Painting

Biddle is a Chicago area artist working in various media. She loves the richness of oil paints, and the immediacy of drawing and painting at same time with pastels.

“My approach to art is to paint from her heart, as I explore the nature of what I see with my eyes and my imagination. Using a representational starting point, either real or invented, I examine the relationships of lines, shapes and colors. My works are largely abstract, evolving as an interaction between my vision and the process of arranging and applying color to paper or canvas. While literal images may contribute somewhat to my images, I am mainly interested in presenting simplified flat shapes, and creating color relationships. I try to rely on line and shape as content, while using color to create the emotional component in my paintings.”

fengbiddleart.com

Printmaking

Flat Mtn Press is the print-focused studio of Trevor Grabill, a teacher, gardener, muralist, and printmaker in Kalamazoo, Michigan.

“I grew up in central Michigan, and have spent my life in small cities and villages around the great lakes. My work draws on these places, which represent a combination of incredible natural beauty, rust belt decay, and rural midwestern neglect. These are places (or their inhabitants) that are readily passed by, rendered neutral by force of habit. My work highlights the essential strangeness, both beautiful and terrible, of the everday. Our world is shaped by very specific forces (often capitalism or resistance to capitalism) and, as such, absolutely nothing is inevitable.

All of my work begins with drawing, often from life on long bike rides, in crowded places, or in my backyard. Turning these drawings into block prints is a slow process of selecting the block and paper, then carving, inking and, finally, printing. Each of these steps hones the image, boiling it down to its most interesting elements while introducing the textures and voices of each material. The result is often as surprising to me as it is rewarding.”

flatmtnpress.com

Textiles

Knitting is Lana's true passion through her whole life. She learned to hold a pair of needles even before she learned to hold a pen. Miles of knitted yards and unimaginable amount of stitches went through Lana's hands over the years ...

Today she is full of creative ideas. They multiply, expand, burst, and demand to see the world. Her studio has no physical borders, She creates everywhere, even in the darkness of the movie theater. Knitting is her solace and her inner peace. It frees her imagination, and it gives her optimism. Designing, creating and improvising is what she enjoys the most. It is never known how her new idea will turn out. It keeps evolving from the moment of its conception through its birth. One thing is always the same - it is a journey that always excites her.

This is how she describes her passion :

Knitting is my life. Yarn is my oxygen. I knit, therefore I am…

lanavosk.com

Watercolor

Andrew is an architect who enjoys creating paintings, primarily watercolor, when not designing buildings.

His work is a study of shadow, its form, and its relationship to architectural objects. Many of the objects serving as the source material are rather ordinary and utilitarian, yet they are seen anew when the shadow-play is filtered through abstraction. The distillation of each image into moments of light and shadow not only allows for the celebration of each object and structure, but also allows for the appreciation of the many intricacies that cause the light to move in unexpected ways.

www.andrewarkellart.com

Mixed Media

My art is created entirely from salvaged materials and I take pride in finding items that some might view as junk and turning them into something that is worthy of being displayed in someone’s home. Everything that I create is handmade and my materials are all specifically selected for their uniqueness. I am a self-taught artist and my full-time profession is a high school government and geography teacher, hence the focus on maps and historical figures. I am always using my imagination to create new pieces to have on display at my outdoor fair booths, but I also spend a great deal of time on customized pieces for individuals.

www.derekchristensenart.com

Mixed Media

Swamps and wetlands have recently occupied my visual consciousness. As a source of inspiration, these places are good vehicles to explore my interest in light, both natural and supernatural. As the trees reach out of the waters, they create a rhythm through the picture plane. We may view these as places of renewal, cleansing, and refuge. Or, as eerily charged, dark zones where Faustian deals are struck, such as in a Washington Irving story. Agricultural fields and farms, often working in close connection to their watersheds, remain a thematic priority and close proximation to these new explorations.

www.davidsearart.com/home

Pottery

Andryea received her BFA from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago and has worked in a variety of mediums including drawing, painting, printmaking, mosaic and ceramic over the years.

Andryea’s work is inspired and guided by her intuitive response in any given moment and is exemplified by the interplay and contrast between elements, patterns, shapes and textures she finds in nature.

www.andryeanatkin.com

Photography

With captivating shots of landscapes, John also brings his fine art skills to event and wedding photography - capturing the quiet and unusual in magical ways.

https://www.facebook.com/John-Dart-Photography-175848613387/

Decorative Artist

Emery Kennett is an artist and pattern designer living in Chicago. She graduated in 2016 with a BA in Fine Arts from Wheaton College (MA), during which she studied in Denmark and Italy. Emery is inspired by decorative arts (basically the dusty old chair and plates section of museums) and floral textiles.

www.emerykennett.com

Painting

I am a portrait and gallery artist residing with my wife Kim and our three children in the mountains of North Carolina. Though I am a signature member of the Portrait Society Of America (where I am currently on the faculty), I also love painting landscape, still life, and figurative gallery pieces, usually from life. I am endlessly fascinated by people, places, and things and consider it a privilege and a challenge to capture some aspect of their essence on canvas.

www.richardchristiannelson.com

Mixed Media

I am an abstract artist artist living in West Bend, WI. By layering vintage collage materials, paint and various drawing media, create densely layered mixed media paintings with bold color, strong composition and rich detail. From large statement pieces to small, intimate studies, my work is right at home in both residential and professional settings.

In 2019, I added Exhibition Curator and Artist Mastermind Facilitator to my resume, building connections with and helping support artists around the country.

www.meganwoodardjohnson.com

Mixed Media

David’s “Historically Inaccurate Illustrations” are imagined, laid-out and then penciled. Hand-lettering is added, if needed, and the work is then inked. Acrylic wash(s) are applied to the backgrounds, foregrounds and lettering. The Artist then adds a veritable kaleidoscope of color with inks to create a world more vibrant than reality.

The end result is a smorgasbord for the eye, a banquet for the imagination. Each piece will take the beholder on an epic journey thru the world of what “might have been”.

www.etsy.com/shop/ArtFroH

Luxury Handwoven Textiles and Accessories

Constance is a professional textile designer from Indianapolis, specializing in complex dobby weaves. She has a Fine Arts degree in woven and constructed textiles from Indiana University, though she did not purchase her first loom until after graduation. She has loved weaving since her first encounter. From a young age, she has also felt destined to be an arts teacher, and she seeks to share her love of textiles with others. We are pleased that she shared her craft with us at the fest.

www.constancewcollins.com

Painting: Original Fine Art Abstractions

William’s love for drawing and art began at a young age. He pursued a B.A. in both Studio Arts and Psychology at the State University of NY College at Oswego, followed by continued studies at Clemson University in Fine Arts. At Clemson, he was awarded the Emerging Artist of the Year, 1995, from the Liquitex Excellence in Art Student Grant Program.

Bill has since made it a priority to find studio space to continue his exploration of painting while also utilizing his attention to detail and artistic eye to become a Master Photo Retoucher. Today, Bill lives and maintains a studio in Wilmette. His studio continues to be an active venue for the meshing of life experiences and free-form creativity into a unique blend of ‘form-centric’ abstractions of color and line.

www.williamoistad.com

Photography

Kate is a photographer with a BFA in Photography from Cornell University and years of experience working as an artist, photographer, retoucher and printer. Her work is a digital collage: she photographs each element of the image and digitally manipulates and merges them together to create new and unlikely stories. She finds inspiration in buildings, characters, and single details.

Jason draws inspiration from images both past and present, light and dark, sometimes combining the two in hopes of creating an imperfect symmetry. His goal is to take the seemingly unimaginable and make it a visual reality by blurring the lines between the real and surreal, creating a story where final interpretation is open to multiple realizations.

www.kateharrold.com

Jason Brueck’s work

Painting

Judith has a BS in Fine Arts from the University of Wisconsin – Madison. Working out of her studio in Milwaukee, she paints acrylic and watercolors. Her paintings, subject matter, medium and style change often, which she calls “keeping it real.” Recently, she’s been reflecting on the passage of time and how it refers to a moment in time, a step in the journey, the process of living your life in the moment. That small increment in time is what she wants to capture in her paintings. Her paintings can be found in Chicago at the Leigh Gallery at 3306 N. Halsted Street.

www.judithgahnmurphy.com

Filigree Jewelry

Born and raised in Bogota, Colombia, Liliana learned the intricate world of silver filigree from her uncle, Colombian jeweler Salomon Olmos. It is a traditional art form passed down from generation to generation. For the past six years, while working to perfect her own technique, she began selling her designs in street fairs and small boutiques in downtown Bogota. In 2011, Liliana moved to Houston, TX to expand her small business and share the beauty of silver filigree with an even wider audience.

www.olmox.com

Sculpture, Painting & Illustration

Hillary received her BFA from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 2013; she makes sculptures, paintings, and illustrations. Born and raised in the same Maryland county where Jim Henson grew up, she watched a lot of sci-fi and fantasy movies, spent her fair share of time at Renaissance Festivals, and gothed out for a bit as a kid.

www.hillarymiles.com

Mixed Media

Dewey James lives in Minneapolis, MN. In 2012, she was selected as the Commemorative Artist for the Uptown Art Fair in Minneapolis, the Edina Art Fair in Edina, MN and the Lakeview East Art Festival in Chicago, IL. In 2011, she was awarded Best in Show at the Minneapolis Stone Arch Festival, Best In Category at the Stone Arch Festival and the Glencoe Festival of Art, the Award of Excellence from the Edina Art Fair and the College Hill Art Festival in Cedar Falls, Iowa in 2011.

www.deweyjamesstudio.com

Encaustic Painting /Mixed Media

Jaana Mattson is a mixed media artist who lives and works in her home studio in Minneapolis, MN. She completed her MFA in fibers at the University of Washington – Seattle in 1999, and until 2012 designed and produced art jewelry which she sold in Midwest art fairs and through shops and galleries around the country.

Jaana’s most recent sculpture is inspired by the work and materials of outsider artists, the found object aesthetics of surrealist assemblage and the modernist forms and movement of Miro and Calder. The leap from small scale jewelry to large outdoor sculpture has opened a world of possibilities and a return to her roots in interactive sculpture using salvaged materials.

www.jaanamattson.com

Painting

“I tend to see myself as more a drawer than a painter and therefore, even when working in tightly rendered modes, as a sort of cartoon expressionist. Matching media and content is important. Energy is the ultimate concern and I try to work in ways that encourage spontaneity and deliberate mark making. Many of my pieces take on the raw appearance of the outsider. Yet my themes are not entirely clear. My pieces are filled with self referential meta-subjects whose meaning lies some where near the edge of direct understanding. This complexity places my work squarely in the realm of high brow, so called “fine art.” Yet surface and material suggest a visionary spirit. As a result I have come to occupy an odd space that is neither entirely reserved for academics nor primitives.”

www.dylanstrzynski.com

Mixed Media

Combining basic woodworking skills, found objects and a quirky sense of humor, Anthony Pack tries to touch the inner child within people through his artwork.

With his clever eye, Anthony sees the recycled materials he uses for what they could be, rather than be limited to their intended purpose. For instance, nails, screws, and washers might become eyes; springs become a mouth; rusty nails get a second life as hands or feet; and painted scrap lumber becomes the body of a figure.

A Kentucky native, Anthony now resides in Kansas. He travels throughout the country attending art festivals and shows, relying on the emotional support of his wife and four cats to live the life of a creative mixed media artist.(source: Jeanine Taylor Folk Art)

Mixed Media
www.flickr.com/photos/anthonypack

Jewelry design

Under the guidance of Hiroko Sato Pijanowski, artist Jennifer Fecker moved to San Francisco to establish herself as a studio jeweler. Working for years in the field of one of a kind contemporary Art Jewelry, she exhibited work in galleries and museums around the country.

Today, she is exploring the potential that ordinary materials have in creating extraordinary work. Her line, is felt, strives to create a place where art and commerce can meet - a place where dynamic, modern design is accessible.

This collection incorporates 100% wool felt, leather and occasional swarovski crystals. Jennifer selects felt goods, some new and some reclaimed from Holland and Germany. She hand cuts and carefully stitches each piece to create a clean, modern, effortless look that belies the intricate work underneath.

website unavailable

Mixed Media

Sherry's work features slightly demented cats and dogs, vintage sign letters, and bits of other stuff in happy combinations. Some are cautionary tales, some are functional (i.e. they have hooks for your keys or leash), some are simply joyful.

Sherry spent 35 years as an art director and eventually creative director at advertising agencies from NY to Tokyo to Chicago. Working alongside talented and hilarious people left her with a love of design, typography and problem solving—and the ability to chat with pretty much anyone.

Sherry also illustrates children books with her very first copywriter partner—the famous ad man— Dean Hacohen: “Tuck Me In” which has been translated into 7 languages and the follow up, “Who’s Hungry?” Their latest book “Who Needs A Hug?” was published in 2021!

www.etsy.com/shop/CatsDogsWords

Watercolors

Bill Bartelt began his professional career as an art director and designer for the stage, film and television. Over the years he nurtured his love of watercolor painting and studied with the late master Irving Shapiro, AWS. of the American Academy of Art.

Gradually he began showing his work as pure art, and along the way MGM tapped Bartelt to provide Minnie Driver’s watercolor paintings for her film “Return to Me.” Since then, his paintings have been seen in a number of other films, and have also found an audience among avid collectors.

It is his background in the Dramatic Arts that infuses his paintings with their sense of the romantic. He puts it this way: “I look for the subtle drama inherent in a scene, and sometimes I am able to look at a finished painting and think, ‘that would make a great stage set!’”

www.billbartelt.com

Collage

“Working in a variety of mediums, my artwork combines nostalgic found images, vintage photos and discarded wood often assembled with painted portraits and abstract splashes of color and texture.  Mining from both cultural and personal terrain, I reassemble these elements to create multi-dimensional interpretations of friends, celebrities and dead rock stars.

I portray contemporary culture through the lens of yesterday’s popular culture, and I expect the audience to draw their own conclusions based on the juxtaposition of the visual elements assembled in my artwork.  These messages can be communicated through an individual piece , or preferably as a series.”

www.kawcuts.com

Photography

With a love of both road trips and Americana, we found a way to create art in the middle of nowhere, in the middle of the night, for people who simply want something different to hang on their walls. We travel all over the country to find these unique places. Kinda like paint on a white canvas, we use colored strobes and flashlights on a black one. No need for computer trickery here! We also don’t really give a big whoop about camera nerdery. Long exposure photography is simply the tool to capture this work. The REAL art happens beyond the camera, and the REAL story is told as we literally shed light on these magical places that have long since been forgotten.

www.theflashnites.com

Mixed Media

Jessica's work is a unique mix of fine art and craft techniques and imagery that features a playful combination of domestic artifacts and elements of nature. Jewelry, ornaments, banners, and framed artworks are constructed from linen, woven wool & wool blend felt, hand embroidery and beading. While some pieces are similar they are each unique and individually made with a love of detail and a high level of craftsmanship.

www.facebook.com/jpartandneedlecraft

Photography

“For the past two years I have been shooting almost entirely with a Holga camera, basically a $25 plastic camera that shoots medium format film. When I reflect on why I am so drawn to this camera, I guess it comes down to the unique and timeless beauty in the images it creates. The image is soft, muted, never truly in focus, giving a somewhat surreal feel to each image. Instead of creating a precise recorded image of what we saw, this camera has the ability to morph that recorded image into a dreamlike memory. If you think about it, with time, our memories of the past become more dreamlike, more subjective. Through this plastic lens, somehow I am able to capture some of that beautiful subjectivity.”

www.aspectrasphotography.com

Painting

“My work is a bright and electrical combination of pop and folk. It is my hope that I am creating beautiful, adorable images which uplift and inspire.

My work draws inspiration from a wide variety of other creatives most closely resembling Betsy Walton, Theo Ellsworth, Apak, Bjork, Jennifer Mercede, Marc Chagall, and Tender Loving Empire; although the true list is considerably longer and consists of contemporary artists and musicians predominately from the Pacific Northwest.”

www.annatodaro.com

Painting

My work is about people. I work with imagery that depicts and narrates moments in time. These are glimpses of figures moving about hurriedly, or stopped to greet an acquaintance, or paused to acknowledge a disruption. I leave gender, race, and age hazy and uncertain. At times these bodies interact with the viewer provoking unexplained emotion. I find inspiration through observations of my surroundings; community members, friends, especially the women in my family. I introduce my subjects when I see an opportunity.

I work in oils, acrylics, charcoal and graphite. Thin layers of color overlap, and paint is drawn and sketched vigorously across and up and down as I manipulate images that appear through the paint. I dive right in, the next mark steering my next decision. I abandon my subjects drawing my attention to the negative spaces. Cutting in with my fan brush I make quick decisions, sculpting with paint. Patterns, blocks of color, noting current styles, finally the last moments consciously I forget about a focal point. Standing back I evaluate the work as a whole.

www.tracyostmannhaschke.com

Mixed Media, Painting

In the brief career of ten years as a professional artist, Sean Lemaster has realized that images are volatile. As time and popular culture shape us all in a post internet world so do our reactions to icons or thought processes. Sean believes that through experimentation and a diversity of techniques he can lay a foundation for a dialog. Though his interest in abstraction maybe the most visually prevalent, theoretical physics and energy as means to create force (both metaphorically as well as physically) is often the source of his content.

www.facebook.com/seanlemasterart

Mixed Media, Phtography

Joachim Knill's most recent work consists of 20"x30' Polaroids photographs which he creates with the world's largest portable instant film camera designed and built by himself. He uses mostly natural objects such as fruits, flowers, vegetables, seedpods, sticks and stones, or dilapidated building parts, all collected either on his travels or around Hannibal, Missouri where he currently resides.

Joachim decided to build his own 20"x30" instant film camera after working with commonly available Polaroid materials and getting frustrated by their limited size. He designed and built one that specifically suited his needs. Improvements include larger image size and portability. After three years of development, he completed the camera in the fall of 1995 and ever since, has been creating most of his work with it.

Joachim was born and grew up in Switzerland. He completed a diploma and BFA at The School Of The Museum Of Fine Arts in Boston Massachusetts. His current work with 20x30 Polaroids combines photography with sculpture, installation, and lighting. Many galleries, museums, and international competitions have exhibited his work.

www.joachimknill.com