2035 Ashby Ave. Berkeley, California, 94703
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Artist Biographies -
All Heart
February 10, 2007 – March 9, 2007
Click on Thumbnails to Enlarge Artwork
Lili Artel
Lili Artel was a
late bloomer starting her art work in her fifties. She didn’t
obtain her art education until long after an A.B. in English from
Hunter College in New York City and a M.A. from San Jose State
University, San Jose, California in Librarianship. Her
art studies were received at California State University, Hayward,
CA. She received her Fine Arts credential in 1972. Her
primary focus in art school was in sculpture --ceramic, direct
metal, cast metal (bronze), wood and stone carving. Lili uses primarily
non-art materials, rope, all kinds of paper, nylon hose, hair,
fur, leather, feather and found objects to create her work. She
uses craft/ textile techniques (embroidery stitching, knitting,
knotting, wrapping and weaving often distorted and transformed
to achieve textures. She calls in “needle drawing”. Lili
describes herself as a process artist who creates through curiousity
and play. “What if I tear rather than cut? What if
I unbraid the rope or yarn? What if I glue two pieces of paper
together and then pull them apart? Play enters into my work in
that I do not start out with a blueprint. My hands and the
materials do a dance and chance plays a part in the process.”
Bart Borland
Bart Borland
lives in Oakland, Ca.. Born in New York, he was influenced
by his parents in his choice of careers. His mother was an artist
and his father a scientist and businessman. Bart studied Chemistry
as his major and took art classes on the side. In 1967, he moved
to the Haight-Ashbury and by 1969, he had a one-man show that was
reviewed by Thomas Albright in the SF Chronicle and was described
as “hallucinations that follow the tradition of psychedelic
posters” and his work was compared by Albright to “Rauschenberg’s
silk screens”. His work was loaned to the SFMOMA and he was
represented at theVorpal Gallery during this period. He gave up
art while raising a family and returned four years ago when he
discovered digital art. The digital medium opened a door and gave
him powerful new tools to create art. He states: “This medium
is revolutionizing art in America. It enables fantastic composition
of patterns, shapes, colors and images inviting the viewer to closer
inspection. Photographs are inset among amorphous shapes to give
the impression of looking through one reality to another.” Bart
seems to embrace the changing times and take an enthusiastic lead
in exploring new art tools and creating new art forms that express
the times.
Elizbeth Dante
Elizbeth
Dante is an artisan who is highly skilled in
all aspects of casting and carving, She works in numerous media;
notably bronze, and other materials such as cast stone,aluminum,
resin, concrete, and carved marble. While a gemologist
living and traveling in Brazil, Panama and Southeast Asia, Ms.
Dante attained an affinity for the Third World. This
ever-present influence has provided Elizabeth with stylistic
inspiration for her work ranging from classical naturalism to
stylistic narration. Much of her sculpture explores the
dynamics between round organic forms and hard rigid angles. By
exaggerating this interplay, her work creates a sense of tension
which is both lively and sensual. Ms. Dante has said that her
work combines ancient and modern rituals, extracting archetypes
and stylized motifs.”I pay homage to the many facets of
the human spirit, characterized by warmth, humor and sometimes
political commentary.” Although she utilizes an academic
background that includes the Gemological Institute of America,
the San Francisco Art Institute, and the College of Marin, Ms.
Dante remains essentially self-taught. She has honed her
craft by working for established sculptors, most notably Elio
Benvenuto. While an artist assistant to German artist Toni
Bruchert in Pietra Santa,Italy, Ms. Dante learned traditional
techniques and methods for sculpting/enlarging and casting/finishing
bronze; patinas; and marble carving. Most recently as a
patina artisan, Ms. Dante has worked with Bay Area Artists
Steven DeStaebler, Bruce Beasley, and Ruth Asawa. Ms. Dante
has exhibited in numerous shows in the United States and Italy. Her
outstanding works have been showcased in collaborative efforts
such as “Art on the Rock at Alcatraz”, and “The
Day of the Dead” Exhibition at The Museum of Mexican Art. In
1990, she received the prestigious Art of Peace Award from the
Artist Embassy International for her sculpture Woman's Liberation,
which was chosen by the Oakland Art Commission as a gift to Nelson
Mandela and the people of South Africa.
Barbara de Groot
Barbara de Groot started
her artistic interests when she was in grade school. By the time
she was a teenager and had devoured the book Lust For Life, a biography
about Vincent van Gough given to her by her nanny the dye was cast.
She was drawing whenever the opportunity arose. In her early High
school years she drew and painted from live models at the Brooklyn
Museum Art School with Isaac Soyer, one of three brothers who worked
with figurative imagery. She also was fortunate to study in High
school with very talented and comprehensive artist/instructors.
Much later in Berkeley, CA she joined a group of artists and drew
weekly from live models for about 12 years. Barbara de Groot is
a local Berkeley Artist and teacher of art who works in various
types of media such as monotypes; Chine Colle with other
media; Wood Block prints; Linoleum Block prints; Mixed Media Collage,
as shown here; Drypoint ;Transfer Methods; painting and drawing. She
was an Art Major in Hunter College in New York, where she learned
basic printmaking under noted printmaker, Gabor Peterdi and later
attended Academie Goetz in Paris, France where she learned many
of her specialized printmaking skills. Her work is in many
private collections and has appeared in many exhibits in various
galleries here and abroad and is archived in the Women’s
Museum in Washington, DC and in the National Portrait Gallery in
Washington, D.C.
Rinna B. Flohr
Rinna B. Flohr is
an interior architect and designer who also is a floral designer
and makes jewelry. Her jewelry consists of bracelets,
pendants and earrings that she calls “sculpture for the ear”. Rinna
believes that in a world where we have become so mobile and where
we no longer have offices but cubicles, that walls have disappeared
and that our bodies have once again become the pedestals for art
as in times long ago when we wandered as nomads and wore our trophies
and precious adornments. She is also a floral designer and
has had her floral designs exhibited in the Legion of Honor Museum
and as part of the San Francisco De Young ‘Museum’s
Bouquets to Art show. Her floral art for this
show uses silk flowers in arrangements she makes to compliment
and express the artwork next to which it is placed, as in
the San Francisco Bouquet to Arts Show . This is one of the
only galleries that features floral arts. Her work is on
display as part of Abundance and Joy. Rinna is also the founder
and Director of Expressions Gallery. More of her earrings and floral
art can be seen on her website: http://www.designideas.us.
Devon Gaster
Devon Gaster lives
in San Francisco and is a florist and floral design instructor
with 26 years experience in the Floral industry. He had his own
retail floral store for 13 years and taught floral design classes
in Hawaii and in San Francisco. For the last two years, he has
been teaching classes at the San Francisco Flower Market. Devon
Gaster presents his interpretation of Abundance and Joy as part
of this current Expressions Gallery show. He will also be doing
some demonstrations and classes at the Gallery and will Jury a
couple of floral artists, student and public entrant floral art
shows and contests during the run of the show. Expressions Gallery
is proud to take the lead from the San Francisco Museums who have
brought us the Bouquet to Arts Shows at the Legion of Honor and
De Young Museums over the years and feature floral arts as another
regular art form offered for viewing and sale in its Gallery and
as part of its educational program.
Paul Graf
Paul Graf has
a BFA degree from CCA and is currently a member of the Sculpture
Faculty at the Academy of Art University in SF, as well as a yearly
guest instructor at the Mendocino Art Center. He was originally
from Maryland. He presents “sculptural paintings” that
reflect his approach to the interface between 2 & 3 dimensional
art through the raised textures that are the graphic results. In
different lightings and viewed from different angles, many aspects
of the image come forward or recede as you move about.
Andrew Greene
Andrew Greene was
born September 17th 1982 in Tarzana, CA and raised in a small-town
outside of Los Angeles. He has been living in San Francisco
for the past two years where, he has and still is attending the
San Francisco Art Institute as a Painting Major. His Latest
body of work deals with the fluidity of paint and its direct correlation
to water. His paintings are created by combining numerous
types of paint on the same surface all in liquid form. By
doing this, chemical reactions start to occur and the paint takes
form to the surface: Moving, searching, and finally finding its
resting place. After each piece is finished, it is still
alive for a period of 24-100 hours depending on the surface and
the amount of paint used. The paintings are done in a state of
mind that is regurgitating feelings of every thing from complete
and utter sadness to pure ecstasy and joy. The artist has
learned over time how the various chemicals react to each other
and now guides the process to better express the result he wants.
The end result is a painting, which leaves you free to roam, and
full of questions. The rules of painting are being broken as represented
in each individual piece of art. Andrew hopes to continue
pushing not only the boundaries of art but also the boundaries
of life.
Sofia Harrison
Sofia
Harrison is self-taught,
she started creating artwork in 1999 and since then has participated
in numerous gallery and juried exhibitions in the bay area, with
selected shows in New York. She lives and works in Napa and has
been commissioned by clients across the country. Sofia uses glass
and words with an entirely fresh perspective to create a mixed-media
piece that is visually pleasing, intelligent and soulful. "I
gather words in much the same manner as a painter mixes paints," she
explains. Magazine advertisements are her favorite source
for words and phrases: "When taken out of context, they become
either particularly funny or especially poignant." Her work
embodies the collective thought patterns of our society: fractured
but connected, expressing individuality, desire, spirit and reason.
She affixes the words to the hand cut glass pieces and then attaches
them to mannequins, boxes, sash windows, baby dolls and furniture.
The framework chosen is often dictated by what she can, to put
it plainly, garbage-pick. "I was driving in Berkeley and spotted
an old stool half buried in tall grass in a vacant lot. I almost
caused an accident by making a b-line to nab it." Now encrusted
with verbiage, the work is entitled Tossed in Berkeley. "I
love the process of reincarnation."
Patti Heimburger
Patti Heimburger was
born in Long Beach, California, and she earned a BA in Studio Art
from the University of California in Santa Barbara. She also attended
classes and workshops in the states of Washington and California.
Ms. Heimburger lived in Seattle, Washington for fifteen years,
and currently lives in Alameda, (the Bay Area), California.
Ms.
Heimburger is an artist who creates textured
oil paintings. The texture is created through fabric that is then
attached to a canvas surface. These textured surfaces have no reference
to the subject matter other than adding complexity. Ms. Heimburger
has had solo showings in Oakland, Berkeley, Alameda, and Monterey;
and group shows in San Francisco, Carmel, Mill Valley, Fremont, Palo
Alto, Belmont, Point Reyes, Ross, San Leandro, Berkeley, Danville,
Stockton, Folson, Hayward, Pleasanton, Danville, Sausalito, Sebastopol,
San Juan Bautista, and Santa Barbara, (all these cities are in California);
and then in the cities of Edmond, Kent and Bainbridge Island that
are in Washington State. She has had exhibitions at universities,
colleges, Oakland Museum, and art centers throughout the Bay Area,
Santa Barbara, Monterey, Modesto, and Oregon. Union Bank in Fremont,
California owns five paintings; and private collections in the Bay
Area, southern California, Washington, Ohio, Florida, Hawaii, and
Mexico. Ms. Heimburger’s first painting class was at the age
of thirteen, the French Impressionist style was introduced by her
teacher. After graduating from UCSB, she moved to the Bay Area and
started developing her own art style. In 1987, the first three-dimensional
painting was created; sculpture was introduced in 1990 as a further
extension of the relief paintings. For over forty years, Ms. Heimburger
has painted still life, landscape, seascape, and gradually more figurative
paintings. In the past nineteen years, she has focused on figurative
subject matters, and sometimes landscape and seascape paintings.
These paintings have evolved into different themes and are always
changing. The paintings are usually narrative with vague titles which
give little clues, so the viewer can fill-in the story. Some of the
paintings are of men and women in different settings, can incorporate
dance in someway, whether with just one person or a couple, sometimes
pets are incorporated, nature, and the like. In all these paintings
Ms. Heimburger is trying to create what she desires, such as showing
strength in the ordinary, beauty, tranquility, reverence for nature,
and the illusion of a timeless quality.
Amarie Hill
Amarie Hill is
a native Californian, born and raised in Los Angeles. She
lives north of Los Angeles in Canyon Country. By day, she
is a Business/Financial Analyst working at a major utility company.
Her artistic career started over 30 years ago as a quilt maker. Four
years ago, she went to a scrap booking store with a colleague.
She states: “That hour changed my life forever.” She
works mostly on canvas and watercolor paper with acrylic paint,
pastels and wax. Her work always tells a story…sometimes
her own, sometimes someone else’s. Amarie has been
published in several art magazines and has several pieces in permanent
collections in the USA. She participates in an annual international
collage exhibit from New Zealand and has a virtual exhibit that
begins March 1, 2007 on http://virtual.tart.co.nz. “Old
Love Rusts Not” signifies that those we love as children
always remain in our hearts forever.
Melanie Hofmann
Melanie
Hofmann graduated
with a BFA in Textiles from the California College of the Arts
in 1996. Her home and studio are located in Berkeley. She
first explored the joy of creating art in pre-school and she has
not stopped since. As a teenager Melanie fell in love with
fiber art, specifically with weaving and dyeing fabrics.
Three of her recent printed and dyed fabric pieces are in this
show. Melanie has received awards from the Taegu International
Textile Design competition and from Manhattan Arts International. Limited
edition prints of her digital art are in the corporate collection
of Lifescan, Inc. in Milpitas. This year, Melanie had a solo exhibition
of textiles in the corporate lobby of 255 California Street in
San Francisco. Melanie works with both textile and digital media.
Her digital work primarily takes the form of limited edition prints,
digital video and projected art for theatre and custom designed
bracelets. Her work has been inspired by a number of artists including,
Jean Miro, Rene Magritte and Magdalena Abakanowicz. She was also
influenced by the artwork of her maternal grandmother, Zura Young,
an abstract painter. Melanie seeks to convey through her work the
interactive process with her media and a visual representation
of her inner world. She offers custom designed Italian charm
bracelets with digital images of family or other photos incorporated,
as well as bracelets featuring her art and the art by other artists
in the show.
Luitgard Ilg
Luitgard Ilg was
born and raised in Oberwolfach, in the middle of the black forest
in Germany. She is in Berkeley with her husband who is teaching
at UC Berkeley. Her interest in art stems from her love of nature.
Her first activities in art were beautiful flower arrangements.
Later, she started to paint on eggs, mainly flower motifs. At the
beginning she used acrylic, but soon she began to experiment with
watercolors on paper. She attended numerous courses by well-established
artists in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Italy, amongst them
Bernhard Vogel. All these artists influenced her style, which is
basically naturalistic, but often with a little change to create
an artistic expression. Most motifs are taken from nature. The
work she is presenting in the show were inspired by here recent
visit to Central Park in New York, where the fascinating abundance
of colors inspired her. She combined this with grapes from the
vineyards of California during her visit to California and entered
her work as her interpretation of Abundance and Joy.
Kristin Lamb
Kristin Lamb started
producing and studying art in high school. She became interested
in mural painting in 1996 and she painted her first mural that
same year. Kristin graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Art
from California Polytechnic State University in 2004. While
in college she extensively studied painting and drawing, although
she also had a chance to learn about graphic design, ceramics,
glassblowing, photography, costume construction and jewelry design. Her
work usually consists of a combination of several mediums and has
been described as surreal fantasy-scapes. Kristin had the
unique opportunity to study textile conservation at Hearst Castle
during her senior year in college, during the course of the internship
she fell in love with textiles and her most recent work reflects
her passion for the medium. In this show, Kristin offers us what
she calls “Plushies” which are soft sculpture
bringing to “All Heart” cuddly creatures part of childhood
joy. Kristin currently works as a Product Development Coordinator
for Bentley Art Publishing Co. and as the Expressions Gallery Coordinator.
Rafael Landea
Rafael Landea is
a local Bay Area Artist who came to the United States from Argentina.
His works are exhibited and admired in galleries around the world. He
captures the movement and energy of dance in a number of his series
of
paintings: In the high wire acts of “The Argentinas ” in
the romantic close-up of “Arms” , in the embrace of the couple seen
through their windows in “ Rear Window ”, and in the picture of the
couple practicing the “Tango”. Much
of
Rafael’s work relates to the theatre in which he has been active as an
artist.
Sandra Lo
Sandra Lo was
born in China. She grew up in China and Hong Kong and immigrated
to the US in 1989. She started learning drawing at a very young
age. Her father, William S. Hung a famous oil painter, has been
her teacher. Sandra took some workshops, figure drawing and painting
classes but other than that, she is mostly self-taught. She
is following in her father’s footsteps, and has become an
accomplished painter who works primarily in oil and pastels. Sandra
has a full time job in another field but still finds time to paint
on lunch hours, evenings and weekends. She is a member of
San Francisco Women Artists and her paintings are exhibited at
SFWA Gallery in San Francisco, every month.
Jennifer Wallace Mack
Jennifer Wallace
Mack has a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the San Francisco
Art Institute. She works in various media: painting,
photography, mixed media, and jewelry. Her work is consistent
in the quality and detail in each medium she applies. She
has exhibited at a number of solo, and group shows, many
of which were juried. Shown at Expressions Gallery are
her mixed media paintings and her magnificent jewelry. Jennifer
has served on various Board of Directors for long standing Artist
Organizations such as the San Francisco Women Artists where she
was a past President and continues n the current Board as Vice
Treasurer and The San Francisco Gem and Mineral organization
where she is currently Treasurer.
Judith Mangiameli
Judith Mangiameli lives
in Orange County, Ca..She has taken a variety of art classes throughout
the years. She specializes in mixed media / assemblage work and
often enjoys incorporating found objects into her pieces. She
has exhibited works in non-juried and juried exhibits in Los Angeles
and Orange Counties. Her pieces have also been in various
publications including Observation, Gallery and Somerset Studio
Magazine. Judith’s “Love Eternal” assemblage
represents both the pain and the healing power of love. This
piece is on display in the “All Heart” exhibition
at Expressions Gallery.
David Miller
David Miller has
lived in the Bay Area for most of his life. His formal education
and training was as an Engineer, but from age 6 he wanted to be
an artist. “Grandpa told me I didn’t want to be an
artist — artists smoked cigarettes and lived in attics.
I should be an engineer instead and build bridges. So I became
an engineer, and built electronic circuits.” But in high
school, he took a correspondence class in art and when he finished
engineering school he studied with the Berkeley and New York artist
Joan Finton for a couple of years. However, for a while he gave
up in frustration because he couldn’t reproduce what he saw
on museum walls and tried to ignore his passion for art. He took
some classes from Michelle Cassou who helped him learn to ignore
the self-criticism when making art and returned to studying with
Joan Finton as well as taking many other classes, wherever he could
find them. Teachers who have influenced his work include Connie
Smith-Siegel, Larry Robinson, Glenn Hirsch, and Jane Rosen.Current
explorations include the landscapes of California.
Teresa Moore
Teresa Moore is
a Bay Area Artist who is self-taught. She paints mainly with her
fingers. Moore creates an atmosphere of nightlife, good times,
and fleeting romances. Her images bring to life a world at
once sensuous, sophisticated, sometimes sweet yet always alluring. She
is never one to shy away from her inner perceptions. Her works
reach out beyond the canvas and inhabit an alcove in the viewer's
spirit. Her work is described in San Francisco Socialite Magazine
as a combination of the sensibilities of Federico Fellini and Tim
Burton, which take us to places that seem oddly familiar, whose
figures .....suggest the decadence of Weimar Germany and the sensuality
of Modigliani. Ms. Moore¹s work has been showcased at exhibits
in San Francisco, New York, Miami, Chicago, San Diego, Spain, Italy,
and Canada, and is owned by collectors around the globe.
Richard Mullinax
Richard Mullinax, BS
Ornamental Horticulture, Clemson University, moved to Berkeley
this fall after living in Durham, NC for the past decade. Richard
is an accidental artist who does outdoor stone and glass bottle
art. First, his career as a stone artist began when he
designed and built a dry-stacked stone retaining wall around his
Durham residence. As neighbors and local residents
watched Richard's weekend wall project grow, word of mouth about
Richard's talent spread. Soon the demand for his stonework
led Richard to shift his career completely into stone design. Recently
his career veered again when he collaborated with a guerrilla political
protest art group in Durham. Their temporary art installation called "Just
Luv" in Durham Central Park drew media attention, compelling
Richard to collaborate with the City of Durham on a public art
policy for the parks system. As a pack rat, his art is effortlessly
reuse. "Bottles casting colored shadows through the air shows
that beauty is the dynamic nature of the space around art as much
as the work itself." Much of his art changes as people are
around it. They see it is simple and non-threatening and they add
to it. The best joy for him has been to be in this unspoken community
of creation.
Udi Peled
Udi Peled is
a local artist whose work has been purchased for exhibit at the
Berkeley Jazz School. In addition, his work adorns
many a catalogue cover for UC Berkeley. He has shown his
art at various select galleries. Udi was born in Israel, and is
now living permanently in the United States. Udi’s versatile
works are a favorite amongst local art collectors. He is available
for commissioned art works as well as the artworks that
are displayed at Expressions Gallery as part of the current show, His
heart throbs are wonderful additions to ALL HEART
Laura Rattay
Laura Rattay is
a local artist. She is self taught as an artist. She only recently
started to make unusual purses out of cardboard and images she
assembles. She has sold her work to local clients and other artists.
She has chosen to use whimsical, seasonal images of abundance and
joy for the purses she made as part of this show at Expressions
Gallery.
Diego Marcial Rios
Diego Marcial Rios lives
in the Bay Area and paints in acrylics. He graduated with honors
with an M.A. from the University of Wisconson at Madison, Department
of Fine Arts Graduate School and a B.F.A. from University
of California at Berkeley. He received a number of honors scholarships
for Academic study. His artwork illustrates many complex social-economic
issues faced by contemporary society. About his work he states: “I
create art that is visually stimulating to gain initial viewer
acceptance. Once this is achieved, the viewer is confronted
with ancient symbols of life and death.” The figures
and landscapes in the art are inspired by what I have experienced
and later dreamed about. Diego’s work has been widely shown
throughout the United States and Mexico and he is in a number of
Museum Collections:The Auchenbach Foundation Collection at the
Palace of the Legion of Honor Museum in San Francisco, Coos Art
Museum, Coos Bay, Oregon; Laguna Beach Museum, Laguna Beach, Ca.;
Museo National De La Estampa, Mexico City, Mexico, etc.. He has
also illustrated a number of books and his work is part of a number
of Public Collections: Harriet Taubman Gallery, MD; Mission Cultural
Center, SF; The Collector Gallery of the Oakland Museum, Oakland,
Ca.; Irish Arts Council, Belfast, Ireland and many more. He
has appeared as a speaker on Art and been interviewed on Television.
His artwork has been included in many magazines.
Michele Rudenko
Michele Rudenko lives
in Vallejo, California and is a ceramic artist primarily
working in the medium of American Raku. Michele states: “ After
many year of expression through a variety of artistic media I found
my true passion in ceramics, more specifically through the art
of American Raku. I deeply appreciate the entire journey from its
beginning as a quiet contemplative moment when I first press my
hands into a mass of clay. What follows entails the
design and crafting of a piece, it’s burnishing, bisque,
glazing and then completing with the Raku firing and post firing
reduction phase. My work grows and expands, subjected to
a vast range of influences. I love pushing the limits of the clay,
experimenting with and fabricating new glazes and firing techniques. American
Raku is a specific challenge. While I can and do plan for a particular
outcome, the very nature of Raku often creates a result that is
surprisingly different from my original vision resulting in the
unique power of each piece. Raku is a marvelous lesson in non-attachment, guiding
me toward a deeper understanding of myself, the process and abundant
possibility.
Sandra (Sandy) Ruhl
Sandra (Sandy)
Ruhl was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area. Educated
as an RN, most recently she has worked in oncology and cardiology
research. About 10 years ago Sandy discovered photography
helped her to see more of the world and gave her a good reason
to be outside. Others, when viewing her photographs, said she
had a “good eye.” Sandy’s prints and
slides have won awards in competitions at the Millbrae Camera
Club, the Northern California Council of Camera Clubs, the Mid-Peninsula
Photographic Alliance, the San Mateo County Fair, and the San
Francisco chapter of the Sierra Club. Sandy has donated
photographs to the Burlingame Public Library, the San Mateo County
Chapter of the Oncology Nursing Society and the San Mateo Sunrise
Rotary Club. She has taken slides for use by the Friends
of Mills Canyon in educational presentations and has led two
photography walks through the canyon. Her prints have
been on display at various San Mateo and Santa Clara county locations,
including Filoli. Sandy initially sought to record her
impressions of natural beauty. She now also seeks to capture “interesting” images
wherever she finds them
Zona Sage
Zona Sage lives
in Oakland, and has explored various art media throughout her life. Recently
she has begun exploring fiber sculpture, and is studying with Carol
Beadle. “Tell Me Why” explores the challenges of communication in
relationships.
Randall Sokoloff
Randall Sokoloff, is
a self-taught artist who sees in color and thinks in shapes. He
began painting while in high school where he received support from
his then Zen mentor/art teacher who told him “forget art
school and the debt that follows. Each day that you are alive try
to paint, breathe and be happy.” The artist spent most of
his six college years painting, writing and imagining a better
world. After college, he decided to dedicate himself to a life
of meditation, investigation and “playing with paint.” The
particular style in which the artist now paints, came about by
accident while reading the poems of Rumi. The technique involves
using large amounts of acrylic paint to re-create what the artist
imagines emotions, thoughts, physiological processes and objective
reality may look like at the cellular level. After being deeply
influenced by painters like Joan Miro, Vanessa Bell, Paul Klee,
Francis Bacon, Ross Drago and Robert Motherwell- the artist likes
to think of his work as mini-investigations into the nature of
our fascinating and impermanent realities. For more information
please visit RandallSokoloff.xbuild.com.
Jessica Stafford
Jessica Stafford was
raised and currently lives in Sonoma County. Jessica has
been creative and enthralled with art as long as she can remember. In
May 2006, Jessica graduated San Diego State University with her
BA in Painting and Printmaking and a minor in Art History. The
mediums Jessica uses in her work are oil painting, and mixed media. She
is interested in examining ideas of gender and exploring ideas
of femininity in her work. Jessica has shown in group shows
at San Diego State University and San Diego Art Institute. Jessica
has also had various solo shows in restaurants, cafes, banks, and
salons throughout Petaluma and San Diego. Jessica’s
work fits into the theme of All Heart because she explored ideas
of sex, love, obsession, and acceptance of one’s self.
Jim Stipovich
Jim Stipovich is
a photographer who lives in the Kensington, Ca. and works with
medium format cameras (Hasselblad and Rolladex). He processes his
own film by hand in his private darkroom. Jim
began photography at age 15. In high school he worked as a photojournalist
for the Humbolt Times/ Standard in 1962, while also attending photography
classes at Humbolt State College. From 1965-1970, Jim was an undergraduate
a the University of California, Berleley. He
studied photography under Margaret d’Hammer and Ruben Samberg,
majoring in design Design/Photography. He was Editor and Art
Director of The Pelican, an on campus magazine. Post college
work included a fellowship at Anatoila College, in Thesolonika, Greece,
and work as a freelance photographer and professional black and white
darkroom technician. Jim creates vital, direct pictures of people
and places that grab the eye of the viewer. His ability to
capture detail and definition with high resolution in low light situations
is captivating.
Charles Webb
Charles Webb owns
and operates a film, video and digital media production company
in San Francisco. He has written, produced, directed, and photographed
projects in the United States, Europe and China, that encompass
diverse genres, including national TV commercials (Miller Beer,
Buick, Wishbone, national political candidates, etc.); documentaries
(The Black Panthers/”George Jackson Lives”, “The
Grateful Dead Movie”, martial artists in the People’s
Republic of China “China’s Living Treasures”,
etc.); and nationally released independent features (“Honky-Tonk
Nights”, “Head-On Collision”, “American
Eyeball”). In parallel with these and other film and video
projects, Mr. Webb has created a collection of neo-primitive/neo-shamanic
paintings, sculpture, fetishes, jewelry and other artifacts, which
seem to have “emerged” from an imaginal tribal culture. The
collection intertwines ancient materials (stones, bones, horns,
skins, etc) and methods (painting, molding, cutting, etc.) with
the synthetic and cyber (acrylic polymer paints and clay, digital
scanning and image manipulation, archival large format ultrachrome
printing, etc.). To date, this “evidence” has been
exhibited in San Francisco, Berkeley and Sedona Arizona and pieces
are included in several private collections.
Most recently Mr. Webb has combined these techniques with digitally produced
displays based on iterations of complex numbers such as the Mandelbrot Set. In
TAO OF CHAOS Katya Walter writes:" The baroque mandala of the Mandelbrot
set has been called the most complex and universal number relationship in mathematics.
It describes designs of infinite depth, using fractal geometry. At its core lies
the Mandelbrot heart. This dark heart was discovered by Benoit Mandelbrot in
1979 when he began to chart a pattern of awesome beauty within number itself…versions
of the Mandelbrot set look like valentines edged in frothy lace. Each dark heart
lies at the intersection of real and imaginary number…numbers with heart…they
connect and hold the cosmos in synchrony. The loom of patterned chaos… Mr.
Webb holds a post-graduate degree in Psychobiology from the University of Pittsburgh
with a specialty in sensation and perception and was a published researcher in
this field before moving into media production.
Artist Biographies -
All Heart
February 10, 2007 – March 9, 2007
Click on Thumbnails to Enlarge Artwork
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Lili Artel was a late bloomer starting her art work in her fifties. She didn’t obtain her art education until long after an A.B. in English from Hunter College in New York City and a M.A. from San Jose State University, San Jose, California in Librarianship. Her art studies were received at California State University, Hayward, CA. She received her Fine Arts credential in 1972. Her primary focus in art school was in sculpture --ceramic, direct metal, cast metal (bronze), wood and stone carving. Lili uses primarily non-art materials, rope, all kinds of paper, nylon hose, hair, fur, leather, feather and found objects to create her work. She uses craft/ textile techniques (embroidery stitching, knitting, knotting, wrapping and weaving often distorted and transformed to achieve textures. She calls in “needle drawing”. Lili describes herself as a process artist who creates through curiousity and play. “What if I tear rather than cut? What if I unbraid the rope or yarn? What if I glue two pieces of paper together and then pull them apart? Play enters into my work in that I do not start out with a blueprint. My hands and the materials do a dance and chance plays a part in the process.” |
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Bart Borland lives in Oakland, Ca.. Born in New York, he was influenced by his parents in his choice of careers. His mother was an artist and his father a scientist and businessman. Bart studied Chemistry as his major and took art classes on the side. In 1967, he moved to the Haight-Ashbury and by 1969, he had a one-man show that was reviewed by Thomas Albright in the SF Chronicle and was described as “hallucinations that follow the tradition of psychedelic posters” and his work was compared by Albright to “Rauschenberg’s silk screens”. His work was loaned to the SFMOMA and he was represented at theVorpal Gallery during this period. He gave up art while raising a family and returned four years ago when he discovered digital art. The digital medium opened a door and gave him powerful new tools to create art. He states: “This medium is revolutionizing art in America. It enables fantastic composition of patterns, shapes, colors and images inviting the viewer to closer inspection. Photographs are inset among amorphous shapes to give the impression of looking through one reality to another.” Bart seems to embrace the changing times and take an enthusiastic lead in exploring new art tools and creating new art forms that express the times. |
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Elizbeth Dante is an artisan who is highly skilled in all aspects of casting and carving, She works in numerous media; notably bronze, and other materials such as cast stone,aluminum, resin, concrete, and carved marble. While a gemologist living and traveling in Brazil, Panama and Southeast Asia, Ms. Dante attained an affinity for the Third World. This ever-present influence has provided Elizabeth with stylistic inspiration for her work ranging from classical naturalism to stylistic narration. Much of her sculpture explores the dynamics between round organic forms and hard rigid angles. By exaggerating this interplay, her work creates a sense of tension which is both lively and sensual. Ms. Dante has said that her work combines ancient and modern rituals, extracting archetypes and stylized motifs.”I pay homage to the many facets of the human spirit, characterized by warmth, humor and sometimes political commentary.” Although she utilizes an academic background that includes the Gemological Institute of America, the San Francisco Art Institute, and the College of Marin, Ms. Dante remains essentially self-taught. She has honed her craft by working for established sculptors, most notably Elio Benvenuto. While an artist assistant to German artist Toni Bruchert in Pietra Santa,Italy, Ms. Dante learned traditional techniques and methods for sculpting/enlarging and casting/finishing bronze; patinas; and marble carving. Most recently as a patina artisan, Ms. Dante has worked with Bay Area Artists Steven DeStaebler, Bruce Beasley, and Ruth Asawa. Ms. Dante has exhibited in numerous shows in the United States and Italy. Her outstanding works have been showcased in collaborative efforts such as “Art on the Rock at Alcatraz”, and “The Day of the Dead” Exhibition at The Museum of Mexican Art. In 1990, she received the prestigious Art of Peace Award from the Artist Embassy International for her sculpture Woman's Liberation, which was chosen by the Oakland Art Commission as a gift to Nelson Mandela and the people of South Africa. |
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Barbara de Groot started her artistic interests when she was in grade school. By the time she was a teenager and had devoured the book Lust For Life, a biography about Vincent van Gough given to her by her nanny the dye was cast. She was drawing whenever the opportunity arose. In her early High school years she drew and painted from live models at the Brooklyn Museum Art School with Isaac Soyer, one of three brothers who worked with figurative imagery. She also was fortunate to study in High school with very talented and comprehensive artist/instructors. Much later in Berkeley, CA she joined a group of artists and drew weekly from live models for about 12 years. Barbara de Groot is a local Berkeley Artist and teacher of art who works in various types of media such as monotypes; Chine Colle with other media; Wood Block prints; Linoleum Block prints; Mixed Media Collage, as shown here; Drypoint ;Transfer Methods; painting and drawing. She was an Art Major in Hunter College in New York, where she learned basic printmaking under noted printmaker, Gabor Peterdi and later attended Academie Goetz in Paris, France where she learned many of her specialized printmaking skills. Her work is in many private collections and has appeared in many exhibits in various galleries here and abroad and is archived in the Women’s Museum in Washington, DC and in the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C. |
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Rinna B. Flohr is an interior architect and designer who also is a floral designer and makes jewelry. Her jewelry consists of bracelets, pendants and earrings that she calls “sculpture for the ear”. Rinna believes that in a world where we have become so mobile and where we no longer have offices but cubicles, that walls have disappeared and that our bodies have once again become the pedestals for art as in times long ago when we wandered as nomads and wore our trophies and precious adornments. She is also a floral designer and has had her floral designs exhibited in the Legion of Honor Museum and as part of the San Francisco De Young ‘Museum’s Bouquets to Art show. Her floral art for this show uses silk flowers in arrangements she makes to compliment and express the artwork next to which it is placed, as in the San Francisco Bouquet to Arts Show . This is one of the only galleries that features floral arts. Her work is on display as part of Abundance and Joy. Rinna is also the founder and Director of Expressions Gallery. More of her earrings and floral art can be seen on her website: http://www.designideas.us. |
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Devon Gaster lives in San Francisco and is a florist and floral design instructor with 26 years experience in the Floral industry. He had his own retail floral store for 13 years and taught floral design classes in Hawaii and in San Francisco. For the last two years, he has been teaching classes at the San Francisco Flower Market. Devon Gaster presents his interpretation of Abundance and Joy as part of this current Expressions Gallery show. He will also be doing some demonstrations and classes at the Gallery and will Jury a couple of floral artists, student and public entrant floral art shows and contests during the run of the show. Expressions Gallery is proud to take the lead from the San Francisco Museums who have brought us the Bouquet to Arts Shows at the Legion of Honor and De Young Museums over the years and feature floral arts as another regular art form offered for viewing and sale in its Gallery and as part of its educational program. |
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Paul Graf has a BFA degree from CCA and is currently a member of the Sculpture Faculty at the Academy of Art University in SF, as well as a yearly guest instructor at the Mendocino Art Center. He was originally from Maryland. He presents “sculptural paintings” that reflect his approach to the interface between 2 & 3 dimensional art through the raised textures that are the graphic results. In different lightings and viewed from different angles, many aspects of the image come forward or recede as you move about. |
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Andrew Greene was born September 17th 1982 in Tarzana, CA and raised in a small-town outside of Los Angeles. He has been living in San Francisco for the past two years where, he has and still is attending the San Francisco Art Institute as a Painting Major. His Latest body of work deals with the fluidity of paint and its direct correlation to water. His paintings are created by combining numerous types of paint on the same surface all in liquid form. By doing this, chemical reactions start to occur and the paint takes form to the surface: Moving, searching, and finally finding its resting place. After each piece is finished, it is still alive for a period of 24-100 hours depending on the surface and the amount of paint used. The paintings are done in a state of mind that is regurgitating feelings of every thing from complete and utter sadness to pure ecstasy and joy. The artist has learned over time how the various chemicals react to each other and now guides the process to better express the result he wants. The end result is a painting, which leaves you free to roam, and full of questions. The rules of painting are being broken as represented in each individual piece of art. Andrew hopes to continue pushing not only the boundaries of art but also the boundaries of life. |
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Sofia Harrison is self-taught, she started creating artwork in 1999 and since then has participated in numerous gallery and juried exhibitions in the bay area, with selected shows in New York. She lives and works in Napa and has been commissioned by clients across the country. Sofia uses glass and words with an entirely fresh perspective to create a mixed-media piece that is visually pleasing, intelligent and soulful. "I gather words in much the same manner as a painter mixes paints," she explains. Magazine advertisements are her favorite source for words and phrases: "When taken out of context, they become either particularly funny or especially poignant." Her work embodies the collective thought patterns of our society: fractured but connected, expressing individuality, desire, spirit and reason. She affixes the words to the hand cut glass pieces and then attaches them to mannequins, boxes, sash windows, baby dolls and furniture. The framework chosen is often dictated by what she can, to put it plainly, garbage-pick. "I was driving in Berkeley and spotted an old stool half buried in tall grass in a vacant lot. I almost caused an accident by making a b-line to nab it." Now encrusted with verbiage, the work is entitled Tossed in Berkeley. "I love the process of reincarnation." |
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Patti Heimburger was born in Long Beach, California, and she earned a BA in Studio Art from the University of California in Santa Barbara. She also attended classes and workshops in the states of Washington and California. Ms. Heimburger lived in Seattle, Washington for fifteen years, and currently lives in Alameda, (the Bay Area), California. Ms. Heimburger is an artist who creates textured oil paintings. The texture is created through fabric that is then attached to a canvas surface. These textured surfaces have no reference to the subject matter other than adding complexity. Ms. Heimburger has had solo showings in Oakland, Berkeley, Alameda, and Monterey; and group shows in San Francisco, Carmel, Mill Valley, Fremont, Palo Alto, Belmont, Point Reyes, Ross, San Leandro, Berkeley, Danville, Stockton, Folson, Hayward, Pleasanton, Danville, Sausalito, Sebastopol, San Juan Bautista, and Santa Barbara, (all these cities are in California); and then in the cities of Edmond, Kent and Bainbridge Island that are in Washington State. She has had exhibitions at universities, colleges, Oakland Museum, and art centers throughout the Bay Area, Santa Barbara, Monterey, Modesto, and Oregon. Union Bank in Fremont, California owns five paintings; and private collections in the Bay Area, southern California, Washington, Ohio, Florida, Hawaii, and Mexico. Ms. Heimburger’s first painting class was at the age of thirteen, the French Impressionist style was introduced by her teacher. After graduating from UCSB, she moved to the Bay Area and started developing her own art style. In 1987, the first three-dimensional painting was created; sculpture was introduced in 1990 as a further extension of the relief paintings. For over forty years, Ms. Heimburger has painted still life, landscape, seascape, and gradually more figurative paintings. In the past nineteen years, she has focused on figurative subject matters, and sometimes landscape and seascape paintings. These paintings have evolved into different themes and are always changing. The paintings are usually narrative with vague titles which give little clues, so the viewer can fill-in the story. Some of the paintings are of men and women in different settings, can incorporate dance in someway, whether with just one person or a couple, sometimes pets are incorporated, nature, and the like. In all these paintings Ms. Heimburger is trying to create what she desires, such as showing strength in the ordinary, beauty, tranquility, reverence for nature, and the illusion of a timeless quality. |
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Amarie Hill is a native Californian, born and raised in Los Angeles. She lives north of Los Angeles in Canyon Country. By day, she is a Business/Financial Analyst working at a major utility company. Her artistic career started over 30 years ago as a quilt maker. Four years ago, she went to a scrap booking store with a colleague. She states: “That hour changed my life forever.” She works mostly on canvas and watercolor paper with acrylic paint, pastels and wax. Her work always tells a story…sometimes her own, sometimes someone else’s. Amarie has been published in several art magazines and has several pieces in permanent collections in the USA. She participates in an annual international collage exhibit from New Zealand and has a virtual exhibit that begins March 1, 2007 on http://virtual.tart.co.nz. “Old Love Rusts Not” signifies that those we love as children always remain in our hearts forever. |
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Melanie Hofmann graduated with a BFA in Textiles from the California College of the Arts in 1996. Her home and studio are located in Berkeley. She first explored the joy of creating art in pre-school and she has not stopped since. As a teenager Melanie fell in love with fiber art, specifically with weaving and dyeing fabrics. Three of her recent printed and dyed fabric pieces are in this show. Melanie has received awards from the Taegu International Textile Design competition and from Manhattan Arts International. Limited edition prints of her digital art are in the corporate collection of Lifescan, Inc. in Milpitas. This year, Melanie had a solo exhibition of textiles in the corporate lobby of 255 California Street in San Francisco. Melanie works with both textile and digital media. Her digital work primarily takes the form of limited edition prints, digital video and projected art for theatre and custom designed bracelets. Her work has been inspired by a number of artists including, Jean Miro, Rene Magritte and Magdalena Abakanowicz. She was also influenced by the artwork of her maternal grandmother, Zura Young, an abstract painter. Melanie seeks to convey through her work the interactive process with her media and a visual representation of her inner world. She offers custom designed Italian charm bracelets with digital images of family or other photos incorporated, as well as bracelets featuring her art and the art by other artists in the show. |
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Luitgard Ilg was born and raised in Oberwolfach, in the middle of the black forest in Germany. She is in Berkeley with her husband who is teaching at UC Berkeley. Her interest in art stems from her love of nature. Her first activities in art were beautiful flower arrangements. Later, she started to paint on eggs, mainly flower motifs. At the beginning she used acrylic, but soon she began to experiment with watercolors on paper. She attended numerous courses by well-established artists in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Italy, amongst them Bernhard Vogel. All these artists influenced her style, which is basically naturalistic, but often with a little change to create an artistic expression. Most motifs are taken from nature. The work she is presenting in the show were inspired by here recent visit to Central Park in New York, where the fascinating abundance of colors inspired her. She combined this with grapes from the vineyards of California during her visit to California and entered her work as her interpretation of Abundance and Joy. |
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Kristin Lamb started producing and studying art in high school. She became interested in mural painting in 1996 and she painted her first mural that same year. Kristin graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Art from California Polytechnic State University in 2004. While in college she extensively studied painting and drawing, although she also had a chance to learn about graphic design, ceramics, glassblowing, photography, costume construction and jewelry design. Her work usually consists of a combination of several mediums and has been described as surreal fantasy-scapes. Kristin had the unique opportunity to study textile conservation at Hearst Castle during her senior year in college, during the course of the internship she fell in love with textiles and her most recent work reflects her passion for the medium. In this show, Kristin offers us what she calls “Plushies” which are soft sculpture bringing to “All Heart” cuddly creatures part of childhood joy. Kristin currently works as a Product Development Coordinator for Bentley Art Publishing Co. and as the Expressions Gallery Coordinator. |
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Rafael Landea is
a local Bay Area Artist who came to the United States from Argentina.
His works are exhibited and admired in galleries around the world. He
captures the movement and energy of dance in a number of his series
of |
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Sandra Lo was born in China. She grew up in China and Hong Kong and immigrated to the US in 1989. She started learning drawing at a very young age. Her father, William S. Hung a famous oil painter, has been her teacher. Sandra took some workshops, figure drawing and painting classes but other than that, she is mostly self-taught. She is following in her father’s footsteps, and has become an accomplished painter who works primarily in oil and pastels. Sandra has a full time job in another field but still finds time to paint on lunch hours, evenings and weekends. She is a member of San Francisco Women Artists and her paintings are exhibited at SFWA Gallery in San Francisco, every month. |
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Jennifer Wallace Mack has a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the San Francisco Art Institute. She works in various media: painting, photography, mixed media, and jewelry. Her work is consistent in the quality and detail in each medium she applies. She has exhibited at a number of solo, and group shows, many of which were juried. Shown at Expressions Gallery are her mixed media paintings and her magnificent jewelry. Jennifer has served on various Board of Directors for long standing Artist Organizations such as the San Francisco Women Artists where she was a past President and continues n the current Board as Vice Treasurer and The San Francisco Gem and Mineral organization where she is currently Treasurer. |
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Judith Mangiameli lives in Orange County, Ca..She has taken a variety of art classes throughout the years. She specializes in mixed media / assemblage work and often enjoys incorporating found objects into her pieces. She has exhibited works in non-juried and juried exhibits in Los Angeles and Orange Counties. Her pieces have also been in various publications including Observation, Gallery and Somerset Studio Magazine. Judith’s “Love Eternal” assemblage represents both the pain and the healing power of love. This piece is on display in the “All Heart” exhibition at Expressions Gallery. |
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David Miller has lived in the Bay Area for most of his life. His formal education and training was as an Engineer, but from age 6 he wanted to be an artist. “Grandpa told me I didn’t want to be an artist — artists smoked cigarettes and lived in attics. I should be an engineer instead and build bridges. So I became an engineer, and built electronic circuits.” But in high school, he took a correspondence class in art and when he finished engineering school he studied with the Berkeley and New York artist Joan Finton for a couple of years. However, for a while he gave up in frustration because he couldn’t reproduce what he saw on museum walls and tried to ignore his passion for art. He took some classes from Michelle Cassou who helped him learn to ignore the self-criticism when making art and returned to studying with Joan Finton as well as taking many other classes, wherever he could find them. Teachers who have influenced his work include Connie Smith-Siegel, Larry Robinson, Glenn Hirsch, and Jane Rosen.Current explorations include the landscapes of California. |
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Teresa Moore is a Bay Area Artist who is self-taught. She paints mainly with her fingers. Moore creates an atmosphere of nightlife, good times, and fleeting romances. Her images bring to life a world at once sensuous, sophisticated, sometimes sweet yet always alluring. She is never one to shy away from her inner perceptions. Her works reach out beyond the canvas and inhabit an alcove in the viewer's spirit. Her work is described in San Francisco Socialite Magazine as a combination of the sensibilities of Federico Fellini and Tim Burton, which take us to places that seem oddly familiar, whose figures .....suggest the decadence of Weimar Germany and the sensuality of Modigliani. Ms. Moore¹s work has been showcased at exhibits in San Francisco, New York, Miami, Chicago, San Diego, Spain, Italy, and Canada, and is owned by collectors around the globe. |
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Richard Mullinax, BS Ornamental Horticulture, Clemson University, moved to Berkeley this fall after living in Durham, NC for the past decade. Richard is an accidental artist who does outdoor stone and glass bottle art. First, his career as a stone artist began when he designed and built a dry-stacked stone retaining wall around his Durham residence. As neighbors and local residents watched Richard's weekend wall project grow, word of mouth about Richard's talent spread. Soon the demand for his stonework led Richard to shift his career completely into stone design. Recently his career veered again when he collaborated with a guerrilla political protest art group in Durham. Their temporary art installation called "Just Luv" in Durham Central Park drew media attention, compelling Richard to collaborate with the City of Durham on a public art policy for the parks system. As a pack rat, his art is effortlessly reuse. "Bottles casting colored shadows through the air shows that beauty is the dynamic nature of the space around art as much as the work itself." Much of his art changes as people are around it. They see it is simple and non-threatening and they add to it. The best joy for him has been to be in this unspoken community of creation. |
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Udi Peled is a local artist whose work has been purchased for exhibit at the Berkeley Jazz School. In addition, his work adorns many a catalogue cover for UC Berkeley. He has shown his art at various select galleries. Udi was born in Israel, and is now living permanently in the United States. Udi’s versatile works are a favorite amongst local art collectors. He is available for commissioned art works as well as the artworks that are displayed at Expressions Gallery as part of the current show, His heart throbs are wonderful additions to ALL HEART |
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Laura Rattay is a local artist. She is self taught as an artist. She only recently started to make unusual purses out of cardboard and images she assembles. She has sold her work to local clients and other artists. She has chosen to use whimsical, seasonal images of abundance and joy for the purses she made as part of this show at Expressions Gallery. |
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Diego Marcial Rios lives in the Bay Area and paints in acrylics. He graduated with honors with an M.A. from the University of Wisconson at Madison, Department of Fine Arts Graduate School and a B.F.A. from University of California at Berkeley. He received a number of honors scholarships for Academic study. His artwork illustrates many complex social-economic issues faced by contemporary society. About his work he states: “I create art that is visually stimulating to gain initial viewer acceptance. Once this is achieved, the viewer is confronted with ancient symbols of life and death.” The figures and landscapes in the art are inspired by what I have experienced and later dreamed about. Diego’s work has been widely shown throughout the United States and Mexico and he is in a number of Museum Collections:The Auchenbach Foundation Collection at the Palace of the Legion of Honor Museum in San Francisco, Coos Art Museum, Coos Bay, Oregon; Laguna Beach Museum, Laguna Beach, Ca.; Museo National De La Estampa, Mexico City, Mexico, etc.. He has also illustrated a number of books and his work is part of a number of Public Collections: Harriet Taubman Gallery, MD; Mission Cultural Center, SF; The Collector Gallery of the Oakland Museum, Oakland, Ca.; Irish Arts Council, Belfast, Ireland and many more. He has appeared as a speaker on Art and been interviewed on Television. His artwork has been included in many magazines. |
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Michele Rudenko lives in Vallejo, California and is a ceramic artist primarily working in the medium of American Raku. Michele states: “ After many year of expression through a variety of artistic media I found my true passion in ceramics, more specifically through the art of American Raku. I deeply appreciate the entire journey from its beginning as a quiet contemplative moment when I first press my hands into a mass of clay. What follows entails the design and crafting of a piece, it’s burnishing, bisque, glazing and then completing with the Raku firing and post firing reduction phase. My work grows and expands, subjected to a vast range of influences. I love pushing the limits of the clay, experimenting with and fabricating new glazes and firing techniques. American Raku is a specific challenge. While I can and do plan for a particular outcome, the very nature of Raku often creates a result that is surprisingly different from my original vision resulting in the unique power of each piece. Raku is a marvelous lesson in non-attachment, guiding me toward a deeper understanding of myself, the process and abundant possibility. |
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Sandra (Sandy) Ruhl was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area. Educated as an RN, most recently she has worked in oncology and cardiology research. About 10 years ago Sandy discovered photography helped her to see more of the world and gave her a good reason to be outside. Others, when viewing her photographs, said she had a “good eye.” Sandy’s prints and slides have won awards in competitions at the Millbrae Camera Club, the Northern California Council of Camera Clubs, the Mid-Peninsula Photographic Alliance, the San Mateo County Fair, and the San Francisco chapter of the Sierra Club. Sandy has donated photographs to the Burlingame Public Library, the San Mateo County Chapter of the Oncology Nursing Society and the San Mateo Sunrise Rotary Club. She has taken slides for use by the Friends of Mills Canyon in educational presentations and has led two photography walks through the canyon. Her prints have been on display at various San Mateo and Santa Clara county locations, including Filoli. Sandy initially sought to record her impressions of natural beauty. She now also seeks to capture “interesting” images wherever she finds them |
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Zona Sage lives in Oakland, and has explored various art media throughout her life. Recently she has begun exploring fiber sculpture, and is studying with Carol Beadle. “Tell Me Why” explores the challenges of communication in relationships. |
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Randall Sokoloff, is a self-taught artist who sees in color and thinks in shapes. He began painting while in high school where he received support from his then Zen mentor/art teacher who told him “forget art school and the debt that follows. Each day that you are alive try to paint, breathe and be happy.” The artist spent most of his six college years painting, writing and imagining a better world. After college, he decided to dedicate himself to a life of meditation, investigation and “playing with paint.” The particular style in which the artist now paints, came about by accident while reading the poems of Rumi. The technique involves using large amounts of acrylic paint to re-create what the artist imagines emotions, thoughts, physiological processes and objective reality may look like at the cellular level. After being deeply influenced by painters like Joan Miro, Vanessa Bell, Paul Klee, Francis Bacon, Ross Drago and Robert Motherwell- the artist likes to think of his work as mini-investigations into the nature of our fascinating and impermanent realities. For more information please visit RandallSokoloff.xbuild.com. |
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Jessica Stafford was raised and currently lives in Sonoma County. Jessica has been creative and enthralled with art as long as she can remember. In May 2006, Jessica graduated San Diego State University with her BA in Painting and Printmaking and a minor in Art History. The mediums Jessica uses in her work are oil painting, and mixed media. She is interested in examining ideas of gender and exploring ideas of femininity in her work. Jessica has shown in group shows at San Diego State University and San Diego Art Institute. Jessica has also had various solo shows in restaurants, cafes, banks, and salons throughout Petaluma and San Diego. Jessica’s work fits into the theme of All Heart because she explored ideas of sex, love, obsession, and acceptance of one’s self. |
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Jim Stipovich is a photographer who lives in the Kensington, Ca. and works with medium format cameras (Hasselblad and Rolladex). He processes his own film by hand in his private darkroom. Jim began photography at age 15. In high school he worked as a photojournalist for the Humbolt Times/ Standard in 1962, while also attending photography classes at Humbolt State College. From 1965-1970, Jim was an undergraduate a the University of California, Berleley. He studied photography under Margaret d’Hammer and Ruben Samberg, majoring in design Design/Photography. He was Editor and Art Director of The Pelican, an on campus magazine. Post college work included a fellowship at Anatoila College, in Thesolonika, Greece, and work as a freelance photographer and professional black and white darkroom technician. Jim creates vital, direct pictures of people and places that grab the eye of the viewer. His ability to capture detail and definition with high resolution in low light situations is captivating. |
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Charles Webb owns
and operates a film, video and digital media production company
in San Francisco. He has written, produced, directed, and photographed
projects in the United States, Europe and China, that encompass
diverse genres, including national TV commercials (Miller Beer,
Buick, Wishbone, national political candidates, etc.); documentaries
(The Black Panthers/”George Jackson Lives”, “The
Grateful Dead Movie”, martial artists in the People’s
Republic of China “China’s Living Treasures”,
etc.); and nationally released independent features (“Honky-Tonk
Nights”, “Head-On Collision”, “American
Eyeball”). In parallel with these and other film and video
projects, Mr. Webb has created a collection of neo-primitive/neo-shamanic
paintings, sculpture, fetishes, jewelry and other artifacts, which
seem to have “emerged” from an imaginal tribal culture. The
collection intertwines ancient materials (stones, bones, horns,
skins, etc) and methods (painting, molding, cutting, etc.) with
the synthetic and cyber (acrylic polymer paints and clay, digital
scanning and image manipulation, archival large format ultrachrome
printing, etc.). To date, this “evidence” has been
exhibited in San Francisco, Berkeley and Sedona Arizona and pieces
are included in several private collections. |
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