Give this Mission native a brush and some paint and she can bring stories to life. Now she's getting recognition in a national competition spearheaded by one of Hollywood's biggest stars.

Every stroke carefully placed and every detail is filled with purpose.

Dulce Leal, 22, has always had a passion for art. The Mission native says her art inspiration comes from her family, architecture, and books.

"My favorite books were Pinkalicious and Fancy Nancy and you can clearly see it in my art. The little whimsical elements in it and also my grandma, she was an artist and an architect," Leal said.

She's not the only artist in the family, her grandmother also painted; that is where her passion began.

"As I grew up and evolved, I would adopt a new medium of art, from Crayola, water color, pens ext, and I would create my storylines and paintings along the way," Leal said.

Leal is a student at Texas A&M in McAllen. She's studying construction science in hopes of becoming an architect.

She's taken her creativity around the world, drawing from landmarks as inspiration.

"Everyday I would document what I lived, in front of landmarks, in front of paintings," Leal said.

Now, her artistry has earned her a spot in a national art competition created by Johnny Depp called The People's Artist.

"I'm always seeing what he posts, and I was like, you know what? I'm going to enter, it's free to register and guess what? A month or two later, I got a message that I got selected to be in the People's Artist," Leal said.

The winner is chosen by the people. The artist with the most votes will win $25,000 and have the opportunity to have their artwork displayed.

"So one of them is have your artwork exhibited in [Los Angeles] at the Art of Elysium Salon, also have your artwork exhibited in an art magazine called Artforum," Leal said.

Leal says if she wins, she would put the money toward getting her Master's degree in architecture.

"It's important to me because it's who I am, who the Valley is, my roots, also everything I have lived encapsulated in each art piece," Leal said.

Leal hopes to continue her artwork for years to come and hopes to inspire young artists along the way.

To vote for Leal, click here.

Dulce Leal is made in the 956.