outreach worker first, to create better art from the heart.For many years, she produced educational and inspirational programs, often with art projects for children in orphanages and schools, in Ecuador and the Caribbean Islands. Due to health concerns in third world countries, Ana eventually moved to the Pacific region and then to Japan, where she continued similar outreach efforts. Ana spent 20 years in Japan, assisting large companies around Tokyo and running her own small language and art business. The Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Art hosts multiple exhibitions throughout each year, and there she was awarded the prize of Superior Excellence for a large painting. Art societies invited her to enter artwork and awarded her with prizes also. News and magazine companies conducted interviews. The Japan Times recognized Ana as the Volunteer Worker of the Year in their People section for the nation. The management at the Grand Hyatt Tokyo commissioned Ana to do paintings for their executive offices and as gifts to outstanding clients. Ana sometimes visited Hawaiʻi, where Norwegian Cruise Lines requested 16 murals and paintings for The Pride of Hawaiʻi, later renamed The Norwegian Jade/ Le Bistro-- French Restaurant. Her artwork decorates all kinds of structures. It's a fact: Art influences mood. Ana has deeply appreciated the beauty of the Islands of Hawaiʻi and the Pacific and has for years. Here she resides, painting, teaching, and continuing to do some outreach in the community.