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One may\ndefine art as the quality, production, expression, or realm, according to aesthetic\nprinciples, of what is beautiful, appealing, or of more than ordinary\nsignificance. We have gathered a small group of artists who have expressed\ntheir own definition of what art means to them; what inspires them, what\nprojects they currently are working on, and what are their future plans. As you\ndiscover these artists, you will see how they interpret their expression of\nart. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Brian Hicks<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Working in\nclay has been a process of over 20 years of a self-taught technique. His works\nare very visual, with bold statements, sometimes graphic, sometimes simple and\nwith organic minimalism. They are also created from a heavy influence of the\nabstract and modernist masters from years past<\/p>\n\n\n\n Claymation,\nand Saturday morning cartoons heavily influenced the Phat Flower Series. These\nlighthearted pieces, brightly colored, individually unique with individual\npersonalities and stories of their own, posed as if reaching out, ready to be\npicked right from the Garden.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Brian Wolbaum<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Brian\nWolbaum comes from a farm in North Dakota. After receiving his BA from North\nDakota State University, Brian moved to New York City and graduated from the\nFashion Institute of Technology. He eventually moved to Los Angeles. He now\npaints from his studio in Palm Springs. He is known for his often bright,\ngraphic style and his unique use of color. He paints mostly in acrylics and has\noccasionally produced digital pieces. Brian has work available at H3K Home in\nPalm Springs CA where he is also an interior designer. He has an Interior\nArchitectural Design certification from Santa Monica College, Associate in\nApplied Arts – Display and Exhibit Design <\/p>\n\n\n\n From the Fashion\nInstitute of Technology and a Bachelor of Science in Fashion Merchandising. His\nwork can be found hanging in many homes in Southern California and across the\ncountry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Don Chooi<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n A young 46\nyear old, Don is an illustrator, a graphic designer and an aspiring academic.\nHe has been creating art largely attributed to the bear sub-culture since 2005.\nDon\u2019s work celebrates the lustful appeal of erotic gay male masculinity, body\npositivity and cultural diversity. His major influences are Gengoroh Tagame,\nJiraiya, Christophe Jannin and Bill Ward, among many others. Being an immigrant\nfrom Malaysia and now living in Auckland, New Zealand, Don firmly believes in\nsupporting and promoting awareness to Asian influenced art within mainstream\ngay culture. His work also lends itself to discourses pertaining to cultural\nand sexual identity of the marginalized minority of the Asian diaspora. While\nDon uses digital means to complete his pieces, he favors traditional media \u2013\nusing inks and watercolors on paper \u2013 as it gives him a \u2018closer feel\u2019 and a\nlevel of authentic voice to the work. www.dchooidoodles.blogspot.com<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Free Ramos<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Creating art\nsince he was old enough to hold a pencil, Martin Free Ramos, a Hong Kong born Filipino, moved to Los\nAngeles when he was 16 years old. Aside from his high school art teachers, Free\nhas mostly been a self-taught artist. Involving elements of fashion, fantasy\n& fun, Free\u2019s artistic vision is expressed through mixed media in a\nsignature style he calls “The Glamour & The Whimsy.” Informed by Ert\u00e9, Disney & comic\nbook art, he creates “Art from the Heart” that he hopes moves,\ntouches, inspires & encourages all who experience it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Temporarily\nswitching media, from chalk & pencil to marker & ink, Free is currently\nworking on interpreting pop culture characters through his own designs in the\nJapanese kawaii & chibi styles. Free presently resides in Pasadena, CA.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n George Thomas<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI enjoy\npainting realistically and surrealistically. My allegorical paintings are done\nin the style of utopian surrealism.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Born the\nsame year as Disneyland (1955), George Thomas grew up in the heady era of early\nspace travel, rocket-themed cars, Googie architecture and the Mid-Century\nmarvels that defined a generation. George brings this fascination to his\noil-on-canvas works, with amazing effect, iconic allegories, complex imagery\nand stunning detail, all with a comfortable nod to the fun camp of the age.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A Southern\nCalifornia native, George graduated with honors from the Art Center College of\nDesign. He raised three children and spent twenty years as a missionary and\nteacher in remote cultures around the globe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n George\ncurrently resides and continues his art in Palm Springs, California. <\/p>\n\n\n\n His recent\nworks include a new original diptych oil painting (in progress), titled\n“Nothing”, and new digital prints of his paintings “The Ghosts\nOf Castro Corner” and “One Touch Of A Tiny Red Button”. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Jamie Gallucchi<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Born in\nGlens Falls, New York, James grew up with huge artistic influence; his father,\nwho was a sixty-year Signature Member of the American Watercolor Society.<\/p>\n\n\n\n James\nreceived a Bachelors degree in Graphic Design from the Rochester Institute of\nTechnology in 1986. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In 1992,\nJames moved to California, and resided in Laguna Beach for seven years where he\nwas a participant in the Annual Sawdust Festival. As the only non-juried art festival in Laguna, the Sawdust\ndisplays paintings, sculpture, printmaking, photography, glass, ceramics,\njewelry, woodwork, furniture, textiles, clothing and mixed media. In 2000 he\nrelocated to Palm Springs and has been a resident ever since. Currently\nresiding in Palm Desert, James is creating graphics depicting his\ninterpretations of Palm Springs and the lifestyle it offers through fun,\nstylized graphics. www.facebook.com\/GallucciArt\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Joe Dietl<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Joe has been\na successful working actor for decades in Hollywood, having done almost 100\ncommercials, televisions guest roles, and indie features with top stars like\nMike Myers, Jennifer Aniston, Will Ferrell and more. His talent as a painter\nand visual artist, which he inherited from his gifted artist Mom, was unable to\nemerge until he moved to Palm Springs and allowed himself the freedom to\nexplore it full time. In an ironic reversal, his acting and directing gigs\nprovide the \u201cday job\u201d that financially allows him to explore his talent as a\npainter. Primarily using a palette knife to apply the pigment to the canvas\nwith an intentionally directive stroke allows Joe to create space and dimension\nwithout detailed rendering. This deliberate application liberates him to use\nsaturated and hyper-real color that is not typically seen in landscape\npaintings. Joe\u2019s influences include Lee Mullican, Marsden Hartley, Mark\nBradford, Friedensreich Hundertwasser and David Hockney. Represented in Palm\nSprings at the Brian Marki Fine Art Gallery. www.brianmarkifineart.com<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n He is\ncurrently getting ready for a show in Provincetown during Bear Week July 12th\nthrough the 20th at the Woodman Shimko Gallery. <\/p>\n\n\n\n