Dacota Maphis

abstracts, Acrylic, Digital Art, Digital Art: Photo Revised Art, Oils

Dacota Maphis is a full-time, award-winning artist. Born in Grenville, South Carolina and now creating daily in Clearwater, Florida. Dacota lives life as if it is art—believing that the true magic happens in expressing that art and sharing it with others.

With over 45 years of experience as a photographer, her creative journey has also included wearable art, oil portrait painting, mixed media and 3D display art from concept-to-installation projects. But what she’s best known for is her signature style of digital work: Photo Revised Art, a process she created. (no AI used)

Each piece begins with one of Dacota’s original photographs, which she transforms using Photoshop and her vivid imagination. The result is completely reimagined, dynamic artwork that blends realism with abstraction, emotion and movement. This unique process has been her artistic passion for the past sixteen years—what she calls her “day joy.”

Dacota’s art is deeply personal, rooted in exploring life’s ups, downs, and in-betweens, and sharing that journey with others through her striking visual language.

Earlier artist statement (2025)

DACOTA MAPHIS lives life as if art is life and life is art, believing expressing it is where it gets interesting. Her choices of what, why and how lets her personality show. Dacota’s voice is always to inspire meaningful thought that lives in love and caring. She has been a photographer for over forty-five years which lead her to add digital art, which became her day job. In between, there has been wearable art, 3D display art from concept to in store installation and oil portrait painting. What Dacota is best known for is her style of digital art, that she has named Digital PHra (Photo Revised Art). The process always starts with a photograph, then by the moving of pixels around in photoshop as if they were paint on a canvas it allows the unleashing of her create juices, pulling from her subconscious the ideas lead to form a completely different piece of art than the photograph started. The process is as exciting as the art. The vivid imagination she draws from is her personal feelings and memories which she references to as the rings in a tree. Looking back on Dacota’s art’s progression over the sixteen years of creating these unique pieces of art, the evolution, the ever-changing art movement has still left her distinct style gracing many homes and businesses to evoke imagination and conversation. Dacota Maphis is a full-time award-winning artist born in Greenville, South Carolina and creating art daily in Clearwater, Florida.

Earlier artist statement (2025)

Art is life and life is art, expressing that is where it gets interesting. Choices of what, why and how lets your personality show. My showing of art is a bit scattered, but my voice is always to inspire meaningful thought that lives in love and caring. I have been a photographer for over forty years which then lead me to add to the mix digital art for the last twelve years. In between there has also been wearable art, oil portrait painting, 3D display art from conception to instillation, abstract collaborative art (Expressions by DnD) but what I’m best known for is my style of digital art that I call Digital PHra (Photo Revised Art). I approach this as unsolved puzzle, starting with an original photograph for my inspiration. Always working within the limitations of the existing pixels, I push and pull them around to transform the photograph into a totally new dramatic expression, as if the pixels were paint. Revealing relevance to what I am experiencing in life or a themed project. I am a full-time award-winning artist born in Greenville South Carolina and creating art daily in Clearwater, FL.

Earlier artist statement (2023)

I create unique abstract and impressionistic artwork through an intellectual process that reaches into my imagination to express ideas and emotions about things and occurrences gathered from my day-to-day life. The process that I use is one I created and named called Photo Revised Art or Digital PHra. The development is a product of a dream I had, to create something that I had never seen before. I am happy that it utilizes my photography which I have enjoyed for forty-five years. Digital PHra took two years to develop and then eight years to acquire fine art status and an understand of what I could create within the limits of my defined style. From there I have shown art in fine art festivals and galleries for nine years. I look forward to my continued development of Digital PHRA as I dwell on my passion for inspiring others to use their imagination. I am a full-time award-winning artist born in Greenville, South Carolina and creating art daily in Clearwater, Florida.

Earlier artist statement (2023)

Art is life and life is art, expressing that is where it gets interesting. Choices of what, why and how lets your personality show. My showing of art is a bit scattered, but my voice is always to inspire meaningful thought that lives in love and caring. I have been a photographer for over forty years which then lead me to add to the mix digital art for the last sixteen years. In between, there also has been wearable art, 3D display art form concept to in store installation and oil painting. What I’m best known for is my style of digital art, that I call Digital PHra (Photo Revised Art). The process always starts with a photograph. Then I move the pixels as if they are my paint to create a completely different piece of art. All the art I create comes from my imagination and personal feeling, even when creating abstracts. These feelings and memories like the rings in a tree connect me to a place in time. I am grateful that I have made my way to a place where I can share my art with others.

I am a full-time award-winning artist born in Greensville South Carolina and creating art daily in Clearwater, FL.

Digital Art_Photo Revised Art - Printed on aluminum size: 30x60

Outside Vase

Digital Art_Photo Revised Art – Printed on aluminum size: 30×60

Digital Art_Photo Revised Art - Printed on aluminum 20x30

Dreaming of Rest

Digital Art_Photo Revised Art – Printed on aluminum 20×30

Digital Art_Photo Revised Art - Printed on aluminum-30x30

Joyfully

Digital Art_Photo Revised Art – Printed on aluminum-30×30

Pangea

Digital Art_Photo Revised Art – Printed on aluminum

Modern Clasic

From a distance you observe an interesting vase and up close your mind gets lost in all the pieces that make up Modern Classic. printed on aluminum and available in 30x30x1 or 40x40x1

Joyful

This piece of art is calming and earthy and is printed on canvas but is also available on aluminum. 55x35x1

Abstract Fun 02

Very playful movement which lets your imagination go. Printed on aluminum 30x60x1

Abstract Fun 02

Digital – An abstract that lets your mind wonder and relax.

Vase Full Of Fun

This is part of my Vase Series 1 and is one of my favorites. I love the black background that shows off it’s dramatic style sporting a masculine and feminine charm.

Turn Of Events

This piece is lets your mind wonder in the movement, shapes and colors to take some time to explore.

Splash

This is a fun abstract fish in movement.

Dreaming of Rest

Dreaming of Rest started with a photo for my inspiration for this art. The photo I used was a weed sprouting white seeds getting ready to fly in the breeze. Then by moving the pixels of the photo around like paint on a canvas I created a peaceful dream like vase

Free Time

Starting with a photograph of the woods that I shot at dawn with soft natural light and a vine in the foreground I was very inspired to let my subconscious flow. Moving the pixels of the photo around like I have all the free time in the world.