Please introduce yourself and describe your background
My name is David Pagani and I’m a representational painter and draftsman. I earned a BFA from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania and have been an award-winning commercial artist (illustration, motion design, and animation) promoting some of the biggest sports and entertainment brands for over 20 years.

What is your earliest memory of creating art?
I was greatly inspired by the bold graphics and fantastic worlds I discovered in comic books, sci-fi films, and video games. As early as 7 years old, I remember asking my parents to take me to see Star Wars (again and again), and then rushing home afterwards to draw all the characters and ships.

Describe your primary medium and why you’ve chosen it for your artwork
I work primarily in charcoal for drawing and oils for painting. Given my background in commercial art using digital
imaging software like Photoshop and 3d programs, I sometimes employ these tools in support of my drawings and
paintings.

What other media have you used?
I’ve used acrylics in the past, but once I transitioned to oils I haven’t looked back.

Describe your artwork in 10 words or less
The slow and deliberate study of life’s design and relationships.

What inspires your work?
I’m inspired by the often overlooked spaces in between the obvious, the quiet stillness in our busy lives, and the rich
subtleties in life you discover when you slow down and take the time to truly observe a person, place, or thing.

If you could spend the day with any artist, dead or alive, who would it be and why?
It’s hard to pick just one… but right now I’m really into Lawrence Alma-Tadema. He was a master at rendering the
human form and using the pictorial plane to create complex multi-figure compositions rich in subtle details and depth.
His paintings elevate the everyday into compelling stories, dynamic characters, and emotional connections (which is
what I aspire to).

Do you show your work commercially? If so, where?
I do not.

What is something most people don’t know about you?
I got my first paying job as an artist doing storyboards for The Incredible Hulk cartoon long before Marvel was a media
empire.

What advice would you offer younger artists just beginning their art careers?
I would say: Make the art you want to make in the moment and put in the time. If you show up and do the work,
everything else will follow.

www.davidpagani.com

Please introduce yourself and describe your background

Myra Gadson has been designing jewelry for the past 15 years.  Throughout her career, Myra worked in Engineering and New Product Development and began collecting gemstones during her travels abroad.  Given Myra’s passion for jewelry, once retired, she began designing and creating her own line of beaded jewelry.  Myra has numerous design collections that have continued to evolve and grow.

What is your earliest memory of creating art?

 Myra was involved in various arts and crafts during her childhood, especially during the long winters in the Midwest.  She was especially drawn to fiber arts and enjoyed sewing, knitting, and quilting. And Myra has always been drawn to photography making certain she always toted along a camera on her adventures. She focused on landscapes and her love of horses.

 Describe your primary medium and why you’ve chosen it for your artwork

 Myra Gadson is passionate about creating unique, extraordinary jewelry, and has been doing so professionally for over 15 years.  Her work is influenced by her global travels and strongly reflects the many years she’s spent in the “Land of Enchantment” which delivers daily inspiration.  New Mexico is her muse, offering multicultural diversity, ancient traditions, and modern originality.  These powerful elements merge into the jewelry Myra designs, bringing together a unique blend of gemstones that offer an earthy yet refined harmony and captures the colors of the southwest for the discerning collector.

Describe your artwork in 10 words or less

 Unique jewelry that brings together colors of earthy yet refined harmony.

What inspires your work?

 Myra has lived her adult life in the colorful southwest and this lifestyle has a strong influence on her jewelry designs.  Additionally, her collections of numerous semi-precious gemstones allow her to imagine jewelry designs with the most unusual and complimentary combinations.

If you could spend the day with any artist, dead or alive, who would it be and why?

 Without a doubt, Myra has always worshipped artist, Georgia O’Keeffe, “Mother of American Modernism”.  Nothing would suit Myra more than to spend a day visiting with Georgia and learning about the interesting era she lived in, and to discuss their mutual affinities for New Mexico.

Do you show your work commercially?  If so, where? 

For the past 13 years, Myra’s jewelry has shown at Weems Gallery in Albuquerque at 5935 Wyoming Blvd. NE.
And since 2015, Myra’s work is also shown at Yucca Art Gallery, New Mexico’s oldest artist cooperative located in the Patio Market in Albuquerque’s historic Old Town.

What is something most people don’t know about you?

 Myra Gadson is very approachable and always has an open ear to her clients and collectors regarding a personal design idea.  Myra has created numerous custom designed pieces for clients and has redesigned jewelry into favorite pieces.

 What advice would you offer younger artists just beginning their art careers?

Myra advises young artists to develop and practice their skills which in turn will give them confidence in developing unique artwork.  If possible, Myra recommends young artists to study art at the University to explore new mediums that may enhance their work.  Once they are confident in their abilities, the sky is the limit and the door is always open to explore new possibilities.

Your website:

www.MyraGadsonJewelry.com

April 2023

Please introduce yourself and describe your background

Originally from Pittsburgh Pennsylvania, I was fortunate to have my artistic talent recognized and supported my family and teachers. At an early age I knew I wanted to be an architect. I attended a small liberal arts college, Franklin and Marshall College, where I majored in fine art and art history. That experience enabled me to pursue and earn a Master of Architecture at the University of New Mexico. Now, after 40 years of successful architectural practice, I am resuming a life long dream as a fine artist.

What is your earliest memory of creating art?

I created art as a young child, never understanding its power and potential for success. My art helped to set me apart from others and to grow my inner confidence and self worth. This has served me throughout life.

Describe your primary medium and why you’ve chosen it for your artwork

I work with acrylic paint and medium simply because I like its convenience. It provides me with the flexibility to achieve my creative goals. I also love to draw.

What other media have you used?

I am fascinated by collage. Using paper, fabric and mixed media, I can be spontaneous and carefree creating imagery in smaller formats thus escaping the pressure “do it right” the first time.  I can throw it away if I don’t like it!

Describe your artwork in 10 words or less

Its not what it means but how it makes you feel.

What inspires your work?

My architectural design was characterized by simple form, dramatic patterns of color, light and shade, visual simplicity, and the important relationship of positive and negative space. So it is with my art. I am inspired and influenced by the pure light, strong form, varied textures, vibrant color and most importantly by the dramatic contrasts of the southwestern landscape--blue and orange skies, green and red earth, yellow vegetation and purple shadows. With a passion for drawing, I use line as a means to create movement and direction and as contrast in scale to simple planes and forms. I revel in color and its ability to elicit emotion. I strive to create simple, memorable and emotionally charged imagery.

If you could spend the day with any artist, dead or alive, who would it be and why?

William Turner. Even in a time when abstraction wasn’t even considered, he created powerful, emotionally charged images that transcend their subject matter. His technique was loose and full of energy and unconstrained. I would like to experience that energy and emotion with him.

Do you show your work commercially?  If so, where?

Yes, I have shown my work at the Mariposa Gallery, Sumner and Dene, Zendo Coffee, the Gallery with a Cause, and the RGAA Encantada show in Albuquerque.  Also the Moon and Dove Gallery in Corrales, the Taos Artist Collective, the Main Street Gallery in Kansas City, and Gallery One in Montgomery AL.  I have staged two shows over the last two years at the first Friday Arts Walk in Albuquerque. In 2023 I have shows scheduled for the 4^th Street Arts, the Open Space Gallery, and Fusion in Albuquerque.

What is something most people don’t know about you?

I drove a trash truck in my teenage and college years, and once drove over a fire hydrant.

What advice would you offer younger artists just beginning their art careers?

I would tell them to never doubt or diminish their own art talent and passion due to either criticism or seeming indifference by the public, their friends or families. We are all our own worst enemy. You can overcome your own doubts knowing that self criticism is normal and actually good for you. Just don’t let it defeat you.

Seize it!

Your website:

www.billsabatini.com

May 2023

Please introduce yourself and describe your background

My name is Carol Mell. I have been a choreographer, writer, humorist, storyteller, photographer and painter of the
American West. My motto has long been, “Follow the Dirt Road in Your Soul.”

What is your earliest memory of creating art?

Given my motto above I immediately remembered making mud pies with a battered cake pan and spoon in the back yard
of the house out on Mill Creek Road in The Dalles, Oregon. I learned early the deeply satisfying and tactile nature of
playing with dirt. I still frequently add dirt or sand to my paintings.

Describe your primary medium and why you’ve chosen it for your artwork?

The discovery of beeswax transformed my photography. In my painting I use either molten beeswax (encaustic) or cold
wax medium, both of which combine deliciously with oils. It is important to me that my work have visual and tactile
texture. That is why beeswax ultimately led me out of photography, so I could make paintings that could be experienced
without barriers, that could be touched, handled and even smelled, for the scent of beeswax lingers long after an
encaustic painting is finished.

What other media have you used?

Photography and digital art.

Describe your artwork in 10 words or less
Contemporary “Cave” paintings that explore feelings, the psyche and spirit.

What inspires your work?

While certainly inspired by the earth and nature, particularly images from the microscopic and galactic worlds humans
can produce, in my non-objective painting I am a miner of the mysterious inner life of the soul. I let my body do the
painting and I am inspired by the creatures, textures, marks and colors that spring forth.

What is something most people don’t know about you?

I have published stories in three “Chicken Soup for the Soul” books.

What advice would you offer younger artists just beginning their art careers?

Give deafness to your ears, courage to your soul and freedom to your hands to create like your life depends on it because
it does

MARCH 2023

Featured Artist - Carolyn Berry

Please introduce yourself and describe your background

I grew up in Kansas but have lived in Ohio, Minnesota, Denver and Alberta, Canada before moving here four years ago.  As a high school teacher in Lawrence, KS, I have experience in numerous art disciplines but primarily taught drawing painting, graphic design and advanced placement in art.  I have also been an admissions counselor/recruiter for the Columbus College of Art and Design.

What is your earliest memory of creating art?

I got in trouble in third grade for smearing my crayons to mix new colors on one of my school Halloween drawings.  The rule breaking started early.

Describe your primary medium and why you’ve chosen it for your artwork

Encaustic and collage.  I like mixed media layered approaches and choose to combine photographic images, drawing, painting or collage papers to express my ideas.  Encaustic wax is applied when it enhances the image or creates a unique surface texture.
What other media have you used?

I also have a fiber and enameling background and often create encaustic mixed media sculptures from natural materials.

Describe your artwork in 10 words or less

Mixed media art incorporating encaustic and/or collage processes.

What inspires your work?

Nature, vintage papers, rustic or unusual textured surfaces that invoke the idea of memory or the passage of time.

If you could spend the day with any artist, dead or alive, who would it be and why?

Joseph Cornell.  I would love to know how he collected all the objects found in his art boxes and his process of combining them together to tell stories.  He was a recluse and rarely showed his work, so I would try to find out why he lived and created this way.

Do you show your work commercially?  If so, where? 

Currently, I show my work at the New Mexico Art League but have recently had exhibits at the Open Space Visitor Center Gallery in ABQ and at the Placitas Artist Series.

What is something most people don’t know about you?

I taught dance fitness part-time for twenty-five years.

What advice would you offer younger artists just beginning their art careers?

Try as many art processes as you can to find your creative passion.  Study with as many artists as you can so that glean tips or processes that would take you years to learn by yourself.

Your website:

www.carolynberryart.com

February 2023

Featured Artist - Janet Bothne

Please introduce yourself and describe your background

My love of art goes back to my childhood where I was given much encouragement and space to explore creativity. Over the years, I’ve explored many mediums and styles ranging from fastidious realism in oils, pastels and watercolor, to where I am currently— vibrant abstract works in acrylic & mixed media. While mastering draftsmanship, perspective, and the many techniques that go into good realism certainly gave me a wonderful foundation in my practice, it wasn’t until I let go of realistic subject matter that I found my “center” with abstraction. Leaving the pre-set subject matter behind and delving into my imagination was like letting go of a crutch; it’s been freeing and constantly vexing at the same time. Now when I think of going back to realism, I think of it as getting the answers before taking a test.

What is your earliest memory of creating art?

Coloring with my mom when I was about 5 years old. All my friends went to Kindergarten and my parents couldn’t afford to send me. (It wasn’t free back then.) She’d spend hours drawing and coloring with me, and when asked by friends why I wasn’t going to school, I remember telling them, “My mom needs me to color with her at home.”

Describe your primary medium and why you’ve chosen it for your artwork

After years of working in oils, pastels, watercolors and dry media, I’ve ended up with acrylics and mixed media. When I started getting nauseous from oil paint fumes (despite good ventilation in my studio) I knew it was time for a change. I hadn’t used acrylics since high school, but I quickly learned to let the paint show me what it wanted to do, instead of trying to make it behave like oils. I’ve come to love how quickly it dries, allowing me to apply many layers while keeping colors fresh.

What other media have you used?

Just about everything under the sun. Watercolors for still life and landscapes, portraits in pastel, oils for just about all sorts of subjects and now acrylics and collage for abstracts.

Describe your artwork in 10 words or less

Expressive, vibrant compositions about color & color contexts

What inspires your work?

Color and color relationships

If you could spend the day with any artist, dead or alive, who would it be and why?

It’s so hard to choose! But if I can only choose one, I’d have to say Hans Hofmann. He embraced what I’ve come to understand about “letting paint be paint” and he was a teacher to many of the most noted abstract painters from mid-century America. Attending his classes in Provincetown, MA would have been my “Mecca”.

Do you show your work commercially?  If so, where? 

I currently have work at Weems Gallery, Hotel Andaluz and at various restaurants, and other public spaces in Albuquerque. I also have reps in CA, FL, MA, MD, and TX.

What is something most people don’t know about you?

I’m a frustrated musician at heart.

What advice would you offer younger artists just beginning their art careers?

Stay true to whatever your passion is regarding your work. Over decades I’ve had numerous people tell me what I “should be doing” to please this group or that, or to fit in here or there, but in the end, following those leads doesn’t necessarily lead to authenticity.

Your website:

www.janetbothne.com

DEcember 2022

Featured Artist - Fran Krukar

Please introduce yourself and describe your background

My name is Fran Krukar and I’m a watercolorist.  As a Military wife, I took art and college classes in many places, graduating from the University of New Mexico in 1980. Some years later, I took watercolor classes from Dorothy Voorhees and many workshops sponsored by the New Mexico Watercolor Society.

What is your earliest memory of creating art?

At the age of nine or ten, I used some clay-like material we had to play with into a fluted bowl.

Describe your primary medium and why you’ve chosen it for your artwork

Watercolor is my only medium.  Watercolor chose me rather than me choosing it since it is the only medium that keeps my allergies happy.

What other media have you used?

Clay for about ten years until my allergies said enough of that.

Describe your artwork in 10 words or less

They are traditional, sometimes contemporary still lives and realistic portraits.

What inspires your work?

The challenge of portraits, or capturing brief moments of time and my new interest of painting interstate highway intersections all inspire many ideas.

If you could spend the day with any artist, dead or alive, who would it be and why?

That would be Vincent Van Gogh.  He had a hard life but never lost his determination to paint.  The brushstrokes in thick paint show so much confidence.  The way he sees his subject matter of ordinary people and things we see every day and take for granted, such as a vase of flowers, then makes us see them in a totally new way is mind-blowing.

Do you show your work commercially?  If so, where? 

The work is shown at Yucca Gallery, the Corrales Studio Tour and local exhibits including Masterworks, New Mexico Watercolor Society, New Mexico Art League and State Fair.

What is something most people don’t know about you? My husband sailed a catamaran in our younger years.

What advice would you offer younger artists just beginning their art careers?

Paint what you love and never give up.

October 2022

Featured Artist - Paul Rodenhauser

Please introduce yourself and describe your background

Creative expression has become a way of life since my arrival in New Mexico sixteen years ago.  I was fortunate to have already retired from my academic position at Tulane University School of Medicine when Hurricane Katrina triggered the deluge in New Orleans. I was still teaching a few hours a week when the city flooded.  After returning from mandatory evacuation and pursuing arrangements to restore damaged property, relocating to the higher ground became my top priority. My interests include painting, photography, pottery, ornamental poultry, landscape gardening, 19th-century literature, creative writing--and Musetta, my cat.

What is your earliest memory of creating art?

As a teenager, I dabbled with acrylics on just a few occasions before becoming caught up in a liberal arts education with an emphasis on science. Ultimately, I earned a doctorate in medicine and pursued residency education in psychiatry. During that fifty-year trajectory of preparing for and serving in the medical profession, I had only occasional free time to pursue creative interests.  Photography fit in most easily.

Describe your primary medium and why you’ve chosen it for your artwork

Oils (on canvas) have been my only medium. I don’t recall selecting oils as a result of an active decision. Starting and sticking with oils was more a consequence of eliminating options that seemed less natural for me.

What other media have you used?

None, unless crayons count.

Describe your artwork in 10 words or less

Bringing nature, especially birds, to life on canvas is gratifying.

What inspires your work?

My passion for the natural environment is mainly birds but all forms of life.

If you could spend the day with any artist, dead or alive, who would it be and why?

Claude Monet. I had the distinct pleasure of visiting his home and gardens in Giverny. The opportunity to reflect on Monet’s captivation with nature and art--and their interconnection—was an extraordinary, unforgettable privilege.

Do you show your work commercially?  If so, where? 

Not in a gallery currently, but I do enter shows.

What is something most people don’t know about you?

I started painting at age 70.

What advice would you offer younger artists just beginning their art careers?

Consider all forms of creativity as expressions of what cannot be communicated in words. Follow your calling and your voice. Let art serve you--and others.

August 2022

Featured Artist - Bill Monthan

I have been admiring art since early childhood. My father was a commercial artist and photographer. My mother was an author and editor. Both were in the advertising field in Los Angeles and Beverly Hills in my early years. The crowd that they surrounded themselves with were creative artists from all mediums, including graphic arts, music and theatre. I studied many of the art mediums offered while attending Northern Arizona University (NAU). Ironically, the only area of coursework I did not focus on while at NAU was painting. After this seven-year journey of studying art, I realized I would struggle to support a family as an artist so I entered the healthcare field by studying Respiratory Care and Cardiopulmonary Medicine. My journey in healthcare took me from clinical practice to healthcare leadership over a 35-year span of time. During that time, my wife and I raised three sons.  Throughout the years in healthcare, I continued to draw and do illustrations primarily working with pastels. Once I retired from healthcare, I took painting lessons and focused on oil painting. I have been a member of the Corrales Society of Artists since 2012. I have participated in studio tours in Corrales and Alameda and also have been accepted into numerous juried shows including Corrales Fine Arts Show, Old Church Fine Arts Show, RGAA Encantada, and Masterworks.

What is your earliest memory of creating art?

While in first or second grade, I was asked by my teacher to draw a picture that explained what my father did for a living. I went to my dad's third-floor studio and I saw illustrations/drawings of high fashion women’s shoes that he was working on for some ads. So, I drew a picture of a shoe cobbler making shoes and told my class that my dad repaired and made shoes for a living.

Describe your primary medium and why you’ve chosen it for your artwork

I’m currently working with oil paint. This slow-drying medium fits my style and the speed at which I work. I like the versatility of color mixing that oil paint offers as well as the ability to layer it for the desired effect. The oil medium allows for creative expression in imagery. Painting also challenges me as an artist where my skill struggles to keep up with my creativity and imagination.

What other media have you used?

While studying art at NAU, I focused on art history, drawing, design, sculpture, ceramics, Jewelry making, and etching.

Describe your artwork in 10 words or less

Whimsical, Surrealistic, Impressionistic, color dominant, dreamy, fantasy, and cartoon quality.

What inspires your work?

The beautiful, target-rich world we live in is inspiring in so many ways. I’m inspired by the atmospheric light, ever-changing clouds, and the reflections contrasted by shape-making shadows. One of my biggest inspirations comes from how other artists see and express beauty and create feelings with their art. I’m inspired by art that projects a timeless quality and hints at something that is beyond our current life experiences.

If you could spend the day with any artist, dead or alive, who would it be and why?

Michelangelo because he excelled in sculpture and painting. (Although my favorite period of painting was the 19^th century and the impressionism period).

Do you show your work commercially?  If so, where? 

I show my work at Yucca Art Gallery in Old Town, all the Range Cafes, Sobremesa Restaurant/Brewery, and social media.

What is something most people don’t know about you?

I enjoyed a competitive athletic spirit in sports throughout the 1970s, 80’s, and 90’s. I was an Arizona State Handball Champion, Nevada State Doubles Racquetball Champion and I coached youth soccer in New Mexico for 16 years.

What advice would you offer younger artists just beginning their art careers?

Artists of all ages entering the field should try to find a passion in a medium and subject matter. Pursue your passion as long as it continues to bring you happiness. Don’t let critics discourage you from pursuing your artistic passion. Once you find your passion try to learn something every day and develop your skills. Realize that if you work hard and follow your passion that someday you will surprise yourself, and possibly many others with your incredible talent.