Kamar Bitar was born in Anderson, Indiana. She and her sister, being the children of an artist, were whisked around the country by their mother and lived in communes and free schools while growing up (Free schools were alternative home schools that are similar to Montessori schools). After graduating from Portland State University with a Bachelor of Science in Graphic Design, she opened her own firm with her sister Caprice called "Bitar Designs".
It was a family affair, as they often employed their mother, Share Tanzer to assist with illustrations and murals. Intel contracted a series of 14 murals for several of their corporate offices in Oregon. Also among "Bitar Designs" clientele was the City of Portland, Metro, First Consumers National Bank, Pacific Gateway Inc., Great Performance Inc. and many others. However, the corporate world was not the only industry to take interest in their artwork. They were also hired on several feature films to create custom props. This exposure to the movie industry, inspired Kamar move to Los Angeles to pursue a career in the Art Department.
Using her powerful management skills, she obtained the job of "Special Effects Coordinator" for a Make-up effects company in the Los Angeles area. Although, the creative demand in her job was minimal the facility provided her with the opportunity to expand her artistic and mechanical skills in her free time. She was able to focus on her own visions and desires. She learned how to weld and use the power tools that were available, which has lead to her current expression of design through the building of furniture. She has extreme diversity with the variety of mediums she utilizes. On consignment, she has built pieces with steel, wood, tile, broken tile, rocks and glass, etc. Over the past year, she completed a series of mixed media tiki tables that were inspired by her annual luaus’.
Her colorful upbringing and constant exposure to art has given her the confidence to branch out in new directions and allows her an endless palette to create from.

You can contact Kamar at: Ornerymoon@aol.com

© Melt Magazine 2001