Artist Statement Kiara Weibel

As an artist, I see a vast amount of options. There are no boundaries limiting what I will and will not do as an artist. All art forms are exciting and satisfying in different ways. However the variable that always remains consistent is that of a passion for creation within the process.

Art is a way for me to adapt to life on a regular basis. My purpose is not only to create and produce, but to express feeling, understand, and connect with myself and others. My work has stood as a release of emotions, a statement I wish to communicate, or simply a visual of my subconscious mind. I continually see a manifestation of my own life, thoughts and feelings arising in my work, whether or not I have had a clear goal in mind at the beginning of a project. I continually find connections in my finished work, and this stands as my own visual language. While I create reflections of my own world, I also wish to make connections with my audience. The goal of my work is to evoke emotion and intrigue in both myself and others.

Within the past four years, I have particularly been using photography as my primary way of making images that are not only expressive of my identity, but statements that all people can connect with, as we all share this same world that I love to photograph. As I explore the many realms of photography, and photograph whatever catches my eye, I have found that some images strike something deeper inside, greater than a simple appealing visual composition. As I learn what these images evoke in myself, I often wonder what thoughts are evoked in others. I feel that it is necessary to be aware of and hold on to these feelings and fleeting moments that photography points out and highlights. It is the art in life that already exists, but just goes overlooked, forgotten, or completely unnoticed. The beauty of life and existence continually draws me in, inspires me and allows me to express myself.

Andrew Kunz's Artist Statement

I have always had an interest in various forms of sciences and astronomy. Every morning starts with a cup of coffee and a new science article. I was never really good with numbers so I choose to express my passion toward this subject with art. Instead of examining the mathematical part behind these topics, as an artist I focus on the visual aspects and personal theories behind the mysteries of the universe.

My art begins as a personal question. For example, the expansion of space, the existences of humans, or even how microscopic bacteria’s grow. I am a mixed media artist that loves to explore different ways and solutions to express my art onto whatever surface I can. Recently, printmaking as been the medium that I have been using. My interest in printmaking is really in the process behind what it takes to develop an idea, prep and prepare the plates, and then finally to produce the final image. The real point about printmaking that really drawls me into in, is that every piece I make is like my own little science experiment. An etching, for instances, is an experiment that involves a chemical reaction between a zinc plate and chemical bath. The result of this experiment is a chemically burned channel into plate. That channel then results into the image of my work. Printmaking also, gives me the ability to add endless texture in my art. I personally feel that texture in art is just as important as the color and even them image. Texture also allows me to make bold emotional marks by using objects to leave impressions into the paper. The limitless boundaries in printmaking are like the limitless boundaries in science. Those two parallels are what really inspire my work and me.

Artist Statement - Regina Cuce Burkholder

I can hardly remember a time when I did not make things.

I am a designer by trade, but still have a love and appreciation for art and art history. I am always looking for an interesting way to integrate a variety of styles, colors and textures into my surface designs. I constantly keep my customer in mind to meet the end use. Most of my inspiration comes from nature, especially plants in my garden, but I also look to my favorite movies and music to get me moving. I explore different types of media including watercolor, pastel and photography and find ways to incorporate them into designs.

I combine graphic design with my love for textile design to set myself apart from the average textile or graphic designer. I strive to create functional, everyday designs; graphic designs to help small businesses stand apart from the average “word processor” and beautiful fabrics that are versatile and innovative.

Artist Statement

Sophisticated with a sardonic twist is what I like to achieve with a project. My work is intended to entertain the viewer and leave them with good feeling. Over the years, I have learned that positive gets positive.

My work is formost professional and versatile.

My goal is to design a product that communicates my clients message effectively. I am not satisfied unless my client is satisfied and I will do whatever it takes to have a successful collaboration and get the job done! If we happen to have a few laughs along the way, all the better.

Artist Statement

Painting is the way I express my inner thoughts and feelings and how I connect to others. I question what is going on in my life or in the world. I take that blank canvas, add texture and oil paint and gradually a story unfolds to provoke thought and emotion.

At times, my artwork is ambiguous. The viewer may see one thing at first glance, but if they keep looking, images will unfold that help them to understand. Of course, there is never just one story. There are as many meanings to my paintings a there are people looking at them. For me, each time I hold one of my creations, I also hold a part of me.

Artists Statement

When I am struggling with life and overwhelmed with emotions the first thing I come to is art. The paintings and drawings that I make for myself are much more about the process than the outcome. They are my escape from reality and a way to let out any tension or negative feelings I might be experiencing. As a result, many of them turn out chaotic and confusing with many surreal creatures and unexplainable scenes. There are no guidelines or rules when I am painting for myself. Through making this kind of art, I am able to let my emotions flow and take a break from the structure an standards that come with most things in life, and that can definitely be seen within the artwork.

The artwork that I create for other people is quite different. I enjoy making more useful works of art through pottery and knitting, and I also paint. My main focus for these paintings is usually color. I love to see how using different colors can change the entire look of an object, or bring on certain feelings and moods. The more realistic paintings I make for others to view are very expressionistic in their style and usually have close up views of whatever is in the subject matter. I also make series of abstract paintings that experiment with different color combinations. These abstract paintings are not meant to look like anything at all, but are intended to focus on the colors involved.

artist statement

Artwork should provoke questioning, if it does not it’s boring. This is my aim, so I use what ever I can find to make pieces of work that will ask the viewer to participate in a sort of self discussion or to have discourse with other viewers. These works are specifically made with materials that I find, steal or have been given to me. While it is not important for the viewer to focus on the fact that the work is made of recycled material, it is important to me. I find speculating anymore into processes, techniques or artistic choices can be much more thoroughly satisfied by engaging the work itself. The content of my pieces do, however, intertwine ideas of social, political and environmental issues and this is where some may draw a parallel to my choice of not using new materials. This is why I try to keep a loose, somewhat, naïve approach to the works I create. By doing this it is my hope to leave room for the very questioning I seek from viewers.

Edward Joseph McGrath

Artist Statement

Painting is my love because there is no end to what you can do. I use painting as a communication to others, my praise to God, and as an escape from the busy world we live in. I am heavily influenced by my faith in Jesus Christ and my goal when I create art is to portray the sacrifice He made and the love He has poured out into my life. In my art I incorporate my own interpretation of God's gift of life to us and I show through my creations how I see the world and appreciate what has been given to me. My passion is for acrylic and oil painting and at times I also incorporate various materials within my paintings. When painting, my technique is spontaneous with quick brush strokes. Seeing the simple effects of what the paint can do on its own is exciting for me and I enjoy watching what happens when I mold and blend the paint to go where I plan. The subject of the human body is a favorite of mine because I know that God made us in his perfect image and its obvious of the beauty and uniqueness we possess. My hope is that my work will encourage others and invite them to recognize the pure gift of Life.