As far as I can remember I always had a lot of fun creating art. Making drawings of crazy characters has always been my way of generating smiles around me. In the year 2003 I began to paint. My basic idea was to transport the characters that I drew on paper to canvas. Starting from scratch, I experimented with oil paints for two years, painting wildly away without a lot of direction. Good times. Then I met this wise man named Jan Buytaert, who taught me how to use acrylic paint. This was the most important change in my painting style. Acrylics were the tools I needed to shape my own little world and bring my little weird characters to life. My main aim while painting is to have fun and enjoy the moment. I want to capture this good vibe in my paintings and transfer it to the public. This usually results in joyful works full of color and positive energy. With my paintings I like to invite viewers to look at the world through the eyes of a child and to revisit a childhood past of curiosity and enthusiastic discovery.
Macro Splash: We create these singular shapes through the collision of water, cream, paint, or ink droplets. Their various shapes and colors depend on the temperature, viscosity, gravity, density, and volume of the liquids we use. We work with black acrylic or pan filled with liquid in order to reflect the splash. Due to the laws of physics, the end result is often the opposite of what you’d expect.
Mega Splash: Our mega splashes, often called “jelly fish”, because they look like a form of marine creatures, are carried out by propelling water mixed with inks or/and paint of different colors, using a compressor. These water sculptures flow in the air to 6 or 8 feet high. The different shapes are obtained by modifying pressure and the pipe of water supply, which allows breaking the original shape of the “jelly fish” into fairy tale flowers for example. Under pressure, the water extracts the dies which will color the water column. The crystal appearance and the magical transparency looks like the work of a glassblower.
Fluid Painting: In the pouring acrylic painting technique, the paint is not applied with a brush or palette knife, but rather use gravity to move the paint across a surface by tilting it. The results are unlike anything you can get with a brush. The fluid flows without any brush marks or texture. We take macro photography of this psychedelic paint while it still wet and alive by choosing the best swirls. Things always look so different once dry. Our technique: Our splash photographs reveal unique liquid sculptures, created by the collision of water, cream, paint, or ink droplets or by using gravity to move the paint across a surface by tilting it. These liquids in motion are frozen in time by a high-speed flash of light. Our art prints are created with a dye sublimation process on aluminum so the colors become a magical luminescence.
Original handmade micro-macramé and beaded jewelry. I get inspiration from natural forms and work mostly with natural materials—thread, silver, and semi-precious stones. I like simple beauty, but also enjoy more elaborate and intricate designs. lillianeelysian.com
I paint a watercolor every day, and post these on my blog, Have Watercolors Will Travel. It’s become a ritual, a meditation of sorts. Finding inspiration and painting daily forces me to really look at the world.
Specializing in custom fused glass jewelry, and unique fused glass functional and recycled glass. Whether you are looking for a special piece for your home, as a gift, or a unique and one of a kind piece of jewelry, you’ll find it at Limestone Art & Glass.
Varied styles ranging from military/aviation, surreal/sci-fi, realism and abstract paintings. Detail-oriented works composed of oil and acrylic on canvas. (Bio below)
Market manager Mitch Cohen interviewed Jack for his arts column in The Leader Newspaper. Read it here!
From the thriving city of Houston, Texas, Jack Connelly is an artist whose passion is capturing history, action, wonder and imagination on canvas. Jack has been creating art since the moment he could lift a pencil, and has been an active participant in the professional art world for about 35 years.
In Jack’s opinion, painting is one of the most unrestricted and freeing forms of expression. Most of his pieces are created in acrylic and/or oil paint, although Jack has extensive experience with watercolor, graphite, and mixed media as well.
In the 1980’s and 1990’s, Jack took on a nomadic lifestyle as a full-time art show vendor, displaying his art in an average of three to four shows a week in the South Texas area. Jack has also taught several art classes in the past (and wishes to teach more in the future), and enjoys sharing his knowledge, experience, and guidance with others in order for them to learn and practice painting, as well as develop their art skills and techniques.
Jack Connelly’s styles include (but not limited to) military & aviation, sci-fi, surrealism, realism, impressionism, and abstract art.
Commission paintings are regularly requested and are a major part of Jack’s art career. Many of Jack’s commissions have been for veterans or their families, in hopes of passing down their legacy and honor those who have served their country. He loves to take memories, events, dreams, ideas, etc. and bring them to life on canvas. This gives him the ability to share his passion with others while providing for them a unique keepsake; their personal story told in paint and filled with detail, never to be forgotten.
I am a professionally trained artist having earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Houston. Since then I have continued practicing my craft exploring various styles, materials and techniques creating highly detailed pieces. While my work is diverse both in choice of medium and subject matter, it centers around nature and organic forms.
Valerie Gudell, 3D mixed media artist, was born in NYC. She currently works in Houston, TX, where she creates assemblage art as well as vinyl and clay creatures with unique and sometimes complex personalities. Her main artistic influences include the Steampunk genre, Asian culture, and street art.
During the past few years, Valerie has shown her work at the Japanese American National Museum (Los Angeles, CA), Irving Arts Center (Irving, TX), ShockBoxx Gallery (Hermosa Beach, CA), CraftBoston, d’Art Center (Norfolk, VA), and the San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts (San Angelo, TX). She has shown her work locally at the First Saturday Arts Market, Ardest Gallery, Texas Art Asylum, Winter Street Studios, and Art Museum TX. Her work has been featured in the Houston Press, Culturemap, The Leader, the LA Beat, and the OC Register, among others. Valerie is currently an artist at Hardy and Nance Studios (Houston, TX).
Zen Morris-VMGWater Rabbit-VMGRudo-VMGRabbitmonsters-VMGJellybean Monsters-VMGJellybean Monsters-VMGGarbage Party or HOA Meeting
I’m an old hippie whose jewelry making began 20 years ago when on a dare my wife signed me up for a beginner beading class at a local bead shop. I was hooked pretty quickly and began making women’s jewelry using silver, stone and crystal beads and constantly learning techniques to make better pieces. While beading is still a passion, most of my work now is with chain and wire wrap.
Five years ago on yet another dare, I began making rings from old silver coins. I don’t cut or solder the coins. One coin makes one ring and the detail from both sides of the coin is preserved and visible. I fell in love with working metal, and am constantly learning new techniques and exploring the boundaries of turning old coins into cool jewelry. Taking something like a 100-year-old coin and turning it into something it was never intended to be has been an unbelievably rewarding journey, and I love that the possibilities are endless.
