Celebrations Show Artists
Below read about each of the artists that entered artwork into the Celebrations Show
Artist Mary Atwood
Mary has three pieces in the Celebrations show: "Play Ball, The Horse Soldier Parade and Vive la France." |
Author and fine art photographer Mary Atwood is a long-time resident of the Florida’s First Coast area whose deep appreciation of its natural beauty, rich history and diverse culture is often reflected in her work.
As the daughter of a World War II military photographer, Mary grew up with a camera in hand. Her earliest memories of taking photographs are of using a Kodak Brownie when she was six years old. From there, her experiences involved learning to use a wide variety of camera equipment from Polaroid to Hasselblad, and just about everything in between. Mary’s fine art photography is included in numerous public, private, and corporate collections in the both the United States and France. She was the recipient of the Community Foundation of Northeast Florida’s prestigious Art Ventures grant in 2011, has done commissioned work for MOCA Jacksonville, and was invited by the Sister Cities organization of Nantes, France to exhibit her First Coast Reflections project as part of the inaugural celebration for la Maison des Etates-Unis (The American House) during the summer of 2013. |
Artist Annelies Dykgraaf
Annelies Dykgraaf was born in Nigeria where she lived for 18 years. She has a BFA from Calvin College and studied in France through the Cleveland Institute of Art. Annelies moved from Michigan to Florida in 2001.
In 2008, Annelies was awarded an Art Ventures grant from the Community Foundation in Jacksonville. She is a founding member of Jacksonville Cultural Development Corporation (2004)(f/k/a JCAAA) and The Art Center Cooperative Inc. (2005). She served on the Board of the Beaches Fine Arts Series for 12 years and is currently the President of the Jacksonville Artists Guild. Her art is mainly in relief work; carving into a block of wood or linoleum depicting people, symbols, textile patterns and motifs of West African culture/myths. |
Here piece for the Celebration Show is "Talking Drums". Annelies is a founding and current member of TAC and a Honorary Board Member. You can see more of her work on our site by visiting her artist page CLICK HERE
Artist Cookie Davis
COOKIE DAVIS is a native of Jacksonville and has been involved in the art community since the early 1970s both as an exhibiting artist and as a volunteer chairperson and board member of a number of cultural organizations and events. Ms. Davis’ sculptures and paintings are stories without words. She says of her work, “Over the years I have filled many sketch books with ideas and themes for sculptures. Beginning in early 2016, I began to translate some of these ideas into paintings...Story People on Canvas.” Cookie has work in permanent collections both nationally and internationally and is proud to have been the first recipient in 2014 of the Robert Arleigh White Award for Art Advocacy presented by the Cultural Council of Jacksonville.
See Cookies three pieces in the Celebrations Exhibit "New Dancin' Shoes, Mothers and Daughters, and Joy to the World." |
Artist Ed Malesky
Don't miss Ed's sculpture "Oak Fire Fountain" in our
Celebrations Show. |
Ed is a Board Member of TAC and the Immediate Past President.
Ed has always been interested in woodworking and developed his skills to focus on woodturning as art. He feels that creating his art always starts with a beautiful form. Turning wood into these forms is a truly tactile and very enjoyable experience, complicated by the fact that wood is an organic material that moves and distorts as it dries or contains hidden defects. Sometimes he can use these features and sometimes he needs to plan ahead to get the form he wants. A beautiful form can be enough, especially when he has used a spectacular piece of wood. However, his real goal is to draw an emotional response from the viewer, so often this initial form is just the canvas for his work. He loves adding color and texture to his pieces using dyes, paints, pyrography and other processes that allows the viewer to see something beyond just a piece of wood. |
Artist Julie Feldman
To contact Julie about any of her work, she can be emailed at: [email protected]
To find out more about Julie visit her website at: www.JulieFeldmanStudio.com Also visit her on Instagram at: @JulieFeldmanStudio Juline has one piece displayed at the Celebrations Show called "Kick Up Your Heels". |
Julie Feldman is an artist now living in Jacksonville, Florida, after more than 30 years in Los Angeles. Throughout her career, she has immersed herself in several different types of media.
As a weaver, she designed large scale wall hangings for commercial and residential interiors. She also designed a line of hand painted textiles that were made into pillows, wall hangings and floor coverings. For several years, she worked with dried grains, branches and botanicals to create large scale botanical arrangements. Four years ago, Julie returned full time to painting. She began with small canvases, usually starting with a photograph that held a special meaning for her. As faces and figures emerge, the image is often blurred and sanded, until it is on the verge of fading away. This is when the presence becomes stronger. Julie is a former member of Women Painters West, The Los Angeles Art Association, Collage Artists of America, and more recently, the O’Hanlon Center for the Arts in Mill Valley, California. Now that she is living in Florida, she hopes to focus all of her energy on becoming a part of its vital art community and is proud to be a new member of the Jacksonville Artists Guild. |
Artist Laurence Walden
|
|
Laurence Walden has 2 pieces in this show: "Disneyland Celebrations", and "Mardi Gras Indian Celebrations".
|
The incredible artist, Laurence Walden, (Known as Blinky by all who love him), is an incredible, multi-talented gentleman who is a native of Chicago. Now residing in Jacksonville, Florida, Walden is a self-taught visual artist as well as an accomplished jazz vocalist, playwright and historian.
He has received worldwide accolades for his innovative art. One of Walden's visual art rendering specialties is creating decorative masks out of fine dining silverware and other precious objects. He also creates abstract paintings, mixed media colleges, murals and portraits. He also designs and creates wearable art accessories including clutch purses, steampunk hats, t-shirts and jewelry. |
Artist Robyn Freedman
Robyn has one piece in the Celebrations show, "Plant Based Party Celebration".
Find out more about Robyn and her art on her website theflyingbirdnest |
Originally, my career began in advertising and design. This was a time when we did everything by hand. That background has continued to be a part of my daily life. Florida based, I have been honing in on my drawing and painting skills for the past several years. Going back to basics to exercise my hands with pencils and brushes, watercolors has become my favorite medium, again.
My goal has been to find a way to bring what I see, to be full of life on the page. My pencil and brushes don’t stop. There is a constant use of movement and energy within my work, as well as a strong set of colors from my surroundings. The beach, the sand, the sky, the sunshine, the garden, the flowers, and all the beauty around me inspires my passion for vibrant color. With my name being Robyn, it is fitting that I be associated with bird nests. theflyingbirdnest is symbolic of the numerous homes and locations that I have moved to, while managing to maintain my artistic spirit. I find myself yearning to continue to learn and develop so I can continue to drop art into my nest. |
Artist Linda Lv Illgner
Linda has one piece in the Celebrations Exhibit called "Born on the Fourth of July."
|
A very special friend gave me a collage with these words by Georgia O’Keefe that guide me, “Nobody sees a flower - really - it is so small it takes time - we haven't time - and to see takes time, like to have a friend takes time.”
My work is an invitation to take time. I offer original collage pieces using handmade paper and found altered paper that add details to discover the more you study a piece. My work is meant to inspire, encourage, and motivate the viewer. With an interior design background and working in the building industry for over 25 years, attention to detail becomes second nature. The details in the collages are my way of bringing the viewer in, stimulating your eyes with inspiring words, textures, or images that excite you and yet require you to take time; time to stop, look, feel, listen. |
Artist Deborah Lightfield
Art reflects the artist’s surroundings, beliefs, and experiences. The more I paint, meet people, visit galleries, and study art history, the more I enjoy this journey of exploration.
My artistic intention is for my art to interpret these subjects while using a variety of expressive, interesting, and bold colors and textures. I enjoy the challenges of making unifying compositions, working with different styles or experimenting with different mediums. Art is a multilayered experience with many perspectives. Personally, I want to live and create while seeing similarities and embracing differences. The visual experience of music, nature and positive energy have always been important parts of my creative process. Hopefully, my visual interpretations will relate to the viewer with the joy I had in creating each piece of artwork. Deborah has one piece in the Celebrations show called, "Light the Night." |
Artist Patrick Mahoney
"Patrick Mahoney is an artist and art restorer/conservator residing in Orange Park, Florida.
Educated at the University of North Florida this artist has cultivated a love for rendering scenes of tranquility. He has been creating beautifully hued and meticulously detailed landscapes and still life in oil on canvas since 1965. Pat is now one of North Florida’s most successful representational artists. Although he is firmly dedicated to the style of realism, Pat’s work is consistently infused with subtle undercurrents of emotions."
Quote from Jennifer Jones, Gallery Representative
I have lived in the Jacksonville area since 1962. I started painting in a representational style in oil on canvas in 1965. I majored in Art studying at FSCJ and UNF. I was asked to do a One Man Show displaying a retrospective of my work. I was also chosen to show my work at the Cummer Museum and Jacksonville Art Mania.
Educated at the University of North Florida this artist has cultivated a love for rendering scenes of tranquility. He has been creating beautifully hued and meticulously detailed landscapes and still life in oil on canvas since 1965. Pat is now one of North Florida’s most successful representational artists. Although he is firmly dedicated to the style of realism, Pat’s work is consistently infused with subtle undercurrents of emotions."
Quote from Jennifer Jones, Gallery Representative
I have lived in the Jacksonville area since 1962. I started painting in a representational style in oil on canvas in 1965. I majored in Art studying at FSCJ and UNF. I was asked to do a One Man Show displaying a retrospective of my work. I was also chosen to show my work at the Cummer Museum and Jacksonville Art Mania.
Pat has participated in workshops with Mark Hanson, Larry Moore, Morgan Samual Price, Ken Dewaard, Phil Sandusky and Kevin Arthur.
Pat has one piece in the Celebrations show called, "Gathering at Washington Oaks." |
I have studied privately with Howard Ahrens, a past professor at Jacksonville University. Also with Mark Howard, a past instructor at FCCJ and took Plain Air Painting at UNF with Paul Ladnier. On three separate occasions the Florida Times Union has published article about my work as an artists and as an art restorer. I worked for thirty years as an Illustrator and Graphic Artist at NAS Jacksonville. I have been commissioned numerous times over the year to do portraits. I have actively painted at the Arboretum in every Brush With Nature. I am an active member of First Coast Plein Air Painters, First Coast Pastel Society and Jacksonville Coalition for the Visual Arts and have won numerous awards from these groups. |
Artist Kathy Morris
I am a lifetime resident of the Jacksonville and surrounding areas. I currently live in Green Cove Springs. I first started painting over 40 years ago and like many others, I was greatly inspired by Bob Ross. I was always amazed at the beautiful paintings he could create in just 30 minutes. He inspired me to pick up a bush and give it a try. I followed as many of his tutorials as I could and eventually enrolled in a community oil painting class. There I learned new skills and my painting began to improve, but then life happed.
Kathy has one piece in the Celebrations Exhibit called,
"A Little Sunshine." |
I had 2 daughters and open oil paints and thinners just didn’t work with two small kids running around. So, I put the paints away and told myself one day I would get back to it. As life went on, I was never able to find the time. But I told myself more times than I can count, “once I retire, I’m going to start painting again” …. Well, here I am more than 35 years later living that dream! When I started back, I naturally started with oils as it was all I knew. I watched some YouTube tutorials and attended a wonderful 3-day workshop in Atlanta. I also enrolled in a fantastic pet portrait course where I learned not only how to paint pets but so many new techniques that I use today in all types of paintings! I have now been focusing on using acrylics for no other reason than the clean-up is much easier. I have yet to find “my thing” and instead, paint a very wide range of subject matter. I paint land and seascapes, animals, buildings, florals…. I just haven’t decided yet what I like best. Varity is the spice of life! This little painting, I did for fun and because it makes me smile.
|
Artist Midge Scelzo
My career had been primarily focused in the financial world as a bank executive and as a CFO. However, my passion has always been art. Between family and career that passion for creating art was put on hold for years. Now that I returned to my passion, my hobbies of travel and cooking have influenced my work. My husband and I enjoy the rustic, simple beauty in the cities and countryside. The smell of fresh breads at open air markets, sipping fine wine on a terrace, walking cobblestone streets, light filled scenery with natural wildlife, all these sights, sounds and aromas inspire me. I paint in what I call “Stylism” to create stylistic impressions of my senses. I use quick strokes, simplifying the subject with representational expressionism using color as my essential element. I hope my work is intriguing enough to invoke curiosity to come and look closer and see the detail of the work, experience the colors and light filtering throughout. As one travels through my paintings, I would like them to feel the excitement I felt as I created each area of the work to become the composition.
Midge has two pieces in the Celebrations Exhibition called, "Start of Summer" and "Sunset Celebration."
|
Works have been exhibited in juried shows with Jacksonville Coalition for Visual Arts, (JCVA), Jacksonville Artists Guild, (JAG), FemArt Gallery and the Cultural Center of Ponte Vedra Beach winning several prizes including “Best in Show”. Solo shows have been at the Cultural Center of Ponte Vedra Beach and a 3 Woman Show at Players by the Sea. Group exhibits have been at the Cultural Center of Ponte Vedra Beach, Ponte Vedra Beach Library, Wells Fargo Gallery, South Kitchen, Trends Gallery, The Players Community Center, Jewish Community Alliance Center, Players by the Sea, JAXPORT, Wilson Gallery, Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA), Museum of Science and History (MOSH) and The Sky Mall at Jacksonville International Airport. Two paintings are part of a permanent installation at Baptist Beaches Medical Center. Select pieces are currently on exhibit and for sale at Village Arts Gallery in Ponte Vedra Beach.
|
Artist Susan Smith
I always wanted to paint. Totally self-taught in an abstract style, I painted in the 70’s until children intervened. Raising them and most of our food for many years, I took a major detour into spinning, weaving, dying, and going so far as creating handwoven clothing that I sold wholesale and retail.
Then I was diagnosed with cancer. I had chemotherapy and radiation treatment and had to do it all over again three years later because of a recurrence. After all that I asked myself, “What do I really want to do?” The answer was easy: Paint!!!”
Then I was diagnosed with cancer. I had chemotherapy and radiation treatment and had to do it all over again three years later because of a recurrence. After all that I asked myself, “What do I really want to do?” The answer was easy: Paint!!!”
Susan has one piece in the Celebration Show called, "Jubilation".
|
I chose watercolor because its transparency is similar to dye. I created loose, juicy still life and scenic watercolors, but I wanted to return to abstract work. It seemed quite beyond me for several years, despite many classes with other artists. Finally, I found collage and began making hand-painted papers. Pursuing collage helped guide me into abstraction again.
MEMBER OF The Art Center Cooperative, Inc. (TAC) The Butterfield Garage Art Gallery The Society of Mixed Media Artists (SoMMA) The Jacksonville Artists' Guild (JAG) St. Augustine Art Association |
Artist Lynn Syrcle
Lynn Syrcle is a fine art photographer who focuses on natural surroundings. She is a Floridian at heart, even though she spent most of her life traveling with the Military.
She has been inspired over the years by her father who is also an avid nature photographer, and who has shared his passion with her throughout the years. When Lynn is not out capturing these timeless natural treasures, she is teaching and leading youth to explore their interests in the world of art. Lynn has two pieces in the Celebrations Exhibit, "The Goat" and "Daddy's Girl." |
Artist Jacqueline Warshaw
Jacqueline Warshaw is a painter and artist. She enjoys painting in different mediums and enjoys making natural portraits and landscapes. She runs The Bead Bowl, a local craft and jewelry company. She is a proud member of the Gainesville Fine Arts Association and FemArt Gallery.
Jacqueline has one piece in the Celebrations Art Exhibit called, "Love is in the Air".
Jacqueline has one piece in the Celebrations Art Exhibit called, "Love is in the Air".
Artist Lynn Wehrmann
As an artist I find the most interesting part of creating art is the process of putting an inspiration on paper and how it translates from my heart onto the canvas. My work is eclectic in that I work in all mediums called Mixed Media Art.
I create images that remind me of the joy in my life, living near the ocean, the beauty of nature including flowers and places that speak to me of peace and restoration. I’ve been adding whimsical Original Artwork of children and animals, great for children’s rooms and shower gifts. I love to receive commissions from clients that are personal to them.
I create images that remind me of the joy in my life, living near the ocean, the beauty of nature including flowers and places that speak to me of peace and restoration. I’ve been adding whimsical Original Artwork of children and animals, great for children’s rooms and shower gifts. I love to receive commissions from clients that are personal to them.
Lynn has one piece in the show called, "Celebrate Joy".
For more of Lynn's Work visit her website: LynnWehrmannArt.com - Mixed Media Art, Original Artwork, Abstract Art |
After raising a family I wanted to go back to college and study art formally. I received a B.A. in Art History, and continue in art workshops. The best advice I got from one of my art professors was, “Just paint, and use whatever works”. I never tire of discovering new art techniques to share with my students. I love to teach art because I know how important it is to our well being. The literary award winner, Philip Pullman states, “Children need art and stories and poems and music as much as they need love and food and fresh air and play. “ I am currently working on a personal children’s book depicting the summer adventures of my grand daughter in Maine, where we spend a lot of time. My passions in life are my faith, my family, and continually learning. When I’m 80 years old, I want to be surrounded by those I love, still be curious, and see God touch my life so I can touch others in the same way.
|
Artist Danielle Wirsansky
Danielle has one piece in the Celebrations Show called, "Apis Flora."
|
Danielle Wirsansky is a photographer for 3 Muses Photography. A current theme of her body of work is anemoia, a longing for a time or place you have never known. She plays with the concept through dress, staging, setting, models, editing, and even the display style of the photographs. Her work is meant to throwback to an older time and invoke a feeling of nostalgia and curiosity in the viewer.
Upon graduating with her masters, Danielle began working as a studio photographer and freelance photographer. She was named a Top Local Artist by St. John’s Magazine in 2018. Over 2021, her work was published in over 25 different magazines internationally and displayed in six different exhibits in the North Florida area. She is currently pursuing a PhD in History at Florida State University. She is a proud member of FemArt Gallery. |
Artist Lora Wood
Lora Wood is a native Floridian and a self-taught artist and photographer. She has a love and passion for art and travel which started very early in her life. One that has sustained her through the many curves that it has taken over the years.
Her friends describe her as a “Florida Gypsy Artist”. When not driving the back roads looking for new experiences, she is home daydreaming about traveling and painting the visions that ensue. Although she is skilled in many mediums, behind the camera is where you will normally find her. Lora's desire is to capture the feelings of a moment rather than the mere image. This is reflected throughout her work. And although you may find her pieces to be a mix of her eclectic interests her overall style borders more on an organized realistic approach.
Her friends describe her as a “Florida Gypsy Artist”. When not driving the back roads looking for new experiences, she is home daydreaming about traveling and painting the visions that ensue. Although she is skilled in many mediums, behind the camera is where you will normally find her. Lora's desire is to capture the feelings of a moment rather than the mere image. This is reflected throughout her work. And although you may find her pieces to be a mix of her eclectic interests her overall style borders more on an organized realistic approach.
Lora Wood has two pieces in the Celebrations Show, "Floating into the New Year" and "Celebrating St Augustine".
Lora is an active member of many local art groups including, The Art Center in Jacksonville (former president and marketing lead), FemArt, Jacksonville Artist Guild and the Art Guild of Orange Park. |
Lora's background is in technology and customer service. But her passion is in art. Lora is inspired by the beauty of the natural world and the rich tapestry of people in it. So, combining travel and art was an obvious choice for her to base her creativity. With that in mind, she started shotsfromtheroad.com. A web-based site, and store that combines those passions as well as giving her a chance to branch out into the art of writing.
She is currently utilizing her technical skills to harness the power of the internet. Thus, allowing her to connect with other travelers, artist, and art collectors around the world. These interactions have allowed her to grow as both an artist and an individual. Her art now hangs in private collections across the globe. And although she enjoys exhibiting in local galleries, shows, and businesses she has embraced and thrived in our global connectivity. |