Cynthia Powell was born in Howell, Michigan, and began art classes at a very young age. Later, she studied Chinese ink painting at Michigan State University, the influence of which can be clearly seen in her striking paintings. Powell also studied commercial art at Lansing Community College but made the switch to fine art in 1997, when she moved to Arizona to work with Phoenix Art Group. At PAG, Powell was exposed to myriad mediums, techniques, and textures, and this broad range of experience is applied to her own artworks, which range from figural to abstract.