El Moises

His dad was an inventor and welder. His mom was a homemaker. He went to elementary school in Phoenix, attended Carl Hayden and Central high schools, and got a degree in advertising design. Sounds like a standard background for a youngster with an artistic bent.

But artist El Moises is anything but standard.

These days, El Moises only goes out wearing a wildly bright lucha libre mask. But don't let the luchador in him scare you. As El Moises says about himself, "I'm a lover, not a fighter."

And boy does he love to create. His inspiration comes from everywhere - great artists of the past (El Greco, Warhol, Van Gogh) and, as El Moises says, "mi familia y mi barrio."

His work is shown in galleries and museums across the U.S. And because he works in all kinds of media, you're as likely to see an El Moises creation on the side of a building or on a TV commercial as you are to see it on apparel, furniture or a traditional canvas.

His take on recycling? "I've been recycling as an artist since I was a kid. It's about time everyone got involved."