Alexandra Benson is a mixed media and textile artist who uses her practice as a way to process the world around her. Her work transforms personal experience into layered visual narratives, blending abstraction, still life, florals, and figurative imagery. Guided by intuition and emotion, her art is rooted in an experimental approach to materials, especially line, color, and texture through the use of textiles.

As a military spouse of 21 years, Alexandra’s journey has taken her across the globe, from the islands of Hawaii to the cultural richness of Japan. These experiences, and the textiles and traditions she encountered along the way, continue to inform her practice. Art became a vital outlet during this time, a way to calm anxieties through multiple deployments and provide balance while raising three young children. Creating became not just expression, but therapy, resilience, and reflection.

Now based in Fairfax, Virginia, Alexandra is completing her BFA in Studio Art at George Mason University. Her work has been exhibited at the Workhouse Arts Center in Lorton, Virginia, and Del Ray Artisans in Alexandria, and is part of the permanent collection at GMU’s Carter School for Peace. Her piece Tapestry of Waste received both First Place and the People’s Choice Award at the Workhouse; Dear Frida won First Place in the Textile category at Del Ray Artisans; and Wings of Harmony was named Runner-Up in the GMU Carter School Peace Art Contest.

Alexandra draws inspiration from artists like Bisa Butler, whose powerful portraits elevate the Black American experience, and Faith Ringgold, whose storytelling quilts confront issues of civil rights and identity. The improvisational quilt work of Irene Roderick, crafted with “intuition, spontaneous expression, and blind trust”, resonates deeply with Alexandra’s own creative philosophy.