ArtTour International Spring 2022 - Special Earth Day Issue

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CEO/EDITOR-IN-CHIEF VIVIANA PUELLO www.vivianapuello.com Email: viviana@arttourinternational.com COO/GRAPHIC DIRECTOR ALAN GRIMANDI www.alangrimandi.com Email: alan.grimandi@arttourinternational.com GRAPHIC DESIGN Mileidy Meléndez Sánchez Email: graphics@arttourinternational.com CONTRIBUTING WRITERS AND EDITORS: Tiarra Tompkins, Paul Simpson, Selas Smith WEB DESIGN: Humberto Jose Orozco SOCIAL MEDIA: Romy Singh EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT: Yadira Roman CUSTOMER SUPPORT: Email: admin@arttourinternational.com Tel: 1 800 807-1167 ADVERTISING: To place an Ad contact: info@arttourinternational.com MARKETING: www.mediakit.art

This is an interactive publication!

Enjoy our embeded videos on the digital issues.

ON THE COVER “Mother Earth” by Gabriel Lavoie

PODCAST “The Winner’s Journey” www.vivianapuello.com/podcast New Episodes each Friday ArtTour International TV Show https://www.arttourinternational.com/atim-tv-show/ Tune in on Thursdays at 5:30 PM EST In New York, Tune in to MNN-HD Ch. 1993 in Manhattan (TWC/ SPECTRUM). Outside of New York watch the live streaming of our show at MNN.ORG FOUNDATIONS: CREATE 4 PEACE www.create4peace.org ARTISTS FOR A GREEN PLANET www.artistsforagreenplanet.org GET FEATURED! If you’re an artist looking for a platform to expose your art, share your message and expand your network, contact info@arttourinternational.com for to find out how to get featured in our magazine.

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ATTENTION: Help us protect visual artists rights. The copyrights of all published artworks are retained by the artists. Magazine published by ArtTour International Publications, Inc. 988 Columbus Ave. New York, NY 10025. Copyright © 2022. Reproduction of any published content without the written permission of the magazine’s publisher is prohibited by law.

The Legacy of Dr. Masaru Emoto and the Hidden Message of Water Page 24

Going Green: Easy to Implement Tips for Artists Page 8

Cherokee Riverkeepers Page 36

Global Warming in the Antarctica Page 62

ADINA DING Page 34 ALISON BARROWS-YOUNG Page 72 ANASTASIA TRUSOVA Page 45 ANNE WALBRING Page 47 BRIAN ROCK Page 70 CAMILLA FRANSRUD Page 56 CARLA KLEEKAMP Page 74 CHIKARA KOMURA Page 61 CHRIS BUSCH Page 35 CLEO MITCHEL Page 46

Michael Dumas Page 28 JIM FITZPATRICK JOHN NIEMAN MARGOT MCMAHON MATHIAS SAGER MEGHAN POYNOR MICHAEL DUMAS MONIKA BENDNER OLIVIA KAPOOR PATRICIA SPOON RIC CONN

Page 50 Page 66 Page 69 Page 20 Page 57 Page 28 Page 44 Page 52 Page 60 Page 17

ArtTour International presents: The Artist of the Year Award to Philip Noyed Page 10

Olivia Kapoor Page 52 ERA ARTISTRY Page 38 GABRIEL LAVOIE Page 68 GAYLE PRINTZ Page 39 GIOVANNA BERNI Page 59 HOWARD HARRIS Page 27 IRINA HOWARD Page 26 JACQUELINE DOMIN Page 22 JAIME PARRA Page 75 JEAN J. PORRET Page 48

John Nieman Page 66 SHARON GAINSBURG Page 41 PHILIP NOYED Page 10 STEFFI RODIGAS Page 16 SUZANNE STEVENS Page 43 TRACEY CHAYKIN Page 23 TOTI CUESTA Page 58 VIGDIS ELISABETH FELDT Page 51 WENDY COHEN Page 76 WENDY YEO Page 40 YVAN BEDARD Page 42

GOING GREEN: EASY TO IMPLEMENT TIPS

FOR ARTISTS

W

by ARTY ARTBOT

hat can artists do to reduce their carbon footprint without interfering with their creativity?

Here are eight simple actions artists can take right now to start going green: 1. Recycle, Reuse, Reinvent Some of the most famous artwork has been created using discarded, odd items (Duchamp's Fountain, for example)

2. Purchase Supplies from Eco-friendly Art Stores You'll find bamboo products, recycled paper, and drawing pencils made with reforested wood at these green shops.Â

3. Preserving Acrylic Paints Avoid throwing out dried acrylic paint unnecessarily by sealing paint in plastic wrap, palette lids, or impermeable containers.

4. Properly Dispose of Paint Never flush unusable paint down the toilet or dump them into sinks. Also, never toss artist paints in dumpsters or outdoor garbage cans where animals and pets can access them.

Improper disposal of art supplies that are not eco-friendly can poison the soil, plants and reduce access to clean water.

Think Green, Stay Inspired!

5. Reuse Panels and Canvases By Painting Over Unwanted Artwork Recycling old paintings done on canvas by painting over them can inspire you to create something in bolder colors needed to conceal old paint.

6. Recycle Packaging Materials Get creative with bubble wrap, cardboard boxes, Styrofoam, and other paper items used to mail things. Cut up large cardboard boxes and practice painting or drawing creative ideas on pieces of cardboard. You can also reuse packing material to pack your products for mailing.

7. Avoid Using Aerosols and Spray Paint Supplies Aerosols no longer contain chlorofluorocarbons. Instead, this toxic chemical has been replaced by volatile organic compounds that still cause damage to the environment.

8. Energize Your Studio with Solar Power Small artist studios can be easily powered by installing solar panels on the roof. Besides, relying on solar power to illuminate your art studio can save thousands of dollars in energy bills.

Reducing and Reusing Basics

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle for Sustainable Living

by Viviana Puello

A

common misconception when thinking about reducing one's waste footprint is the belief that recycling paper, plastic, aluminum cans, and glass bottles is the best way to do it. In reality, recycling ranks only third in the most impactful ways to reduce material waste. The actual order is: Reduce, Reuse, and then Recycle. Each is beneficial, but placing them in this priority order helps us improve our material waste impact.

While a lot of us recognize the importance of recycling and reusing, reducing actually offers the most benefit to our environment and our pockets!

What is Reducing all about?

It's about reducing your consumption to reduce your overall waste footprint. Each consumer good is created with multiple

by Viviana Puello products and materials. All those materials and products require energy not only during their creation but also during their transport to you, the consumer. Thus, by reducing our usage of products, we eliminate multiple channels of energy. This is the reason that purchasing your groceries from local markets reduces gas and packaging waste, and allows you to help the economy of your local farmers.

Reuse Reusing goods is a great help to eliminate the demand for the manufacturing of new goods, while reducing the energy that goes into recycling. Next time you feel like you're done with an item, remember that it could still be useful to someone else. Hence, donating clothing and household goods to your closest thrift stop allows for the creation of more jobs and help for someone else to find items for a fraction of the price.

Recycle Recycling is the best way to help keep material from the landfill. Be conscious when you purchase any item to make sure it can be recycled or reuse it. Go for the best option: to buy articles made of recyclable materials, whenever possible. A great economic benefit of recycling is a growing industry that continuously creates new jobs for the research and processing of recycled materials and also for the manufacturing of new environmentally friendly products.

We can all implement a conscious environmentally friendly lifestyle by keeping in mind this list of priorities—reduce, reuse, recycle. By doing so, you will be reducing your waste footprint and help us preserve our planet, our only home.

Recycled Plastic Waste. Environment Pollution Garbage. Reuse and Recycle

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PHILIP NOYED WWW.PHILIPNOYED.COM

"Technological change in the last decade has propelled my art forward in many ways. Photographs mounted to acrylic and made into mobiles. LED lights illuminating my images as 3D acrylic sculptures. New materials like the dichroic film I used on "Arising: Flying Rainbow Colors" and rainbow vinyl film I used for installations at the MSP airport. Creating paintings in 3D (when viewed through chromatic glasses)— using Virtual Reality (VR) to bring people in the 3D painting as a 20'D x 15'H Virtual Reality (VR) light installation and using light as an architectural element by building with clear acrylic tubes and LED lights to create Rainbow Pyramids as immersive art experiences and using mirrors to allow people to be in the art. Improvements in the photo and video editing software to easily amplify and transform into new art. Computer-driven routers to cut acrylic to exact specifications. The science of light and color effects on the brain to reduce stress and activate the brain in positive ways. The expanding knowledge of the power of art to heal."

ArtTour International presents: The Artist of the year Award to Philip Noyed

By Viviana Puello

A

rtTour International is proud to announce the artist of the year 2022 and the modalities of the award presentation. Philip Noyed will receive the award at the ArtTour International Magazine's ATIM Masters Awards in June 2022 in New York.

ArtTour International Magazine (ATIM) Masters Awards will host over sixty master artists from all over the world to receive and celebrate their awards. In addition to the artist of the Year award, Phillip Noyed will also be honored as one of ATIM's Top 60 Master Artists of the Year 2022.

Phillip Noyed's nomination for this award is well-deserved, as he has earned his place in the art world as an innovative multimedia artist. The Minneapolis-based artist is best known for his luminous geometric illumination photographs, LED installations, videos, 3D and VR creations, and mixed-media installations. Noyed's art pieces feature the use of creative technology through which he has revolutionized how people view art today.

His recognition in the art world can be attributed to the level

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of detail that goes into his creations. Critics, audiences, and art community members have described his works as visually captivating. Rightfully, the fusion of geometric elements and lighting is often present in the mesmerizing results his finished works showcase.

Philip uses light, color, and sound to create immersive, transformational art experiences. His art represents the quintessential contemporary art movement using innovative technologies that change the way art is experienced today.

Color, light, and sound are all harmonic frequencies that affect people emotionally and physiologically. Philip uses these ideas to create healing art accessible to people of all ages and backgrounds.

Philip's most recent creation NEO ART SPACE is a wow-inspiring immersive Virtual Reality (VR) art experience. Traveling through space and time, you emerge in a new universe as an explorer of planets, stars, galaxies, and dazzling moving colorful light art. You explore over thirty experiences orchestrated with gorgeous music to help you move from everyday 3D experience to a transcendent 5D consciousness.

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You can create your own experience via teleporting wherever you want to go on pathways through glowing light caves, into planets, through vibrantly alive forests, inside zinging energy fields, or out into a space observatory to see an eclipse.

The array of experiences and the levels you can go to are as boundless as the universe you are in. You can even create your very own interactive geometric art.

Sharing the experience with others only amplifies its effect.

You can meet family and friends inside and experience the sense of awe and wonder in the Neo Art Space VR together, making unforgettable memories as unique as the environment you are in.

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“Aurora Space View - Neo Art Space VR”

“Rainbow Sculpture Cave - Neo Art Space VR”

“Green Diamond Cave - Neo Art Space VR”

“Kinetic Color Orb - Neo Art Space VR”

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“Inflection Point”

“Aurora Borealis and Star of the North”

“Geometric Illumination Installation”

Philip and his team are actively developing the Neo Art Space VR experience for a release in a few months.

For over 15 years, ArtTour International has been committed to shedding the spotlight on artists and exposing them to the eyes of art lovers and collectors globally. So we're proud to present our artist of the year 2022 and honor his innovative work.

ArtTour International operates on the philosophy of using art to raise human consciousness and global awareness of important societal topics. And over the next few years, we will continue being the torch holder and leading voice for artists globally.

“Leap of Joy”

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“Heart of the Sunrise and Rainbow Colors Arising”

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The RAINBOW PYRAMID light experience goes through the seven colors of the Rainbow/Chakras while music plays that corresponds to each of the frequencies of the chakras – from the base of red to the apex of the purple crown chakra. Thus, the sacred geometric dynamics of the pyramid, combined with color and sound, help elevate the viewer's frequencies while bringing a sense of joy, peace, and being attuned.

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SPRING 2022Pyramid” | 15 “Rainbow

STEFFI RODIGAS

WWW.STEFFI-RODIGAS-ARTIST.COM

“Mother of Nature” Sculpture / Art in Art, 43.3’’x47.2’’x2.3’’

"A

rt gives me the chance to express my deep feelings and concerns, which the overwhelming beauty of nature as well as its dramatic threat trigger in me, in color and form using a wide variety of techniques."

“Media World” Acrylic on Canvas /Structure, 47.2’’x39.3’’

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“Collapsed Lung” Installation, 39.3’’x23.6’’x7.87’’

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RIC CONN WWW.RICCONN.COM

‘‘What Makes you Think that is ok’’ Oil on Canvas, 36’’x24’’

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“I

am an internationally known awardwinning American Expressionist artist, inspired mainly by Picasso, ToulouseLautrec, Edvard Munch, Matisse, and the German Expressionists. My work is primarily figurative depictions of the female experience. I am inspired to speak about inequality and social issues women often face in Western culture, focusing on their

courage and beauty.

I am committed and very passionate about gender equality and female empowerment, two subjects that are sorely lacking in society. My goal is to bring awareness to this problem and do my part to facilitate change. As an expressionist, I put my emotions, thoughts, etc., on canvas, and in that sense, every painting I do is autobiographical. I use oil, acrylic, mixed media, whatever it takes to get my message across”.

“Unwanted Embrace” Oil on Canvas, 28’’x22’’

‘‘The Walk Home’’ Oil on Canvas, 36’’x24’’

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“Personal Space” Oil on Canvas, 36’’x24’’

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By Viviana Puello

Award-winning expressionist artist Ric Con is recognized internationally for his role in advocating for women's inequality and social issues. Since 2020 his message has been crossing the globe for his visual dialog for female empowerment. He has been featured on Fox, CBS, ABC, Medium, The New York Weekly, ArtTour International Magazine, Toscana Cultura in Italy, among other numerous media outlets.

Ric Conn's innovative use of imagery challenges viewers and activists to think beyond what they can see on the canvas and what the painting means on a deeper level. He maximizes the power of art to break down language and cultural barriers, knowing that inequality issues are evident anywhere in the world. Today, he is among the leading voices in amplifying women's hurdles through his creative use of mixed media, including acrylics, inks, oil, gouaches, and charcoal. His portraits of the female persona show worthy narratives ranging from everyday issues to society's most well-buried battles.

“The Wall” Oil on Canvas, 36’’x24’’

Conn presents a thought-provoking visual narrative with bold textures, masterful light, and symbolic imagery. He explores the opposition between reality and perception. His fascination and motivation are amped by realities that appear invisible in our everyday lives, cutting into the core of his subjects' hearts and exposing hidden emotions. Layers of female forms are captured in each of his paintings, focusing on the essence of women's courage and beauty.

‘‘No Means No’’ Oil on Canvas, 36’’x24’’

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MATHIAS SAGER

WWW.MATHIAS-SAGER.COM

"A

s the inventor of the psychophilosophical/-spiritual concept of 'Awareness Intelligence,' which is the ability to harness the benefits of systematically thinking on a broader temporal and social scope, I have discovered that mental schemas appear in triadic constellations. Therefore, the power of three is taken up regularly in my works. Thanks to its flexibility and stability, I regard the triangle as the strongest shape. My artworks evolve organically through layered and intricate details that triangularly connect dots and lines. I don't care about rules, history, or trends.

I consequently do what makes sense to me and aim to remain independent in my critical thinking and creativity.

For me, psychology and art belong together. Appropriately, my paintings are accompanied by poems that reflect on love, its antagonist fear, social issues, and the development of human potential in the triptych of fitness, kindness, and wisdom. I go for what is essential, not what seems urgent. My goal is to live as an example and to inspire with multidisciplinary, intergenerational, and cross-cultural considerations to serve both individual wellbeing and the common good alike."

“Choice” Acrylic on Canvas, 27.5”x39.3”

“Extuition / Intuition” Acrylic on Canvas, 39.3”x47.2” “Disarmament” Acrylic on Canvas, 35.4”x47.2”

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“Apple Or Heart” Acrylic on Canvas, 39.3”x39.3”

“Circumthinking” Acrylic on Canvas, 47.2”x31.4”

“The Three Beasts Of Unawareness” Acrylic on Canvas, 47.2”x39.3”

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JACQUELINE DOMIN JACQUELINE.DOMIN@TIN.IT

“Terra Di Luce” Analog Photography, 39.3”x25.5”

"T

he precious gem is hidden in the Earth, inside a stone, on the wings of a multicolored insect, hidden in an intrepid source."

Her photographs are the result and consequence of meditations "en plein air." Those are contemplative shots that participate in the creative and creative energy lavished by nature.

“L'eau Vive” Analog Photography, 39.3”x25.5”

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“Spring Fog” Analog Photography, 31.4’x24.8’

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TRACEY CHAYKIN WWW.TRACEYCHAYKIN.COM

“On the Prowl” Colored Pencil, 8”x10”

"I

'm Tracey Chaykin, an award-winning Colored Pencil artist from Napa, California. For as long as I can recall, I've always felt the need to brighten my world with art. Every day brings new ways to work with the Colored Pencil medium. This medium allows me to provide an opportunity for those unable to view wildlife in their natural habitats, a unique view using Hyper-realism, providing the ability to look and imagine as if they are there. Hyper-realistic art is also ideal for preservation and conservation, which I am actively a part of.

My life and artistic goals are intertwined. Never stop learning!

Expand my knowledge base so that I can continue to preserve and share the awe of Nature's beauty for all to appreciate while ever expanding on the possibilities of what can be achieved with colored pencils!"

“Simply Stellar” Colored Pencil, 8”x10”

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“Sanctuary” Colored Pencil, 9”x12”

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IRINA HOWARD WWW.IRINAHOWARD.COM

"M

aking art to me is a profound process of personal discovery and development. My work manifests beauty and seeks the inner creative significance to reach those who appreciate classical ideals while still being inspired by contemporary ways of speaking about human values.

I am fascinated by forms and textures existing in nature and am compelled to express their meaning, unique purpose, and beauty in connection to human experiences through my work. Visual language interpretation with its dynamic expression and energy brings intellectual stimulation and develops an emotional response.

My processes combine thoughtful, conscious decision-making and spontaneous, intuitive solutions to create compositions.

Recognizing the psychological influence of elements and generating visual narrative revealing the invisible within the visible and its emotional link to human experiences helps me develop aesthetically pleasing meaningful artworks.

My preferred medium is oil paint because it provides an expressive ability and flexibility to create and achieve remarkable results.

For sculpture, I enjoy working with clay. I also use sculpted metal wires, mesh wire, modeling compounds, and other materials to explore different textures. I believe in an awakened mind and a soul's purpose. Therefore, I always strive to inspire hope and encourage positivity. "

“Representation Of Life” Sculpting Wires, Mesh Wire Sheet, Modeling Compound, Papier-Mache, Spray Paint, 12″x10″x18"

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“Addiction” Oil on Canvas, 40"x30"

“Hope” Oil on Canvas, 40"x30"

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HOWARD HARRIS WWW.HHARRISPHOTO.COM

“Maroon Bells” Sublimation on Aluminum, 48”x27”

"V

isual reality is an ever-shifting experience.

What one sees reflects our emotional state and synthesis of light, color, movement, and space. My dimensional photographs recreate the perceptual experience with its dynamic nature and hidden complexities.

I use a single image printed on aluminum and acrylic. The resulting visual phenomenon infuses the image with a sense of dimensionality and fluidity affected by the viewing angle and ever-changing light."

“Santa Fe Vista” Sublimation on Aluminum, 36”x28”

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“Red Truck” Sublimation on Aluminum 30”x36”

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MICHAEL DUMAS

WWW.ARTISTSFORCONSERVATION.ORG//MICHAEL-DUMAS “Freedom Dream” Watercolour on D'Arches

A

deep love and respect for the natural world are vividly expressed in the art and life of Canadian artist Michael Dumas.

His many accomplishments creating public awareness and fundraising for conservation include The Canadian Endangered Species Collection 1974-

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1979 / 1986 Carling-O’Keefe Professional Conservation Award for having been instrumental in raising more than five million dollars dedicated to conservation causes. Swift Fox reintroduction program – World Wildlife Fund Canada 1985 / Save the World’s Birds – Suntory Corporation, Japan 1989 / to name but a few. At age 71, he remains a tireless champion for the welfare of the earth’s habitats and the wildlife that call them home.

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“Curious” Oil on Russian Birch, 7.75"x6"

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“First Born” Oil on Russian Birch, 16.25" x 12"

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“Algonquin Wolf” Graphite on Signature, 10.5"x12.5"

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“I was in my second year at art school when Earth Day debuted in the spring of 1970.

This was long before the internet and social media; nevertheless, the news quickly spread.

It stimulated a lot of discussion on campus, and for once, an interest in nature was front and center in everyone’s mind. I’d grown up in a rural area where raw nature was at my doorstep, and I worked seasonally as a forest ranger in Algonquin Park to pay my way through school. Even so, the broader consciousness of Earth Day did much to propel my future art career.

By 1974 my general interest in wildlife was further piqued by a brochure on Canadian Endangered Species published by World Wildlife Fund Canada. I sought a Canadian Explorations grant and was fortunate enough to receive funds to create a collection of studies and paintings depicting ten of the most predominant species on the WWFC list. Five years were devoted to the project, interspersing fieldwork coast to coast for research and applying it in the studio. The completed compilation of 30 works was exhibited at the McMichael Canadian Collection and was instrumental in my gaining recognition as an environmentally conscious artist.

“Blue Haze” Oil on Prepared panel, 5.25”x6.75”

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“Algonquin Moose” Oil on Canvas 38"x24"

Although I paint other things inspired by personal observations from real-life involving a wide range of subjects, nature is the predominant constant. As a result, the general flow of paintings leaving the studio is punctuated by bodies of work relating specifically to species in crisis, public awareness, and fundraising.

This has led to experiences I never imagined back in 1970, including association with many dignitaries such as HRH Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, famed anthropologist Dr. Richard Leakey, and many celebrities who share a passion for supporting environmental causes.

In 2018, a composite mural featuring birds facing endangerment worldwide was unveiled at the Artists for Conservation’s International Exhibit of Nature in Art. The installation, comprised of 8”x8” panels, extends over 100 feet and depicts 678 bird species, some so rare they are represented by a mere handful of living individuals. The seven panels I contributed to the display demanded unusually intense research. Still, there is great satisfaction being in the company of like-minded people and bringing to fruition a concept that would overwhelm any single artist. It is this sort of unity that our world can be made a better place, for humans and all other species we share it with.”

“Algonquin Falcons” Graphite on Bristol, 10.25”x12.5"

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“The Young Prince” Oil on Russian Birch, 6.5”x4.5”

“Ancestral Equus” Oil on Russian Birch, 8”x12.5”

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ADINA DING ADINA_DING

A

dina Ding is a visual artist who works with poetic imagery, creating figurative and abstract works led by fantasy and imagination.

Her subjects include exquisite landscapes, abundant nature, radiant animals, and mysterious women.

Those female protagonists are glazing out at the viewer or pictured in powerful transcendental actions, conjuring up light, growth, and weather.

She uses a combination of fully rendered detail and more experimental fluid, dripping paint, texture, and overpainting to create further layers within the work.

The landscapes within her paintings are tranquil coastal scenes, lush vistas of seasonal bounty, and underwater worlds. Boats, birds, and jellyfish all come to life within her compositions; they move within her imaginary landscapes, creating a notion of freedom. This is reinforced by the confident presence of the people within her paintings, steady and contented, free-spirited as the birds.

Several works hold multiple elements of narrative, for example, a scene of two convening golden planets, large on the

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‘‘Hero’’ Mixed Media, 12’’x15.9’’

horizon and electric in their bolts of interaction, or the girl with antlers which are also trees, meandering between pines,

accompanied by a multi-colored planet and scarab-eye motifs. Each painting is also accompanied by a poem written by Ding that further reflects on the story of the work.

“Love Your Presence” Mixed Media, 31.4”x39.3”

‘‘Faith’’ Mixed media, 12’’x15.9’’

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CHRIS BUSCH

WWW.CHRISBUSCHSTUDIO.MYPORTFOLIO.COM

"Flying Geese In Fall" Oil on Canvas, 16"x40"

“I

grew up in Pennsylvania in the Blue Mountains. My work is inspired by wildlife, history and the natural world.

Throughout my life I’ve been fascinated by images, light and color.

I focus on oil painting and photography. I have experience with photo editing software and use my images as reference for painted works, combining elements from different images to create something new.”

Exhibited in several On-Line Exhibitions in 2021 with Art Room Gallery International.

"Elk Country Evening" Acrylic on Canvas, 14"x11" "Sparrow" Oil on Canvas, 24"x18"

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ERA ARTISTRY WWW.ERAARTISTRY.COM

“S

oaring, flying high above from place to place and back again. That's where I find perspective. Where I come to terms with and stand in awe at the passage of time. These great leaps through the air are essentially time travel anyway, and my work is my attempt at capturing and sharing this phenomenon."

Era: A span of time marked by distinctive character, events, changes on earth, etc.

“To Touch The Sky” Photography Print and Antique Frame 14.9”x12.9”

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After stepping into a dark room for the first time, there was no turning back for Emily Latimer. Already fostering the need to create, which she inherited from her family, she found herself fascinated by the magic of painting with light and freezing a moment in time for all to share. Hailing from Texas, she continued developing her skills as an artist at the Pratt Institute in NYC and the Academy of Art University. Finally, she came up with the name ERA Artistry to connect all of her passions and remember those that have supported her in her artistic endeavors.

“Fields Of France” Photography Print and Antique Frame 21.4”x17.5”

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GAYLE PRINTZ WWW.GAYLEPRINTZ.COM

"Pond" Acrylic on Canvas, 24”x36”x1.8”

"T

o provide viewers the freedom to find emotional meaning in the intangible by evoking the unconscious use of their imaginations."

American painter, Gayle Printz, picked up her first paintbrush in May of 2020 to bring light and beauty back into a world interrupted by the pandemic. By July 2020, Printz artworks— "POND" included— were already in Europe's 2020 International Art-Resilience Exhibition.

Printz uses color, flow, three-dimensionality, and texture to create paintings that transcend the familiar.

"Movement" Acrylic on Canvas, 30”x40”x1.5”

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Printz's paintings have significant meaning, but because she believes the importance of a work is based upon the emotion it evokes, Printz will neither define that meaning nor intrude upon your interpretation. Instead, each painting summons you to enter a world in which you can never be wrong and encourages you to use your imagination as the lens through which to assign personal meaning and universal context. By giving you the uninterrupted freedom to feel and experience life in unanticipated ways, Gayle Printz invites you to join her on an inspirational journey to find emotional meaning in the intangible beauty of art…guided only by the whispers of your imagination.

"Azure" Acrylic on Canvas, 30”x40”x1.5”

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WENDY YEO WWW.WENDYYEO.COM

“Waterfall In Autumn Sunrise” Acrylic on Canvas, 40”x30”

“Waves At Sunset” Acrylic on Canvas, 40”x30”

“Autumn Approaching” Acrylic on Canvas, 36”x24”

H

ong Kong-born artist Wendy Yeo graduated from the Slade School of Fine Art University College London.

“My work combines Chinese brushwork and space with Western individuality of expression.

At the moment I am involved with portraying movement and cycles in Nature, e.g. the four seasons, sunrise and sunset, waterfalls and waves. The media I use are Watercolour on paper and Acrylic on canvas, often using cut-up pieces of my own work as collage”.

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SHARON GAINSBURG WWW.GAINSBURGSTUDIO.COM

A

fter working in clay for ten years, Sharon fell in love with stone 40 years ago. Her fascination with the origin of great sculptors led her to Italy, where she worked near the quarries of Michaelangelo. She explored the abstract expression of her ideas, feelings, and philosophies with unlimited freedom through the carving of stone.

For Sharon, stone holds the truth of the earth. Her sculptures mirror her spiritual connections to her past and present— Stone Iimparts energy with tactile fluency.

“Goddess Of Sensuality” Alabaster, 20”x7”x4"

“Carving stone is the language I have been given with which I communicate from my heart the mystery and magic of life’s journey. Stone is a composite of all the elements: fire, earth, air, and water.—the totality of all matter.” I am connected to a universal consciousness.”

Sharon has exhibited widely in the USA, and her work has been placed in many private and corporate collections such as Nabisco, ATT&T, General Electric, New Jersey Power, USA Today/Gannet Publications. In addition, she was given the honor of creating an award for the National Foundation of Infectious Diseases. Their recipients include former Surgeon General Dr. Everett Koop, Arthur Ashe, Elizabeth Dole, Dr. Michael DeBakey, Joshua Lederberg.

“Shape Of Water” Argentine Onyx, 21”x9”x8"

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“Angel Humanity” Alabaster, 64”x8”x9"

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YVAN BÉDARD WWW.YVANBEDARDPHOTOART.COM

“Not A True Avocado” Limited Ed. (10), Museum Quality Print On Fine Art Paper, 20''x30''

"N

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ature stimulates my soul and my eye, and this is what I express through my photographs by revealing splendors that often go unnoticed. Through visual poetry, I want to raise human awareness of the benefit of nature and offer a respite in this era of eco-anxiety.

My vision emanates from my scientific approaches to describe geographical phenomena with computerized data. I detect details and abstractions, sharpness and ambiguity, as well as the temporality of everything I observe. Accordingly, I photograph intimate landscapes as much as grand vistas and manifest scenes as well as mysterious ones. Trees and rock inspire me particularly because I see them respectively as symbols of one's lifetime and eternity."

“The Sacred Mountain” Limited Ed. (10), Museum Quality Print On Fine Art Paper, 20''x30''

“The Ice Vessel” Limited Ed. (10), Museum-Quality Print On Fine Art Paper, 20''X30'' Exhibited By UK Government For COP26

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SUZANNE STEVENS WWW.SUZANNESTEVENSARTIST.COM

“Autumn Light” Pastel, 36”x30” “The Healer” Charcoal, 25’’x40’’

“A

rt has always been an integral part of my life. My work explores the human psyche and the beauty and mysticism of our natural world. In ‘The Healer,’ I have tried to capture the spirit of the old man helping the injured bird (and our world). In turn, the bird could symbolize the holy spirit helping us all. Of course, the landscapes with trees and water remind us of our need to preserve them and stop polluting our oceans and waterways. I am deeply concerned about our earth and its demise.”

“The Refuge” Pastel, 19”x23”

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MONIKA BENDNER WWW.MONIKABENDNER.COM

T

hrough a digital overlay and collage process, award-winning master artist Monika Bendner creates multilayered, surrealistic experiences through a combination of photographic prints and mixed media. Her compositions, printed on various materials, create a narrative that evokes emotions and multiple responses from her viewers.

Monika Bendner's work has transformed with a background in photographic design as she's entered different phases of her growth and development as an artist over her active career.

Her use of abstract lines and shapes conveys movement in their dimensionality, and her bold, rich, textured application of color emanates meaning through their saturation. Viscerally recognizable through their intensity and layers, Bendner's work is diverse and unconventional due to her various materials, methods, and techniques. She creates her work using various alternating canvas combinations, metallic photo printing, acrylic, glass, photography, and found objects.

“Ulme Im Herbst 2. Bild” 23.6’’x35.4’’

“Ulme mit Gespinst 3. Bild” 23.6”x23.6”

Her metallic photographic prints are layered and expressed outside of time and space. She brings hyper-real kaleidoscope imagery behind a thick acrylic/glass amalgamation. With the common motive of a figurative hand layered in most of her collections, she leaves her work open for interpretation.

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“Ulme - Meditation 1. Bild” 23.6”x23.6”

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ANASTASIA TRUSOVA WWW.ATRUSOVAARTIST.COM

A

nastasia Trusova, born in Russia in 1988, graduated from the University of Design in Moscow.

She worked as a shoe designer for several years and lived in China.

She created her unique style of acrylic painting, "textural-graphic impressionism."

The work is emotional, deep, multilayered; the texture emphasizes volume and space and plays a huge role in illuminating the picture because it should cast shadows. In the end, drawing with thin graphic lines, the paintings look intriguing and fresh. This is a new look at acrylic and painting in general; there are no more rules, only the play of light and shadow, space and volume, painting and graphics. The central theme in Anastasia's paintings is nature; this is emphasized in her book publication released this upcoming Summer.

“Last Pier” Acrylic on Canvas, 39.3’’x55.1’’

"I

love nature, especially trees. You can consider and compare, one, the second, the third we will never find exactly the same, each is unique. Nature is beautiful; I tirelessly draw inspiration from watching flowers bloom, how a bee collects nectar, how branches sway in the wind and water shines in a stream"

“Road to Light” Acrylic on Canvas, 23.6’’x31.4’’

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“Breath of Spring” Acrylic on Canvas, 47.2’’x39.3’’

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CLEO MITCHEL CLEOSSEASHELLCREATIONS

‘‘King of the Jungle’’ Acrylic Painting, 12’’x12’’

‘‘Look into My Eyes’’ Acrylic Painting, 12’’x12’’

"M

other Earth is the most giving planet in existence, she gives us all the elements to sustain our human life.

Her love is endless and she asks for nothing in return. Her beauty is customized for you, where ever you are positioned on the planet. She provides humans and all of wildlife an endless garden of surprises.

Mother Earth is the biggest inspiration for all of my art creations."

‘‘Deer from Heaven’’ Acrylic Painting, 12’’x12’’

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ANNE WALBRING ANNEWALBRING@GMAIL.COM

‘Unclose your Mind’’ Watercolor on Canson Paper

“M

s. Walbring’s w o r k s have the power of opening a window to a sensitive world, brings one to the singularity of now, where only emotions matter and they are clean from all the noise of daily life. Their world is a world of sorrow, melancholy and the emptiness of loss, but it somehow whispers emphatically to your senses that there is beauty even there’’.

-Bruno Amaro ‘‘Love’’ Watercolor on Canson Paper

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‘‘Encounter’’ Watercolor on Canson Paper

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JEAN JACQUES PORRET WWW.JJPORRET.COM

O

riginally from Switzerland, award-winning artist, sculptor, and engineer Jean-Jacques Porret was exposed to art from the day he was born to a family of art and antique collectors.

Surrounded by beautiful antiquities, statues, and artwork every day, the seed of art was planted early, and he began carving wood when he was just six years old. He specialized in creating magnificent works with the lost wax technique of casting Bronze. Bronze primarily interested him "because it is the most demanding material which is responsive and sweet to the touch."

After acquiring his engineering degree, Porret came to New York, anxious to learn English and build a life on his terms. There, his career was set into motion, which soon after led him to Chicago. Porret's thirst for knowledge took him to museums all over the world, absorbing all he could and sharing philosophies with the most prominent artist of the time.

As an artist, Porret is continuously evolving, and his work and style have changed over the years. From sharper to a softer expression of molten metal. Porret muses, "If my approach seems figurative, I do not aim for a reproduction of the human form: what interests me is to transmit an abstract feeling or an idea rather than an image of reality. I use recognizable forms to arouse emotion, to give birth to sensations. I consider myself, in fact, an impressionist." This vision drives his work, and each sculpture imbues depth and intensity.

Though he initially started his career by working in Bronze, Porret began experimenting with various stones. Dissatisfied, with his sculpture's bases, bought a granite and marble company, to have complete control in his work's creation. Yet this choice also evolved his work, and these various stone elements have become an integral part of his creative process and vision.

My style or inspiration has been more refined and has become firmer due to nature. Maybe more ME

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# 454 Reve

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Nocturne, ba

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Many of his signature pieces with their soft angular movements are harmoniously mixed with sharply defined textures captivating thoughtful designs with an immortal richness, boldness, and unsettling beauty. Porret's work is infused with his personality, unsuppressed by traditional rules; his work is original and buried within each piece is the poetry of his work. Creating figures of humanity in the abstract, each form courageously melting into the next.

Emotions created from fragments of granite or marble jutting and piercing through the bronzes bring the concepts of nature and man together, creating a stunningly modernistic and seductive interpretation of the human form.

When viewing one of his sculptures, the human form seems to leap out at the viewer. Jean-Jacques describes this movement as "rhythm in space." Porret said of his artistic method and vision, "I work without any preconceived idea…(I) continue instinctively, with one shape leading to the next, until the figure is simply rhythm in space".

Jean-Jacques Porret's bronzes can be seen in innumerable collections throughout Europe, Japan, and the United States. He was commissioned to create the bronze sculpture for the American-Swiss Friendship Award. The "Abage Encyclopedia of Bronzes" describes Porret as "an independent thinker, whose bronze sculpture might be described as a naturalistic, modern blend, in which forms are simplified to their essential rhythms and elements."

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JIM FITZPATRICK WWW.JIM-FITZPATRICK.PIXELS.COM

‘‘Redd Foxx as Fred G. Sanford Standing Proudly by his Truck’’ Graphite and Photography Digitally Combined

V

isual artist and photographer Jim Fitzpatrick is an artist who lives and breathes his art. His art and photographs reflect his day-to-day activities and various interests. There's something incredibly emotive about Fitzpatrick's artwork. He aims to capture much more than his subjects' beauty or outer shell and instead provides a gateway into the intricacies of feelings. Some of the feelings captured include joy, excitement, and victory, to name a few. His works have a positive connotation as he rarely delves into negative themes. Fitzpatrick has an affinity for drawing hyperrealistic portraits. He often manipulates his images digitally to add to the overall aesthetic effect or highlight a particular theme. All

in all, his works demonstrate a profound love for nature and humanity and an ardent determination to capture its entirety in photographs and paintings.

‘‘Freckle Faced Beauty with Braids and Wearing a Scarf in the Hood’’ Colored Pencils and Photography Digitally Combined

"Assembled" Colored Photography Digitally Altered

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Fitzpatrick hopes to inspire and entertain others through his artwork and accomplishments.

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VIGDIS ELISABETH FELDT VIGDIS.ELISABETH@GMAIL.COM

"W

ho am I? A woman who always have looked for ways to understand herself and her surroundings. As an artist, I express myself in an expressive and naivist manner. Nearly close to naturalism.

I yearn to show the beauty of life and human relationships. The personal communication with one's perceptions and thoughts and what goes on between two or more individuals in their interactions on different levels and situations. Why? Because trying to understand myself and others in the light of my background has been vital to me. I was brought up with pictures made by two of my uncles, Leif Feldt and Ole Johan Idsal, hanging on the walls in my childhood home.

Life and art are about communication, seeing, and realizing. Meditation, a result, comes from working with a painting. The human soul needs to meditate. I love depicting the beauty of life. When the sun touches the ground, light penetrates the tree leaves. Also, the sunlight reflects on surfaces such as water, faces, concrete walls, flowers, grass. Every representation there might be."

“August Afternoon at Østhusvik” Oil on Canvas, 39.3’’x39.3’’

Juvenile Witsun in The Mountains” Oil on Canvas 23.6’’x23.6’’

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“Soon it Will be Spring” Oil on Canvas, 39.3’’x39.3’’

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OLIVIA KAPOOR WWW.OLIVIAKAPOOR.COM

“Absinthe Minded Dreams” Acrylic on Canva, 40”x40”

O

livia Kapoor is a breakthrough artist best known as one of the innovative and pioneering visionary artists within the InterDimensional Art Movement. She is predominantly responsible for bringing a deeper level of appreciation. She has maintained a strong connection with her place in terms of the World of art by

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creating paintings of vision(s) that explore something beyond the physical World, of known and accepted forms, with limitless beginnings and endings. Her work has allowed fellow Inter-Dimensional Artists to redefine visual 'blocks' in terms of spatial concepts. Her works of art have been exhibited and showcased across the globe in cities such as Paris, London, Amsterdam, New York City, Los Angeles, Miami, Toronto, Bologna, and Tokyo.

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“Free to Fly” Acrylic on Canvas, 11”x14”

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“Entering Space” Acrylic on Canva, 40”x40”

“Desert Heat” Acrylic and Oil pastels on Canvas, 11.5”x9.5”

“The Matchmaker” Acrylic on Canva, 48”x60”

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“Mind Body Spirit” Acrylic on Canva, 9”x12”

Kapoor's artistic influences include Salvador Dali, for his imaginative and somewhat binary content, Johannes Vermeer, for his use of chiaroscuro, and most importantly, Frida Kahlo and Pablo Picasso [both] for the way they depicted their sense of self. So, some might ask: how was Olivia Kapoor's talent first discovered as a breakthrough Artist within a community of other Painters? Her story is unique because before graduating from Paradise Valley Community College in Arizona (2010), her work was recognized and awarded 1st place in a National Vaccination Awareness Program in 2009.

Shortly after that, Olivia was discovered by Agora Gallery in Chelsea, NYC, where she had her first formal group exhibition and participated in many other group exhibitions and some solo exhibitions in major cities around the World in the years that followed.

While best known for her use of color, what makes Olivia

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Kapoor's work so unique is how she explores and shares highly interpretive depths and layers on any given canvas. Inspired by her thoughts on philosophy, specifically concerning the expansiveness of the cosmos, Kapoor focuses on how to accurately portray these complex notions through geometric patterns paired with organic shapes.

"As an Inter-Dimensional Artist, viewers are meant to decipher the complexities of my paintings, which I have translated, for them, from my imagination," shares Kapoor. Artist Statement: "I am a part of the Inter-Dimensional Art Movement, which is Historically relevant because of how it challenges the role of an Artist's ability to depict depths and dimensions, to convey timeless concepts [such as planets and other objects immersed within both inner and outer spaces] all on canvas; viewers can feel connected to something that makes them feel both large and small, all at once."

– Olivia Kapoor, Inter-Dimensional Artist

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CAMILLA FRANSRUD ARTBYC_FRANSRUD.

C

amilla Fransrud is a Norwegian artist. Born in Oslo in 1974, she moved to Trondheim, the heart of Norway, at the age of twenty and has lived there for twenty-seven years. She has three adult children, and family means a lot to her. Ever since childhood, she has had a profound and unique passion for photography, which she is self-taught. As a seven-year-old, she owned her first camera, and she could stand at the beach for hours to capture the perfect moment.

As a result, she is strongly connected to the ocean, where she today also has her day job.

Through her love for photographic art, she discovered her passion for painting. She started painting in 2017 and paints on canvas with acrylic, mixing her colors. In addition, she uses chalk, a palette knife, various textures, and mixed media to create depth in her paintings. She is also self-taught in this artform and has had three separate exhibitions in Trondheim.

She attempts to evoke in her art that you can feel the painting at your fingertips, sense it, not only look at it. To her, the process of painting is just as essential as breathing.

“Salt Of The Earth” Acrylic On Canvas, 39.3”x47.2”

"Let me give you one breath, one moment of poetic stillness," she says. Working intuitively with colors, she derives inspiration from the northern light. She wants to give you a space to dwell in, a place to enjoy and be. To her, it is essential to paint with the heart, and her expression is both abstract and figurative. She desires to touch your heart via her paintings so that you can feel and create your dreams through the feel in gs she attempts to convey in paintings.

"You do not capture a picture; you create one. So let us create a beautiful world together".

“Summerfeelings” Acrylic on Canvas, 39.3”x47.2”

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“Good Karma” Acrylic On Canvas, 39.3”x31.4”

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MEGHAN POYNOR WWW.MEGHANPOYNORPHOTOGRAPHY.COM

“5T3A1770” Digital Photography, 6460x3031

"I

want people to find the story behind the image. When colors come together just right, I'm in awe of that beauty and want others to feel that power. The contrasts in ordinary objects catch my eye, and I want to convey that intrigue to others. Brilliant colors draw me in to create something new and unusual.

I'm attracted to open landscapes, like wide-open wheat fields or grassy, rolling hills. Experimenting with the editing process is fascinating, but I always come back to light and shadows."

“God's Creation” Digital Photography, 1906x1200

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“Heavenly Body” Digital Photography, 1200x1800

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WWW.TOTICUESTA.COM

“I

love painting; it is my passion, my engine. But, it is something bigger than me that takes over me. When I paint, I disappear.

Art has always been present in my life, but I did not choose it; it chose me. For years, I studied and prepared myself to follow an intellectual path. I studied law and languages. Finally, I completed my education and developed a profession.

And so, the years went by with an everincreasing feeling of emptiness. But art knew the strength with which it had to come to me for me to attend to it. Art arises from my spiritual need to create, to go beyond the senses. It is an expression of the soul.

The use of symbols and color characterizes my paintings. The symbol allows me to express and transmit the message of art.

The color radiates the light of each human being, allows them to highlight the beauty of their features, and transmits the essence of their emotions.

Painting is color, light, movement, vibration, and rhythm. It is a path of awakening, of evolution.

“Leopard” Watercolor, 22”x20.8”

I define myself as a watercolorist, although I have numerous works made with other techniques such as oil and pastel because watercolor is the most

luminous and transparent technique, the one that can best represent the vibration of other planes and capture it in colors that transmit joy and light."

“Nature and Civilization” Watercolor, 22”x20.8”

“Mother Earth” Watercolor, 22”x29.9”

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GIOVANNA BERNI WWW.GIOVANNAATELIER.WIXSITE.COM/MY-SITE

"I

talian bio architect from Florence, I also worked as an artist since 2003.

I produced a series of 39 tempera and pencils, 16 oil palette knives, 19 photographs, retouched photographs, digitized photographs, some installations, and sketches of sculptures. My work starts by reviewing classical instruments and experiments with contemporary ones. It is a continuous reflection on spiritual and natural themes, seeking the trait of union between old and new, which I believe.

I believe that art can participate in cultural change, helping to rethink at has destroyed the right mentality of relating to nature and developing the correct one. The abuse lies in thinking of an uncontrolled growth that has lost sight of the natural laws of man and his home. Those must be reviewed or sought after to try again for a true future, even as immeasurable as man's inner life is. Much must be welcomed back into oneself, such as the lightness of being, joy, sincerity, enthusiasm, amazement, and purity.

It will be easier to go home in the true fertility of nature."

“Unknow ( Sconosciuto)” Digital photograph, 8.5”x15.12”

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“Unknow ( Sconosciuto)” Digital photograph, 9.45”x11.84”

“Ozono Tomatoes ( Pomodori all'ozono)” Recognized photograph, 12.46”x11”x14”

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PATRICIA SPOON SPOONPATRICIA2@GMAIL.COM

“Tempest” Oil on Canvas, 11”x14”

”A

s an artist, my influences are from nature, geometric patterns, lines and angles, they are so amazing to see colors in our environment. I express the passion, self individuality and movement in my are works. I use my creative thoughts vividly, in my art work."

“Colors 2” Oil on Canvas, 11”x14”

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CHIKARA KOMURA

WWW.CHIKARAKOMURA.COM

“Primeval Forest at Mt. Amagi” Fine Art Photography

I

take pictures of stones at the geometric site of the seashore. Stones are different from live creatures, but they have their own looks and seem to try to communicate their own will with me.

my life. What I take is the various looks of stones reflecting the long history of the Earth.

Stones at the seashore were formed after 4.6 billion years of the history of the Earth.

Their looks reflect its long history. They sometimes look erotic and welcome me. The weathering crest at Yeh Liu Geometric Park shows various beautiful designs reflecting many years of layers of the Earth.

Through communication with stones, I feel like touching the body of the Earth and realize the place where I go back after

“Murmur of Stone” Fine Art Photography

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"Aloes in the Sea" Fine Art Photography

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JOHN NIEMAN WWW.JOHNNIEMAN.COM

“Flower Power” Pastel, 20”x16”

A

fter several decades as an international creative director for Ad Agencies, John Nieman decided to reinvent his life and devote it to art. His first forays were pastels and watercolor paintings. He was quickly invited to many shows in the U.S., the U.K., Japan, Canada, Paris, Italy, Ireland, and Thailand –including more than a dozen solo art shows. Lately, he has progressed to more elaborate installations.

He likes to create art that has an immediate impact and a residual mental tickle—either through words or subject matter.

“Cactus Bubbles” Watercolor, 16”x10”

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“The Big Apple” Watercolor, 32”x20”

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“In One Basket” Watercolor, 20”x10”

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202230”x23” | 67 “Wait Til NextSPRING Year” Watercolor,

GABRIEL LAVOIE WWW.GABRIELLAVOIE.CA

“Bubbles of Happiness” Oil on Canvas, 40”x30”

“The Search for Self” Oil on Canvas, 48”x24”

“Mother Earth” Oil on Canvas, 36”x40”

G

abriell's rich and deep artistic sense and imaginary world perfectly portray his creative intelligence.

In addition, his quest for light, his palette of infinite hues, and his attention to detail characterize his unique style.

"My deep intention is to put art at the service of souls by offering you colorful and luminous works that touch hearts.

Whether as a symbolist, surrealist, visionary, and/or portrait painter, my need to evolve, discover and reinvent myself leads me to a diversity of artistic movements in which I aspire to feel free. Art is the light of the soul. When I paint, I dive into the ocean of life, trying to extract its primordial essence."

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MARGOT McMAHON WWW.MARGOTMCMAHON.COM

“Palauan Coral Landscap” Technique Mixte on Panel, 54"wx25"hx1"d

A

lifelong environmentalist, internationally- awarded Margot McMahon sculpts forms of nature. Humans, plants, and animals symbolizing lifeforms are fused into organic interpretations in bronze, Cor-Ten steel, aluminum, granite, or wood. She has been called the “Studs Terkel of the sculpting world” by Chicago Sculpture Exhibit for her sculptural interpretations of everyday heroes, most recently Gwendolyn Brooks Monument for Brooks Park with writing workshops to inspire students. Just Plain Hardworking, an exhibit of Chicagoans, five men and five women, who have made a difference, is collected by DePaul University, the Smithsonian, and the subject of a WTTW documentary. In addition, Margot sculpts birds as indicators of a healthy environment, like watching “the canaries in the coal mine” adapt to environmental conditions that could harm human life.

“Riffle Effect” Technique Mixte, panel 25"x25"x1"d

The Smithsonian, the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago History Museum, Soka Gaikkai International in Tokyo, Mobil Oil, the Chicago Botanic Garden, and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and Steans Family Foundation have collected her sculpture.

“Gwendolyn Brooks” The Oracle of Bronzeville Monument, bronze, granite, wood, bluestone, 20”dx10”wx7”h

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M

ost people talk through their past traumas, Rock paints through his. He lets his emotions and memories possess him until the rush is spent, the tension is released, and he can ride the euphoric high of completing that piece. Rock's work pours out from the deep wounds and the war he has experienced firsthand, and each image, which contains just as much power and impact as his others.

WWW.BRIANROCKART.COM

As a people, we are still working through the emotional and physical evolution of history; we have to recognize when the much sought after, blood bathed path to peace and equality is still being traveled. Rock and his work speaks volumes to which side he chooses to poise himself on. You can see clearly, Rock's message to the world to open hearts and minds to the realization of what war looks like, not only when it is happening, but the lasting aftereffects of the atrocities of violence. That understanding seeks to stop this endless path of destruction before the next generation suffers the same consequences that he has.

FACEBOOK.COM/PG/BRIANROCKART

How has your connection to your Art changed in the last year?

"I find that each year the connection to my Art gets deeper and more personal. I guess, like any good long lasting relationship, honesty and truth are perhaps the two most important aspects.

As an artist, you have to be really truthful and honest with yourself, especially to put it all out there for the world to see. The greatest change this last year has been sticking to my mantra of "no art for art's sake." What I mean by that is I made not going to paint or sculpt because I am expected to. Each time I go to my Studio, that is my special place, my confessional as it were. A place where I can truly express myself and enjoy the immunity or forgiveness and peace that I seek Therefore it has to be honest."

What inspires you most right now?

"The journey. Looking back over the years and seeing the various stages and styles and mediums that I have used. The friendships and relationships that I have developed with other Artists. The support, understanding and love I have received from ATIM. The changes in me and the growth that I have experienced on a personal and professional level. A better understanding of me."

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“Close to Shore”,Mixed-Media on Canvas

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What styles are you exploring at this point in your career?

“I have always been interested in the hands on art approach. Art that people can touch. I have some blinded military friends who have inspired me to continue on this path. They could see but lost their site in combat. This way they and anyone for that matter, can physically run their hands over my work and experience it on a different level. This also encourages a new form of partnership between the artist and the observer. I am also beginning to instill some subtle smells in the paintings so that another one of the senses is stimulated. I will continue to work on my varying textures as well.”

“Self Identities” Oil on Canva, 36"x24"

What impact has nature had on your creative process?

“Nature has had a huge influence on my work. From the streets of war torn Belfast where I grew up to hearing birds sing outside my Studio in the mountains of New Mexico is the perfect example.

My early work reflects this and my current work reflects this.

Nature is creation and from creation comes creativity. We are made from the earth and so begins the connection. I always include sand, ash, dirt etc. in my works in order to reinforce that link. Paintings I am not happy with, I burn and then renew them by adding the remnants to newer works. Nature always reinvents itself. As artists we learn from her.”

“Pastoral” Mixed Media, 18”x24”

You have previously mentioned trauma being an experience you process onto your artwork; how has it impacted your mental health to use Art as an outlet?

“Trauma. What do we do with that? We can’t change it, it happened. So that leaves us one choice.. to find an outlet so we can divide a plan for life in order to continue our growth. For me that was Art. Going to war changes you. I became angry. I still get angry but instead of punching a wall I throw paint on canvas!

I mix with my hands, I physically become attached to my works. The best part is now that very quick expression of anger or sadness is now permanently captured. An inward photograph of the soul in that very moment. As part of the healing process I can now look back and say “wow, that was a bad day!” but then stand tall knowing it is over and I have expressed it. What makes the healing process complete in that instance is that from something bad, something beautiful and meaningful was created. That is expressionism. That’s Art.”

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ALISON BARROWS-YOUNG WWW.BARROWSYOUNG.COM

“Raised by a River” Oil on Canvas, 24”x36”

"T

he natural qualities that animate the American Pacific Northwest, have filled my life and my imagery since finding a home in Northern Idaho. The wilderness to the west of the Rockies is alive with idyllic disposition and dramatis personae that invokes an animist sensibility and compels a strong sense of belonging to the earth, this I have represented in oils on canvas in a number of ways since I arrived here in 2012. The mixed media icons seen here in "Sacred Waters Triptych", are not only about the wilderness but also about us, and our species. They are more illustrative in their approach in order to speak directly to the destruction of earth and her wild beings that has been rapidly growing during my lifetime.

They serve not solely as warning cries but also they are incantations, suggestions and prayers for potential change as time flows on, eventually without me, my progeny and in the end all of us and who we ever were."

What does your work aim to say?

“My work is always about my love of the earth and my concern for the well being of all sentient life. For many years, I have followed a Shamanic path that is ancient and Mesoamerican in origin.

Native people's philosophies, and animism in which spirit is one with nature, makes sense to me because of my love of the wild and many years in natural environments where the flora, fauna, and even the elements seem to speak to me empathically.”

72 | SPRING 2022

“Spirit Forest” Digital Painting, 18”x24”

What are your creative motivations?

“In recent years, my soulful and joy-filled path of creating expressive renditions of nature has continued, however it has taken on a shadow side full of questions of our human condition and the psychology within us that allows us to ignore the suffering we cause and feel. Having studied comparative religions, philosophies, science and art as a natural part of my liberal arts education, I have to wonder why we as Americans, with our abundance of knowledge and apparent commitment to equal rights, continue to destroy our ecosphere and all that survives in it. With all of our knowledge and experience why do we continue to harm the defenseless among ourselves, deny the rights and essential considerations toward the survival of other peoples, wildlife, plants and insist on looking to the stars for accommodation rather than accommodating our beautiful mother, the planet earth.

These thoughts are never far from my mind.”

“Central American Refugees” 18”x18”x2”

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In what way do your works comment on contemporary social or political issues?

“My works comment on specific ecological concerns and social problems, although it is my hope to supersede politics with the exception of when political systems seem set on oppressing the equal rights of peoples and environments to survive, and enjoy their basic rights as global citizens and species. Most often, I follow one of two paths to assert my concerns, the first entails a mixing of interior and exterior experience both physical and psychological to push my viewer into perceiving the ephemeral limits of boundaries, and the limitless potential in placing ourselves in the generous arms of mother earth along with all of her other children and aspects of her abundance. The second is by bringing certain issues into a visual form of religious iconography with the hope to strike in my viewer, through the invocation of archetypes, a higher level of spiritual consideration for who and what we are and where we are going with our immense capacity to create and manifest.”

“Mortal Sorrows” Oils on Canvas, 40”x36”

What are you most grateful for in your career as an artist?

“I am grateful that I chose this career and that I have been able to sustain it as my life’s path and commitment. I am also gratified that my love for and sensitivity to nature, in it’s wildest aspects, led me to a life in the woods of the Pacific Northwest prior to the Covid19 pandemic. As people of advantage, faced with dense city living through it’s devastation, are fueling a boom in our real estate market and pushing it to unsustainable heights, which will weaken our ecosystem and prevent preservation minded individuals, with moderate means from coming or staying here to live the simple lifestyle they once had.”

“Autumn Tides”Oils on Canvas, 22”x28”

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“Mother Sun Raising The Moon” Oil On Canvas, 24”x48”

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CARLA KLEEKAMP WWW.CARLAKLEEKAMP.NL

By Daniel Lima

D

utch creative activist Carla Kleekamp exhibits a deep understanding of Eastern and Western traditional art in her delicately detailed symbolic representations of society. She has used many different means and materials to express her environmental concerns, including aquarelles, etchings, drawings, watercolor, and engravings.

Still, her primary focus is etchings on rice paper. Kleeklamp portrays the impact of social separation through spatial elements and motifs. In addition, she addresses global economic and environmental issues to bring forth a reflection about how humankind is suppressing, abusing, and exhausting nature by exploiting it in a non-sustainable manner.

“Bad Example” Etching/Collage, 27.5”x13.5”

“We need to change our fatal Economy the Earth is burning” Etching/Collage, 27.5”x13.5”

74 | SPRING 2022

www.arttourinternational.com

JAIME PARRA WWW.JAIMEPARRAARTS.COM

“Rhapsody In Blue”

"A

rt is the freedom of expression. It is the medium how people could express themselves, questioning many things in life. It is the only peaceful instrument to break the rules, establish disagreements and bring out all the deep emotions that conform to each one of us.

My artistic work is inspired by a permanent introspection of the complex elements and feelings involved in the different situations that compose the nature of the Human Being. Throughout colors and especially with textures, I want to invite the spectators to begin an internal journey to themselves and the entrails of society to find answers about their place in life."

“Colors of Nature”

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“Reflection of Two Worlds”

SPRING 2022 | 75

WENDY COHEN WWW.WENDYCOHEN.NET.AU

A

ustralian artist, Wendy Cohen, creates vibrant and colorful abstract art with her focus on shape and geometric forms.

She pays homage to nature by using collage, color, and texture to create a sense of fluidity and depth experienced in natural settings to form her abstract creations.

In Cohen’s textured mixed media paintings, she collages hessian elements, cardboard, photos, paper, and recycled materials. The materials she uses in her work direct our attention to caring about our resources’ intentional use in all we do.

Wendy Cohen’s style explores shapes, lines, forms, and colors in relation to natural and urban surroundings communicated in an abstracted language. Everything, in reality, is a conglomeration of shapes, and by integrating shapes into a cohesive body of colors and forms in conjunction with collage elements, Wendy aims to convey her poetry and harmonious rhythm to her paintings, developing playful imagery with a dynamic and inventive sensibility.

“Emerald Leaves” Acrylic, Paper, Markers On Wood Panel Board, 12”x12”

“Diffusion” Acrylic, Paper, Markers on Wood Panel Board, 12”x12”

76 | SPRING 2022

www.arttourinternational.com “Diffusion”, Acrylic, Markers On Wood Panel Board, 12”x12”