Color Study 6 - Best of Show, Gracie Award

Paul Gravett I explore the intersections of photography and contemporary art, where light and color become the subject matter, revealing rich palettes, layered rhythms, and textures. All my images start in the camera, looking beyond the object itself to explore unseen elements and abstractions. As reality recedes, light, color, and pattern create fragments of a mysterious otherness in these painterly images. 'The Color Study' series is based on one of the most essential of photographic techniques: depth of field. Colored papers and transparencies are carefully arranged on glass shelves, stacked three to six deep to create a three-dimensional collage. Each layer is captured in focus, with the other layers softened or out of focus. The multiple images are then stacked and blended in Photoshop, but the manipulation is minimal so that the images can remain spontaneous. Each image is fully planned at the beginning, but the experimental technique allows shapes, colors, depths, and light to interact in ways that are entirely unpredictable and joyfully unexpected. Photography, archival ink, paper, frame, acrylic 22 " x 22" US$500.00

Consonance and Dissonance

Rick Rogers Over the past two years I have begun to explore universally recognizable symbols. By re-imagining these symbols I hope to present their idealistic beauty, while also examining the current real-world issues. I want to re-contextualize the symbol, giving viewers space to respond aesthetically and emotionally, and to form their own interpretations and opinions. This new body of work began during the 150th anniversary of Canada’s confederation in 2017. What began as a simple aim to deconstruct and reconstruct the Canadian flag resulted in an exploration of the power of symbolism. For artists, symbols provide access to shared emotional connections and compelling concepts, which are already embedded in the psyche of viewers. 'Consonance and Dissonance' uses a wide range of experimental media. Layers of original collage materials were created by mixing, pouring, and curing acrylics. I used a combination of many techniques and tools that I have been developing over the past six years, discovered through research, methodical experimentation, and the occasional accidental discovery. The experiments rely upon research into my materials and many scientific principles: density, immiscibility, surface tension, dissolution, Brownian motion, Rayleigh-Taylor instability, and media properties - including a pigment’s specific gravity, media density, and transparency. I have developed my own designs for a four point mechanically balanced glass pouring tables. I also employ several novel techniques, including one that uses two types of oil-based additive, two concentrations of isopropyl alcohol, polyethylene films, and a butane torch. With experimentation comes obstacles. I wanted to avoid crazing in the dried media, while finding the most effective acrylic paint release mechanism, as well as reliable information about the pigments used in my paints. As with many experimental artistic processes, the ability to reliably reproduce an effect is its own challenge. Mixed media - acrylic, paper 36" x 36" x 2" US$2,075.00

Springs ’n’ Things

Jules Silver I consider my work to be experimental in nature. I may have a general notion of the ideas, colors, or materials that I want to incorporate, but as I progress the work seems to take on a life of its own. I like combining various found or recycled objects into my works. Sometimes they end up being whimsical. Other times a political statement emerges, or a statement about life. I consider most art to be an experiment - especially abstract art. My art is always an experiment, testing the boundaries of what I do, or do not, know and what I can create. I am often surprised when I take a step back and see the piece unfolding into something totally unexpected. I like following the greats of abstract art, seeing if I can incorporate something of their styles, or expand upon their thinking as I create something of my own. Taking a rough idea of something Jackson Pollock or Robert Motherwell might do and then making it into a 3-dimensional piece incorporating new materials and found objects. Experimental art is a challenge and I love a challenge. I love the creativity and I love the freedom it brings to me. And to that end my business name is Ipaint2bfree. Acrylics, found objects, magazines, photographs, music sheets, and springs 40" x 30" x 3" US$1,250.00

Great Balls Of Yarn - Honorable Mention Award

Trish Zimbalatti While I work with photography, I endeavor to imbue the flat images with the 3-dimensionality of their original subjects. To bring a photo back to life, I deconstruct an image and then rebuild it layer upon layer. I am experimenting with different types of photographic papers, as well as various techniques and tools used to manipulate each piece, be it realistic or abstract. Mixed Media and photography 22" x 28" US$3,000.00

Bobbles - Third Place Award

Jan Filiarski To bring this work to fruition, I used over 30 different procedures and materials, many of which I had never worked with before. It has acrylic paint, oil pastel, newspaper printing techniques, paint applied with a roller, newspaper strips with paint applied between the strips, charcoal lines, sanded charcoal powder, watercolor pencil, paint applied through a cardboard printing process, Caran d’Ache pencils, graphite pencil, watercolor and acrylic sprays, and much more. Acrylic paint and mixed media on canvas 16" x 12" x 1.5" US$525.00

Kintsugi Earth II

Rajul Shah With the advent of the Covid-19 pandemic, I have been looking for ways to inspire others through my artwork. I have quite a few paintings that I have put to the side, pieces that do not work or that I consider to be damaged goods. After living in Japan for 8 years, I was inspired by the Japanese art of Kintsugi – the art of repairing broken pottery using gold. It is a practice that embraces flaws. By repairing such imperfections, we are taught that broken objects can be healed and embraced, renewed to be even more precious than they were before. I wanted to mimic this in paintings, considering what this pandemic has shown us regarding humanity and climate change. I cut up my paintings, gathered up acrylic skins (left over from previous poured paintings projects), created new acrylic skins, and glued all these materials onto wood panel using acrylic medium. I filled in the cracks with 23 kt gold leaf - much like a kintsugi artist does with broken pieces of pottery. Coating the surface using layers of transparent medium and paint provided depth. Lastly, I applied bits of gold leaf, connecting the various sections of the work. The result - a 2D version of the art of Kintsugi, capturing a vision of the Earth, waiting to be mended and healed. Acrylic and 23 kt gold on wood panel 20" x 16" x 1" US$2,500.00

Fiesta

Patricia Abraham Large and small shapes scattered throughout the composition create the feeling of confetti. I experimented with color to achieve an intense, dramatic black. Together the colors and shapes of all sizes evoked, for me, the feeling for the title: 'FIESTA'. Watermedia 20" x 15" US$1,200.00

Lifelines Bracelet

Whitney Hampton With this bracelet, I wanted to create my own interpretation of the myth of the Three Fates, exploring what a lifeline could look like using metal and wire. I used forging techniques as a metaphor for those moments of falling backward, spiraling, twisting, and stretching, all while we have other lifelines coming and going from our own. The wire dances above and below the bracelet and taking different forms with each new chapter. The lifeline is unique to the wearer. Brass, copper, and silver 6" x 1" x 1" US$1,800.00

Garden Tapestry - Merit Award

Bette Lisitza I have been experimenting with new processes to create my own collage materials, resulting in works which are more personally meaningful. For much of my work, I use close-up photos of sections of my previous paintings, as well as my own photos of interesting patterns that I have found on flowers and personal objects. For ‘Garden Tapestry’, I began to experiment with stitching images using black thread on fabric to create original drawings. Both the photos and fabric drawings are scanned and then printed onto tissue paper, which is then used in my artworks. With these two processes, the possibilities for my collage practice are limitless. Acrylic and collage 30" x 30" US$816.00

Kimono

Judi Coffey This painting celebrates my affection for oriental pottery. Using only gouache and circle mats, the shapes just evolved. I love the bright colors and their joyful feeling. Gouache 22" x 22" US$500.00

I'LL BE THERE IN TEN - Merit Award

Ingrid Albrecht This painting was created on a Yupo synthetic paper surface. In order to emphasize the movement of the main character, parts of his legs were blended into the background to indicate rapid movement. Transparent watercolor 20" x 26" US$5,600.00

Coronavirus Series #2 “Despair”

Patsy Tidwell-Painton After more than a month of being confined to my home I decided to experiment, and to paint how I felt. I have since completed 8 paintings that are completely different from anything that I had previously created. Acrylic and collage on canvas 18" x 18" x 1" US$500.00

We're in This Together

Kat Masella The work began as an emotional response to the current pandemic. I threw wax paint onto a hot plate and began to work. The image revealed itself as I manipulated the monotype further, adding in oil paint and cold wax. Oil and mixed media 24" x 18" US$1,000.00