Emerging Artist Virtual Exhibition

Odalys Torres
Wing to Wing Snout to Snout
2020
Oil and acrylic on canvas
2, 14 x 14 inches

I created this diptych to both highlight and make aware the relationships being altered as a result of the pandemic, whether those be political, social, or interpersonal relationships. I utilized animals associated with past pandemics or societal shifts and rather than discredit their beauty, chose to feature it in the work. I was being torn apart by the fear that came with the pandemic and utilized my art to alleviate that stress. It relates to the theme in that it aims to break that negative haze looming atop us and make aware the fact that we must remain mindful of each other during this troublesome time. It appears as though life has come to a dramatic halt and the woman is meant to represent that shift, alerting us to move forward rather than remain in our zombified state.

Robert Jacka
Waiting and hoping
2020
Watercolor
18×24

I set out to work on new paintings during the shut down.

Jasmine Vergara
Sanctuary
2020
Photography
730 KB

"Photographs, by their nature, are acts of holding on to something that exists elsewhere and at another time, or no longer exist--or maybe never existed at all except in the picture." -Letinsky Due to the Covid 19 pandemic, we were mandated to seek sanctuary in our home. Being at home for me is being in tune with myself and my surroundings. This photograph is a reflections of a time and place where I felt exactly in the moment or at least aspire to be. It serve as evidence to a non-tangible moment of safety and peace coexisting with the calamity of the world. These are what I’ve seen, colors that I’ve felt and silence that I heard. My photograph’s aesthetic symbolism are the narrative of my self-reflections; the presence of light that contrast the dark; the dim lamp enough for me to see what I need to see, that is what I try to capture in my image. This tiny personal space refers to the small glimmer of hope that I suppose everyone must be holding onto; small and may be limiting but in the moment is exactly what I need to survive. Prior to editing in Photoshop, the process of capturing the image is very much part of my medium as it is the ritual that makes me gravitate to such scene. A long drive, a rainy day, the dusk, some of which are the ingredients to the taste. These photograph serve as documentation to an otherwise temporal moments of personal journeys. Although it has a retrospective aesthetic, the experience I have as I view them is always a new experience therefore becomes a present moment. Letinsky, Laura. “Morning, and Melancholia.” Eating Architecture, by Jamie Horwitz and Paulette Singley, MIT, 2006, pp. 208.

T. Faye Griffin (aka "tperiod")
Refined Chaos
2020
Mixed media
16x20

Inspired by the unimpeded growth taking place in my usually manicured front yard, it depicts how refined beauty can emerge from chaos.

Janae White
Power
2019
Acrylic
24 x 36

Show the power of standing up for what you believe. Taking a stand and finding the inner pieces.

Mia Caporale
Untitled
2020
Marker of vellum paper
19x24

I began this piece at the beginning of the Los Angeles safety in place order and was inspired by the stories of joy in the bleakest of times from around the world. One story came from Italy about nurses who kept the spirits of their patients up by finding time in their day to dance no matter how vulnerable the hospital, reminding us always to find joy in that we love as life is fleeting.

Elizabeth Nunez
Butterfly Life
2019
Acrylic
7" x 10"

Butterflies represent cycle of life, endurance, hope and growth. Colorful wings combined with flowers & plants brings unity to our soul and spirit to maintain positive during this rollercoaster ride.

Paz Winshtein
The Dream and the Reality
2020
Acrylic on wood
18x24in

This painting depicts my younger sister who was supposed to marry this May but that was delayed due to the covid 19 pandemic and she also works in a covid 19 ward in a hospital. This paintings shows her going forward and being hero in her work despite her dream of being a bride.

Selicia Kennedy-Ross
“Reborn In Gold”
2020
Acrylic, glass, paper, quartz, rock, mother-of-pearl
18”x14”

My art represents the cycle of the butterfly, which is reborn from the chrysalis, emerging fresh and more beautiful than before over a golden earth and the blue sea. We are essentially in hibernation during this quarantine - a time of rebirth where the Earth is taking a breath and so are we - and like the butterfly we will emerge into a cleaner Earth more beautiful than before.

Marina Kamel
Positive Energy Through Nature
2018
DSLR Canon T3, 75-300mm
6.667 in X 4.443 in

The title of this particular photo is "Positive Energy Through Nature". Through nature, you can let go of hardships, if even for a second; allowing yourself to take in a breath of fresh air and looking up to the sky to see that there will once again be a light.

Ernesto Gomez
Light after the Lockdown
2020
watercolor and ink
9.5 in. x 7.25 in.

It is inspired by the hope for light and clarity when we are able to emerge after the pandemic.

Daisy Diaz
nature untitled
2018
oil
24x30

During this time one of the most healing things one can do is take a walk. So this painting represents nature and one part of the world that we can turn to during this pandemic.

Kamelyta Noor
Livin' La Vida Rona
2020
Acrylic on Canvas
30" x 40"

So here's my take on living in this Coronavirus era. Quite fascinating really. Who would have thought. Can't do this. Can't go there. Can't eat there. Can't hug. Can't kiss. Can't do sh*t. All in the name of love. You love me, you don't f**king touch me!! Hah! Oh well. We do what we need to do. As long as we have fun doing it!

Sara Sarafrazfard
folk identity
2020
pencil on cardboard
27x40

As I always do the big canvas, this corona time forced me to stop home far from my studio and I was run out of big sheets at home, so I start to work on small sheet of paper at home then it was the time I start drawing at all after years. it was a big opportunity to start a new project that I always looking for.

Kiyana Boroumand
"Swan Lake platform in cement/ Leda is watching contact prints of her photos with the swan"
2020
Printmaking/etching/aquatint
20X30 cm

The only way by which I have managed to drill down the void, death and depression during quarantine was doing art to attribute a meaning to life

Maryam Boroumand
Untitled
2020
Mono-type and Mixed media
21X31 cm

Finding light through the heavy shadow of death over the city

Miggie Wong
100 Huis on Delaware Ave Project 023.
2020
Drawing on paper
7x10in

100 Huis on Delaware Ave Project publishes a collection of mementos and forward momentum during Covid19. As a new arrival prior to the Pandemic, Buffalo’s historical Delaware Avenue has become essential for my nearest routine walk and the initial inspiration for this project. The process of drawing these reimagined houses shapes my new adapted daily structure with labor and discipline. It motivates my daily art practice with a strict drawing schedule and guidelines. It also urges me to review and preserve history and culture while recording and creating my own for today. This project serves as a psychological response of how I cope with this global, uncontrollable intensity by creating a personal, controllable intensity. When the project is finished, it will be published as a coffee table coloring book for people to continue to reimagine these houses in their own way.

Maria Dovganiuk
The Meat Grinder
2018
Glass
20cmx20cm

The life grinder: Our reality is full of changes and the only thing we can do is take the best from it. Through this fun process I pass hot liquid glass through a meat grinder. No matter what difficulties happen in our lives, you can always relax, cool down and recycle.

Kandra Scullin
"Defying Adversity"
2020
Mix Media
15"x22"

I go outside everyday and am amazed at all the signs of spring with beautiful plants that are growing in spite of this time of devastating adversity. They bring hope for a brighter future...for life.

Philip Baca
Sasquatch in the Desert
2020
Ceramics
14" x 10" x 14"

"Believe in yourself, especially when no one else will" - Sasquatch I think it is important to focus on the positivity in our lives to help us get through difficult times. The folklore behind Bigfoot has always fascinated me. The mystery behind the stories and the small fraction of a percent that Bigfoot could exist excites the child in me. Sasquatch in the Desert is in a way an extension of those stories. It is known that Bigfoot sightings tend to happen in woodland areas, but I wanted to bring Bigfoot to the desert. Sculpted out of air-dry clay Bigfoot will be out hiding in the Coachella Valley for the next person finds the elusive furry creature. That is unless he disappears...

Aureliano Mora Martinez
It’s Just A Mask
2020
Acrylic on Canvas
8 x 10”

Self isolation and taking extra health precautions are new concepts the public is getting accustom to. Not everyone abides to wearing protection. It’s nice to have the freedom to choose our appearances by what we wear and isolating in our own homes.

Madeline Rile Smith
Instrument for Connection and Compromise
2019
Glass
38”x 19.5” x 16”

This instrument contains an optimistic hopefulness for post-pandemic times. To activate this trumpet, the player’s collective exhalations must mix together to create a sound- in a collaborative and combative battle of the breaths. This act of improbable intimacy suggests an antidote to the ubiquitous distance we are all experiencing. Our collective fear of contamination is equal to our desire for connection. In the age of the COVID-10, the act of breathing can no longer be taken for granted. A healthy unencumbered breath, one required for playing such an instrument, is revealed to be a gift.

Esther Shaw
BIRD CALLS
2020
oil and acrylic on canvas
42" x 42"

Daily walking in the outdoors has become a source of comfort and exercise to me during this quarantine. While walking, I have noticed how quiet it has become with less traffic, construction and workers about and in place of the noise, I hear the birds. Their calls, songs, chirps and tweets fill the sky and direct my sight to them, which is always a fascination and I'm reminded of my love of life.

Duan Kellum
Certainty
2020
Multimedia: Ink, paint and fire on wood.
24 x 24 inches

This is a therapeutic piece for me. It allowed me to step out of my norm and explore the inner emotions of creativity.

Larry Perez
Mystery man
2020
Oil paint on canvas
16x20in

Self reflection, to search for the pursuit of contention.

Angel Sanchez
You Don't Know How Much This Means To Me
2018
Construction Paper, Oil Pastels
5.4 x 5.4 inches

Your friends are one of a kind, and so is your family. We live in an era where it's possible to see each others faces and hear each others voices in real time, without them even being physically in front of us! if someone told us that was possible 50 years ago they wouldn't believe it! We're so lucky. There's a saying that's been around for a long while, and if no ones ever told it to you, make sure you say it to the people you love with every inch of your being. " I love you to the moon and back". If someone can love someone to the moon and back, then someone can love you from a safe distance of 6 feet apart. Humor and love are essential, and aren't going anywhere.

Armando Quezada
ASTRO
2020
Digital Art
1620px width by 2160px height

I have always enjoyed digital art but have never had enough time to learn how to draw digitally let alone create something of my own. This quarantine time has given me the chance to spend my time productively by learning a new form of art that I can implement in my career as a graphic designer.

Steven Lawrence
Outside No. 1
2020
Oil, acrylic, found paper, collage
13.5 inches (width) by 18 inches (height)

I found myself thinking of the environment and wanting to be back outside and being positive in thinking that eventually all this Covid-19 thing will end and we can safely have that time again outside with nature and with others, SO, the color and form of my painting is an attempt to evoke a warm feeling and hope.

Melora Garcia
Still Here
2019-2020
Linoleum Block Print with Hand Embroidery and Watercolor
7.5 in x 11 in

My artwork is illustrating how amidst the chaos, we can find positivity and beauty in the little things in life, like going out into a back yard to watch the clouds and admire nature. We don't always have to be working crazy like bee's, sometimes we need take a deep breath and smell the flowers. We are still here, alive, and it's all going to be okay because we have each other.

Nicholas Aceves
Earth Day
2020
Painting: Acrylic and Gouache on Canvas
24x26

During these troubling and uncertain times, a positive thing that has come with it is that it allowed me to get back into painting and producing artwork in a matter I’ve haven’t done in quite some time. Now that I’m home almost 24/7, it has allowed me to slow down my created process and focus on creating work that's much more personal and fulfilling. Over the last two years, I’ve switched mostly to creating digital artwork, which then can easily be printed serval times over. Now with my bespoke paintings, I’ve become more connected with my artwork and such my enthusiasm has highen when finishing each piece. My current series of paintings harkens back to my previous usage of topography marking and geometric shapes, however now I'm exploring that same concept, but with the use of brighter and bolder colors, and changing up the topographic line work.

Matthew Dickerson
The brighter things in life
2020
Digital file
20" x 30"

I feel that it is important to remember and appreciate oneself during a time of crisis. As we may not be able to see loved ones or do the activities we would like to do, a person should be reminded that that sometimes giving into a selfish need is important to for one’s selfcare. With the negativity in the world now I personally like to remind myself everyday “At least I’m still alive”.

Gabriel Quiroz Luarte
Person Staring
2020
Oil on Canvas
2.5MB

My artwork portrays the themes of learning life lessons and appreciating life through human emotions. As humans, we experience and feel different emotions during good and bad experiences we encounter. In this piece, I use my encountered experiences during recent events to portray my version of the world through the beauty of nature. The beauty of nature that surrounds us, and my appreciation to live and experience it inspired every brush stroke, painting knife technique and color on the canvas.

Annabella Ostorga
Growing Through It
2020
Acrylic Paint
8x20 (2 8x10 canvases)

During this chaotic and uncertain time, there is still room for growth. I know some people might be struggling, I myself am personally struggling with my mental health through this, but through everything, there's even just a sliver of something good. For my artwork, throughout the chaos of lines that go nowhere, dark colors that seem unhopeful, there's a bright path in there wanting to be explored, wanting to be found.

Nina Hudelmaier
the Illusion of a dream
2020
Acryl
60×80 cm

Where do you want to hide during these difficult times? Don't we all dream of such an beautiful place in heaven. The bubbles stand for the Illusion. The illusion that we all have of security. Something that Corona has shown us does not exist. We had an illusion in our mind. But dreams like this keep us stay positive.

David Luna
Marathon
2020
Digital photography
6000 x 3376 px

This photo represents the personal determination to keep a connection with a loved one while maintaining a physically healthy lifestyle. Our connection to the outside world cannot stop but caution shouldn't be taken likely. The mind needs the same attention as the body and I believe maintaining connections with our loved ones can take us to a better position to care for the body. This Lock down has given me a new hobby of bike riding. This has resulted in me sharing my new hobby with my girlfriend while maintaining mental and physical health. It is important to find an outlet for expression and communication.

Steven Thomas
BEACHCOMBER
2020
archival pigment print
17" X 51"

This is a 180-degree perspective of the shore at Surf Beach, California, captured in December of 2019. The storm had cleared and the light was healing. The music in my mind’s ear was a riff from Phillip Glass. I started working on this image in April of this year and with a feeling that the world is being bathed with a topsy-turvy normal, the upside-down started to make sense.

Carly Lake
Overpass No.2
2020
Watercolor
18" x 12"

Overpass No.2 is about taking time to review and sit with our lives and the places we live in. The composition of the freeway overpass is a familiar one to most Americans, especially those living in the Southern California metropolis. The freeway simultaneously exists on our landscape as a border and as a branch of connecting veins. For me, it is both a physical and mental space that I return to within the solitude of my vehicle. For better or worse, this pandemic has disrupted my routine of commuting and at the same time has allowed me the extra time to explore the symbolism of the freeway, giving me space for self reflection.

Lana Klaib
Return to Nature
2020
Acrylic Paint
11X14

In the midst of the quarantine and Shelter in Pace policies in the US and around the world, many major city streets have been emptied. Animals that used to hide have emerged and made the city streets their own. Rates of air pollution have significantly decreased, and rivers have been cleaner than they have been in many years

Alexandria Peña
Out of this World Conversation
2019
Watercolor, Gouache
9x12

I believe this piece reminds me it is important to create not only for yourself but for other people. Using bright colors and child like imagery hopefully it can good feelings and optimism.

Alyssa Vidal
Echos of Self Reflection
2020
Oil &Acrylic
20'' x 16''

I choose to think of 2020 as a time of opportunity. Slowing down is a gift. The silver lining is time for self reflection. Digging deeper, layer by layer, loving your past and present self. Healing and releasing experiences and beliefs that are no longer beneficial. It is the opportunity to center, shape beliefs, participate in self creation and practice patience. I am grateful for the ability to look within and allow my light to shine.

Daniel Escamilla
Chillona Pero Chingona
2020
Digital Media
5.2

I was able to do a photograph for this starter up clothing company. It was very limited in which we photographed in the backyard of the models house. These where the images I was able to share.

Biaina Nazari
Self portrait 2
2020
Charcoal
18x24

Staying at home because of Covid-19 gave me the opportunity to spend more quality time with my family and specially with my son. I am very grateful for this, and we enjoy making artworks together. The image attached is a portrait of my son and I done by me.