Artists Describing Their Art:
Suzanne Mcclelland -
C. A. Hoffman - For me, my artwork is very personal. It reflects a lot about how I am feeling at any given time and place. I feel that art has to be on this personal level to completely capture how the artist is feeling daily, or trying to convey a certain thought or emotion at that particular moment. We all, at one time or another try to express our thoughts or ideas, whether it is to others or just to ourselves, by words, actions, ideas or pictures. If we are sucessful in this attempt, I think it shows through in our everyday work or art. I believe that one is either born to create art naturally or by learning. For me, I feel that I was born with this wonderful gift, and I try to improve upon it every day. In my photos and art, I hope to show how everyday objects and nature can capture our imaginations and feelings. Sometimes I work with an image to improve it, inhance it, or just to fuel the imagination. I truly hope this shows in all of my art. ...
Roz Zinns - Roz Zinns has been involved in art for the last 40 years, from oil painting to weaving to contemporary art quilts. Her work has been displayed nationally and has been reproduced in US and international publications. She majored in Arts Administration and owned a San Francisco gallery specializing in original art and quality artisan crafts. Recently she has come full-circle, back to painting, and is enjoying the creativity and challenge of working in acrylics and water-immersible oils She has always had a love of the land which is evident in her work. Although she is currently focusing on landscapes, she is finding that the compositional element of land in an urban environment has become a fascinating study for her. She also loves to travel and has been interpreting her images on to canvas. She has observed that over the years many of the places she has painted either don't exist anymore or have changed drastically in their usage or appearance. So how wonderful to have captured them as they existed, but with her own interpretation....
Nancy Bechtol - Artists explore and give the world a view of their personal heightened awareness. I visualize and think with keen beliefs and insights. Reflection of human and societal concerns which cross emotional boundaries-- communicating that which is unspoken. My traditional art foundations of drawing, painting and printmaking, evolved into video, digital photography and experimental media. I use digital photography and imaging to envision the concepts originating from the creative pulse.An individual artist explores and gives the world a view of their personal heightened awareness. Artists see and think with keen beliefs and insights.Reflection of human and societal concerns which cross emotional boundaries-- communicating that which is unspoken. My traditional art foundations of drawing, painting and printmaking, evolved into video, digital photography and experimental media. I use digital photography and imaging to envision the concepts originating from the creative pulse....
Rosalyn M. Gaier - Beauty. Meditative thought. Nuance. These are subjects of my collagraphs. They take on important implications when examined in light of today's American instant gratification culture. While convenience, speed and availability have become hallmarks of our American way of life and our society's progress, there remains a need for something more meaningful. That something is beauty. From my frame of personal artistic reference, "beauty" involves the viewer by initiating the response of taking pause, suddenly, unawares. Arousing the response from deep within, beauty disarms and fulfills at one and the same time. This elusive beauty is vital nourishment for mind and soul. Does today's American art disarm and fulfill? How well are our minds and souls being nourished? Unfortunately, Americans' appreciation and awareness of beauty are partially numbed by their frenzy experience of instant gratification. Beauty falls prey to the mindset of fast food, "Shop till you drop" and instant access to just about everything. We sacrifice refined taste, uniqueness and rewarded perseverance for what often is ephemeral and not quite satisfying. What this means for artists is that their best pieces can be easily overlooked. Unless relevance and nuance of an artwork can be realized immediately, instant ...
Lou Posner - Dear Friends, The Posner Covid-19 sale of the past year has closed. To those who took advantage of the price breaks during the sale, congratulations on pocketing a tidy sum. Since I have not updated my price list here in well over a decade I thought I would take this end-of-the-year opportunity to do so. Updating the prices is a tedious and time-consuming process. I have to research current trends in the national and worldwide art market, examine auction results, research what art critics are saying about what is being shown, what the art magazines are writing about, what the vector and availability of art supplies is, etc. in order to arrive at fair market prices for my works. I feel glad for those patrons of mine who have enjoyed my work in their homes and workplaces over the years while they have seen a healthy increase in the market value of the work. I sold my first painting over 50 years ago for 25 dollars. Today, although the prices are higher, the bargains are still there, backed up by 50 years of experience at the easel. As you know, buying here on absolutearts cuts ...
Eric Jacobson - My work is influenced by a variety of sources from mandalas to contructivism "drawing in space" and nature: artists like David Smith, Mark Di Suvero, Miro, Picasso, etc. My current work incorporates brass tubing with mobiles and water. Some of these create sound as well. I have also created steel "frames", often octagonal that enclose a series of elements floating within this environment. I have been exploring the use of depth(perspective), color and balance in my work. I am very interested in the "layers" that make up each person's life history and mind, and therefore create layers in my sculpture to symbolize this. I often see things in the world as having an" inner and an outer", sometimes revealed to the world at large and sometimes hidden. This includes the human mind. People often keep parts of themselves hidden or protected even sometimes from themselves. Sometimes thes things are revealed in artwork. My sculptures also involve the relationship of the natural and man-made environments and the balance or imbalance between them....
Jim Lively - Whether portrayed in the abstract, realism, or somewhere in between, I am most influenced by both the beautiful and unattractive components of contemporary urban culture. Many times, one painting will reflect both components. My art tends to focus upon interesting juxtapositions of close-up images of human faces. Often, the larger images border upon realism and are caught expressing a panoply of emotions usually directed at the other images that share the canvas. Several of my recent works such as the tongue in cheek entitled "Lenin and Things" contain unlikely combinations of images such as a statue of Lenin which is dwarfed by a billboard size fashion model displaying a vacuous stare. A number of works contain both large images and interrelated small images. For example in the painting "Staring at Natalie", all the smaller images are a depiction of a collective group of voyeurs staring at a larger image of a posed fashion model. I want those viewing the painting to be the ultimate voyeur. The viewer is not only drawn initially to the larger image in its own right but also cannot help but then notice the relationship of the smaller images to the large image. Works displayed ...
William Christopherson - The viewer sees a finished canvas. The artist relishes its journey of creation. A thought, a feeling, an experience, a place. These are the most essential of supplies as the artist tasks to expand, explore, and evolve along the path. All are welcome here, to view, appreciate contemplate, and possess the journeys I have made, and the journeys yet to come. Over the past several years I have explored the oil medium, borrowing technique from both historical and present day impressionism. Its a medium I love to work in, even though my wardrobe and studio surfaces have suffered immensely. Much of my work now reflects the pallet knife, and explores a prolific use of heavy colorful brush stroke. Everything continues to evolve, and thats a good thing Enjoy. William Christopherson, 2017 ...
Ruth Zachary - My goal is to create striking images that touch the viewer emotionally. I try to capture the essence of a subject or scene, so that the viewer reacts with an immediate recognition, and immediate click of Yes. I depend upon composition, simplicity, shape and contrast, as well as my own aesthetic sense and emotional responses. I love creating art through photography. For me it is an opportunity for self-expression, a means of capturing a moment in time and creating beauty, as well as am important means of communication. My education includes a Masters in Social Work and a BA in English Literature. I have done formal study in drawing and pastel, but my photographic study has been informal and self-taught. Since 1980, I have been a frequent visitor to Monhegan Island, 12 miles off the coast of Maine, a remote lobstering island with a summer artists colony. On Monhegan, I became friends with a group of painters and photographers. I applied what I learned from them to my own work. Those I am most grateful to include Frances Kornbluth, Leo Brooks, Robin Young, Judi Wagner, Josie Vargas and Nancy Stanich. I show my art summers on Monhegan Island ...
Michael Pickett - We all have wonderful talents to bring to the World of art as artist. Your unique style and ambitions are greatly respected. We are empowered by the inspiration of our souls, inspired by the beauty of the world around us, and, in our way, changing the world. My goal as an artist is to make a difference in the world of art. I am color-blind and I have dyslexia. Having overcome many obstacles in my life then sharing my findings to those I run across. I am painfully shy when it comes to promoting myself to different galleries and organizations and that's why I've created my own portfolio web site. (www.pickettonline.com) Competition in the world of art is so high that good artist will eventually give up, not knowing that in there own way, they really are making a difference, Maybe not in the world, but in the local community or their family and friends. ...
Edward Guzman - Painting is one of the ways that I express my soul to the world. It is through a deep felt connection to spirit that enables me to envision the images that eventually become paintings. My style is best described as Shamanic. In this mystical,spiritual style I move the viewer to a deeper level of experience as the images transport one to other realms of existence, to places within and long forgotten. The images, energy and intent may also elicit a healing of sorts. By accessing deeper levels of awareness we become attuned to higher levels of ourselves and if the time is right we are able to heal our many facets of existence. My work has also been described as Contempory Southwest as well as Visionary. My paintings are Mixed Media. I use watercolor, acrylic and 22K gold leaf. I have originals as well as Giclee prints that are hand embellished with 22k gold leaf available. Most recently I was in the 2013 Ontario Open Art Exhibition at the Ontario Museum of History and Art in Ontario, Ca. This is the fifth time my work has been shown at this wonderful little gem of a museum. For more information ...