Trained as a classical pianist, Chris Hayman is greatly inspired and influenced by music in her life. Her early interests also included performing arts and she was actively involved in theater and dance at the Conservatory of Music in Cincinnati and Baltimore. These creative talents eventually led to her primary focus as a visual artist.
In her paintings, Hayman concerns herself with space. She is interested in how forms are energized by the space around them, especially when incorporated into paintings with vivid contrasting color and thick painterly textures. Along with music, she is inspired by the natural world, and relies on a practice of constant study and exploration of the rural foothills and open lands near her home and studio.
Hayman received her BA in Art History at the University of Maryland and a second degree in Art at the University of Reno, Nevada where she began her investigation into painting. She currently resides in Northern California on a farm with livestock, orchards, gardens and beautiful surroundings.
Chris Hayman’s farm in Northern California
Chris Hayman is represented by Whitney Modern Gallery, Los Gatos; Thomas Deans Fine Art, Atlanta; Desta Gallery, San Anselmo, CA; Judy Ferrara Gallery, Three Oaks, MI; Gallery North, Carmel, CA; Jules Place, Boston; Merritt Gallery & Renaissance Fine Arts, Baltimore and Chevy Chase, MD; Haverford, PA; Kelsey Michaels Fine Art, Laguna Beach, CA; Morrison Gallery, Kent, CT; Julie Nester Gallery, Park City, UT; Octavia Art Gallery, Houston and New Orleans.
Shannon Amidon always knew she loved creating and making things. In college she discovered photography and fell in love with the medium and the dark room. Having no formal training or skills in drawing or painting, photography was a natural and exciting way for her to express herself. She took photography courses, including an alternative process photography class with Brian Taylor at San José State University, which became a profound influence. Over the years Amidon’s practice changed and evolved significantly, but she says her “first love and roots will always be in photography.” Broadly Amidon’s artwork explores themes of nature, science and our environmental impact. The cycles of life, death and impermanence play a primary role in her work. Amidon feels that art should be an investigation similar to science, by asking questions, researching and seeking to see things in new or different ways. Curiosity is fundamental in her practice. As the cycles of life, curiosity, discovery and science inspire Amidon, so does the act of making art. Among women artists, she is drawn to the work of Eva Hesse, admiring her dedication to material and process. She is also encouraged by the work of Neri Oxman and Zaria Forman and sees them “really pushing the boundaries and shining a creative light on climate change and the environment.” Several significant life experiences, both personal and professional, have impacted Amidon’s work. The dualities of life and death, as well as becoming a mother as she lost her own, significantly changed her practice, color palette and the meaning of her work. Amidon explains that her “art went through a complete sea change. Most surprising is that it didn’t make it darker or melancholy, in fact observing and experiencing these cycles of life firsthand gave my work more hope, lightness and depth.”
An Interview with Shannon Amidon
MKM: Tell me about your childhood, where did you grow up? Were you always creative?
SA: My childhood was spent immersed in nature on an 1800’s nonfunctioning dairy farm. We were a family of 6 sharing a two bedroom, one bathroom house with no heating. At times I had a very difficult childhood. I grew up in a very poor family with parents who were both drug addicts. They were both very creative and in their own ways tried to give us what they could. Despite the challenging living situation, at times it was a magical place to grow up. I often spent my days escaping into nature, climbing trees, sliding down the foothills on cardboard, playing in the creek catching tadpoles and frogs. I would dig up rocks, pick wildflowers and shake the cherry blossoms from the plum trees to make it snow. We had all kinds of creatures who would visit, deer, skunk, possum, snakes, and more. This experience seeded a deep connection with nature and an insatiable curiosity to learn what I can about natural history. I was always creative, and my parents were very supportive of me expressing myself in many different outlets. We never went to galleries or museums growing up and I didn’t really have an idea of what fine art was. But, I always knew I loved creating and making things. My Mom always liked to tell a story about a time when I was a kid and took all of the silverware from the house and hung it from the tree in the backyard. I was always creating these little art installations having no idea of what that even was.
Shannon Amidon in her studio
MKM: Why did you pursue art?
SA: In some ways I feel like I was a late bloomer in art. I was not one of those kids who always knew they wanted to be an artist. I loved to create and express myself, but I didn’t always know how. I never even took any art classes in high school. It wasn’t until I graduated and started going to college that I discovered photography. My boyfriend at the time (now my husband) had a really nice camera and let me use it and encouraged me to take a photography class. I fell in love with the medium and dark room. Having no formal training or skills in drawing or painting, photography was a natural and exciting way for me to express myself. I took all of the courses I could and eventually moved into alternative processes. For me they were a way to take what can sometimes be a cold medium and inject the artist’s hand. I always felt more like an artist than a photographer. I would paint on emulsions, print on fabric, wood and other substrates and experiment with cameraless techniques. From there I couldn’t stop, I found my purpose and there was no going back. I have tried many mediums over the years and my practice has changed and evolved significantly; however, my first love and roots will always be in photography.
MKM: Where did you study?
SA: West Valley College and San Jose State University. Although I am mostly self-taught in fine art.
MKM: Did you have any memorable art teachers?
SA: I took an alternative process photography class with Brian Taylor (SJSU) that really influenced me. He was such a generous and encouraging teacher and an incredible artist. His artwork opened a whole new world for me. A more mixed media approach to photography.
MKM: When you’re creating what’s your daily routine? Rituals, patterns?
SA: I’m a morning creator. After my coffee I go into my studio where I turn on all of my lights, my music and put my apron on. Then I turn my wax on because it takes a while for it to melt and be ready to work with. Encaustic is a very physical medium, so I always try to do some stretching to warm up before I start. I usually work on the actual art making & painting for about 4-5 hours at a time. I am a very process oriented artist and my paintings take a lot of prep before I can actually start painting. There is a lot of research that goes into my artwork and then surface prepping, medium making, and image processing.
MKM: How has your practice changed over time?
SA: My practice significantly changed when I had a child. I became more focused and had to learn how to prioritize and be a lot more efficient with my time. Even though my creative time was drastically cut, my creativity, dedication and output actually went up.
MKM: Do you focus on a specific medium or combination of mediums? Which creative medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet?
SA: For the last 10 years I have been focused on encaustic. It is a medium that is so versatile and yet can still be challenging to work with. It’s never boring and continually pushes me and my technique. I enjoy using it in a mixed media way, incorporating paper, oil paint, pan pastels, mica, golf lead and more. But the encaustic paint is always the main material. I have always wanted to be a sculptor, ceramic or glass. I love the idea of creating 3d art and those mediums fascinate me. I follow a lot of sculptors on social media and buy all the glass making, sculpting and ceramics magazines and daydream about what I might create.
MKM: What themes do you pursue?
SA: Broadly my artwork explores themes of nature, science and our environmental impact. The cycles of life, death and impermanence play a primary role in my work. I feel art should be an investigation similar to science. It is about asking questions, researching and seeking to see things in new or different ways. A major factor in my practice is curiosity. I am interested in all aspects of ecology and the natural world and while I can’t know or learn everything, art allows me to discover and study these areas of knowledge without specialization. As I progress along my artistic path, I become more and more aware of the importance of ecological issues. It is very important for me to have a sustainable and environmentally friendly practice by using all natural and repurposed materials. I also hope to inform and possibly educate people about environmental issues with my work.
MKM: What is your most important tool? Is there something you can’t live without in your studio?
SA: I can’t live without music in my studio. I can often tie specific albums or song to my different series of artwork. Music is vital and often elevates my mood and motivates me. My most important tools are my hands, torch and loop scraper.
Shannon at work
MKM: Is there an artwork you are most proud of?
SA: That’s a difficult question. I think it always changes and is usually my most recent creations. Right now, I am really proud of a 300-piece monarch inspired installation I recently created. When I started it, I had no idea how it was going to turn out. I loosely sketched it out but had no way to really do a test install to make sure it was going to work and look good. I had to do a lot of research and trial and error on how to create and install it. It was the first time I had ever done anything like that and spent about 8 months on it. I didn’t know what the layout was going to be until 2 days before it was to be installed. Everyone kept asking me how the pieces were going to be put together and I didn’t know until I knew. I just had to trust myself and the process. It turned out better than I could have imagined.
MKM: What has been a seminal experience?
SA: There are several significant life experiences that come to mind, both personal and professional. I was deeply impacted by a number of heartbreaking deaths and the awe-inspiring gift of life. From 2010 – 2017 I lost seven loved ones, including my parents and grandparents. During this time, I also became a new mother to an amazing daughter. This duality of life and death as well as becoming a mother as I lost my own, significantly changed my practice, color palette and the meaning of my work. My art went through a complete sea change. Most surprising is that it didn’t make it darker or melancholy, in fact observing and experiencing these cycles of life firsthand gave my work more hope, lightness and depth. Professionally there are countless high points along my path as an artist that have impacted and informed my practice. Attending my first artist residency in Costa Rica in 2010 was a huge turning point for me and my practice. It opened a new world by giving me the time and space to create without distractions, obligations or pressure. I was bitten with the residency bug and have attended many local and international residencies since then which have all positively contributed to my practice. Being selected to create three large public art pieces for San Francisco General Hospital creatively pushed me in ways I could not have imagined. It allowed me to learn new ways of working large scale and sculpturally that I had never done before. It opened a number of doors with corporate and private collectors and gave me the courage and confidence to apply and reach for opportunities and goals out of my comfort zone.
MKM: What art do you most identify with?
SA: Assemblage and mixed media art. The first artwork that I really connected with was Joseph Cornell.
MKM: What inspires you? Other artists, other women from history, your process, a theme?
SA: Life inspires me. Curiosity and discovery, natural history, science. Also, just the act of art making itself inspires me. For me the art is the process of creating, not necessarily the finished piece.
MKM: Do you have a sense of connection to a particular woman artist from art history? Is there a specific work from this artist that you find interesting?
SA: I am really drawn to the work of Eve Hesse and her dedication to material and process.
MKM: Who are your female role models from history or present day?
SA: Right now, I am inspired by Neri Oxman and Zaria Forman. I feel they are really pushing the boundaries and shining a creative light on climate change and the environment.
MKM: What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given?
SA: Be patient and trust the process. It’s something I often have to remind myself.
MKM: What is your dream project? What can we expect from you in the next year?
SA: One big dream project is to start an eco-friendly artist residency. Particularly one that accommodates parent artists and their children. I love participating in artist residencies, after I had my daughter, I found the opportunities for doing that were significantly reduced. I can’t leave my family for a month or more and there are few opportunities to bring your family with you. Artist residencies have had a significant impact on my career and process, and I think it’s so important to provide them to parents as well. One of the reasons I recently moved to Portland, Oregon was to pursue this dream. I am slowly taking the steps to make this happen. This next year I hope to create more large scale multi piece encaustic installations. I really enjoy creating them and hope to find a space where I can install and share them.
Brigitte McReynolds The Intelligence of Water, 2019 Oil on canvas
Brigitte McReynolds
Brigitte McReynolds
Brigitte McReynolds’ practice is a continuous investigation of abstraction and exploration of the human form. It is her visual diary, a “paper trail” of a process that is both spontaneous and deliberate. Working in layers of paint, she merges luminous color and palpable texture. For McReynolds, painting is a dynamic, intuitive process. A drip or smear reveals part of that process.
McReynolds works in series that start as a concept in her mind, or as a vision of a finished work. It can also begin as an emotion or process of the heart. When she develops a theme, she explores it in multiple materials: oil, acrylic, and encaustic, working figuratively and abstractly until the idea exhausts itself, or leads to another theme. McReynolds applies what she learns from shape, form and line in her abstract paintings to find the simplicity that is needed for abstracting a figure. Similarly, her abstract work profits from her figurative experience.
Brigitte in the studio
Her works often have a recurrent pattern or an illusion of repetition. However, not one shape is the same as the other. Similar to life, where we have days, hours and minutes that create a pattern, yet not a single moment resembles the next. McReynolds explains “Although I enjoy working with the ‘shapelessness’ of stripes I also love to work on abstract paintings that maintain shapes and forms. A shape in a painting is like a figure in a landscape. For me the abstract shapes are alive. They have a heart, an area with vibrant color; intense brush strokes, the limbs.”
When contemplating inspiration, McReynolds finds the mystic works of Hilma af Klint breathtaking and has never forgotten her visit to the Italian Tarot Garden designed by Niki de Saint Phalle. Inspiration also comes to her from women speaking out for justice through the #MeToo movement, and from the work of public figures like Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Senator Nancy Pelosi. McReynolds is most inspired by her mother, whom she describes as a creative, kind, humble and generous woman. She admires her mother’s strength, hard work and devotion in raising McReynolds and her siblings – nine children in total, while she managed her busy restaurant and hotel business.
Brigitte McReynolds is represented by Whitney Modern Gallery, Los Gatos; Pryor Fine Art, Atlanta, GA; Seager Gray Gallery, Mill Valley, CA; Jules Place, Boston, MA; and Eminent Design, Sonoma, CA.
Working in multiple mediums, Josette Urso makes paintings, drawings and collages in direct response to her immediate environment. Large windows in her Brooklyn studio space afford her expansive views of the city, the weather, the light and colors, which all inform and inspire her work. Art making materials, in their variety, also nourish her practice. Urso’s approach to painting involves “moment-to-moment extrapolation where the contrasts and cross-fertilizations are cumulative, non-linear, free flowing and interpretive.” For Urso, space is “ambiguous and malleable” and she delights in the resulting acrobatic “mark making and image collision” on the canvas. With her collage works, Urso explores the dualities of information overload as it fuels our minds and creativity, but also desensitizes our attention. Her collages are packed with imagery that could both intrigue and overwhelm, but the information is ordered in a mandala like circle that conveys a sense of meditative peace amidst the spinning chaos of life.
Josette at work on a painting in her Brooklyn, NY studio
Growing up Urso’s parents brought creativity into their everyday lives; she describes her mom as “resourceful and fearless”. Her father, a math professor, also played the guitar. Both encouraged Urso’s artmaking, arranging lessons with students at the nearby university where he taught. Spending three semesters in New York during her undergrad years inspired her and made a profound impression. Urso immersed herself in the art, seeing everything she could, while becoming familiar with works by a wide range of artists. Women artists that have left a lasting impression on Urso include: Lee Krasner, Florentine Stettheimer, Anne Truitt and the choreographer Pina Bausch.
Collage materials and works in progress in Josette’s studio
Urso received her MFA from the University of South Florida in Tampa. Her work has been exhibited extensively, including exhibitions in New York at Markel Fine Arts, Kenise Barnes Fine Art, The Painting Center, The Drawing Center, The New York Public Library, The Bronx Museum of the Arts and in California at the Museum of Los Gatos and Chandler Fine Art. Urso has received grants and residencies including those from the NEA, Basil H. Alkazzi and the Gottlieb, Pollock-Krasner and Ruth and Harold Chenven Foundations as well as the Camargo Foundation, Ucross and Yaddo.
Sandy Ostrau Encountering Light Through the Fog, 2020 Oil on wood panel
An Interview with Sandy Ostrau
Sandy Ostrau
MKM: Tell me about your childhood, where did you grow up? Were you always creative?
SO: I grew up in Palo Alto. I enjoyed art making from a very young age. You could often find me surrounded by my treasured art supplies, drawing and coloring for hours at a time. One of my bedroom walls was covered entirely with bulletin board so I could hang my art.
MKM: Why did you pursue art?
SO: I started a business selling my designs on textiles and clothing and that launched my career of selling my art. I moved into painting because I was interested in learning to use oils. I found them to be a perfect medium for my style of art.
MKM: Where did you study art?
SO: I studied Art History and took drawing classes at UCSB. After college I have taken numerous drawing and painting classes at the Pacific Art League and Palo Alto Art Center.
MKM: Did you have any memorable art teachers?
Jim Smyth and Brigitte Curt have both been incredible teachers and mentors throughout the years. Brigitte Curt teaches impressionist plein-air painting and Jim Smyth is a drawing and figure painting instructor. They are excellent teachers and both accomplished artists.
Sandy Ostrau’s studio
MKM: When you’re creating what’s your daily routine? Rituals, patterns?
SO: I arrive at my studio by 10 am and I begin my day by mixing colors. I find the rhythmic movement of using the palette knife to mix is a great warm up and I then have a palette to work with for the day. It’s a wonderful ritual to focus my attention and loosen me up. Most importantly it switches my thinking to a work mode.
MKM: How has your practice changed over time?
SO: It hasn’t changed much over the years other than I used to spend more time painting outdoors and now I do most of my painting in the studio.
MKM: Do you focus on a specific medium or combination of mediums?
SO: I paint with oil paint, but I often sketch with graphite or ink and sometimes paint with acrylic on paper. I use paper and acrylic for studies.
MKM: Which creative medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet?
SO: Print making. I’ve been thinking about it for a while and in the near future I’d like to try it out.
MKM: What themes do you pursue?
SO: Mostly I work at integrating the figure into my paintings, whether interiors or landscapes. I’m mainly a landscape painter but I use figurative elements to connect the viewer to my work and to instill a feeling into the painting.
MKM: What is your most important tool? Is there something you can’t live without in your studio?
SO: My favorite tool is my large rolling palette cart that my husband built for me. I can wheel it around and it’s a big area for mixing a lot of paint. I use brushes and palette knives. I don’t really prefer one to the other and can transfer from one to the other easily. Also, Viva paper towels are essential.
Sandy Ostrau’s studio
MKM: Is there an artwork you are most proud of?
SO: I did a painting that was exhibited in an exhibition called Inspired by David Park a few years ago. I sold the painting after the show to a couple that moved to Santa Rosa with that treasured painting a few months before their home (and the painting) burnt down. It was so tragic for the family to lose everything. They kept telling me how much they missed the painting too. In addition, I think my early small outdoor landscape paintings are very special because they allowed me to paint the same scene over and over and experiment with value, color and shape in a way that you just can’t working large in a studio. Working from nature not from photos I think produces the best work and really trains your eye.
MKM: What has been a seminal experience?
SO: Painting outdoors. It allows you to work directly from nature, make a lot of small works so you can learn the painting process without worrying about making a great painting, and work quickly. I came to love outdoor painting and working from nature. I actually prefer it to painting in the studio.
MKM: What art do you most identify with?
SO: The art of Nicholas De Stael, Edward Munch, Joan Brown, Kim Frohsin, David Park and Richard Diebenkorn are painters I greatly admire. Also, Masaccio from the early Renaissance.
MKM: What inspires you?
SO: Nature is what inspires me primarily. More specifically, I am always astounded by the beauty of California.
MKM: Do you have a sense of connection to a particular woman artist from art history?
SO: I am particularly interested in the work of Joan Brown. I love how she depicts her scenes with such simplicity yet she captures the gesture and persona of her subjects. The impasto paint and expressive brush and knife work is thrilling.
MKM: Is there a specific work from Joan Brown that you find interesting?
SO:Girl Standing, Girl Sitting 1962
MKM: Who are your female role models from history or present day?
SO: I have always admired Kim Frohsin for how dedicated and her accomplishments as an artist. She follows her own voice, which I admire. Her work is entirely original and expresses her own interpretation of the figure or any subject. She is also highly skilled as both a draftsperson and a painter.
MKM: What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given?
SO: There are two things my teacher Jim Smyth taught me that have been instrumental in my work. First, paint what the subject is “doing” rather than “what it looks like.” This is a way to shift your thinking so the work will express what is happening rather than just depicting a scene like a photograph; the work will have more feeling. The second is that value (light and dark) is more important than color, and the relationship and patterns created by dark and light is the basis for composition.
MKM: What is your dream project?
SO: I love creating a body of work for an exhibit, especially a solo exhibit.
MKM: What can we expect from you in the next year?
SO: More exploration of figure work and possibly some portraits; also larger works.
Sandy Ostrau is represented by Bryant Street Gallery, Palo Alto, CA; Gallery North, Carmel, CA; Sue Greenwood Fine Art, Laguna Beach, CA; Thomas Reynolds Gallery, San Francisco, CA; Anne Loucks Gallery, Glencoe, IL; LeeAnn Brook Fine Art, Nevada City, CA; Anne Neilson Fine Art, Charlotte, NC; Peterson Roth Gallery, Bend OR; and Meyer Vogl Gallery, Charleston, SC.
MKM: Tell me about your childhood, where did you grow up? Were you always creative?
JC: I grew up in Southern California, the only girl in a four-sibling household. Because of that I had my own room for the most part. My parents encouraged my natural making proclivities and put an old door on sawhorses in my room to use as a table. It gave me a place to make and experiment without interruption. It was a place away from brothers and a place to learn to be with myself. Looking back, I realize I never really acknowledged what a wonderful and supportive situation that was!
MKM: Why did you pursue art and where did you study?
JC: I pursued art because it was what I found enjoyable. I also got encouragement for my efforts. But it wasn’t really until college that I discovered the type of art that I wanted to pursue. I went to undergraduate school at several places- first Reed College where I was not a good fit and then at UCSB, and then at Stanislaus State in Turlock CA! It was at UC Santa Barbara that I happened to take a printmaking class, not really knowing anything about it. I had a wonderful (and handsome) TA and I was hooked.
MKM: Did you have any memorable teachers?
JC: In graduate school at San Francisco State , I had memorable teachers. (The handsome TA was great but mostly handsome!) John Ilhe really inspired a kind of technical appreciation that printmakers seems to get wrapped up in. There is so much technical jargon and protocol – printmakers can spend hours discussing the merits of wheat paste and paper. After graduate school I was lucky to meet Kay Bradner owner of Katherine Lincoln Press. Working for Kay is where my real knowledge of printmaking took off. I learned to print all kinds of prints, wipe all kinds or ways and appreciate printmaking in an entirely new way. From the “grunts” perspective to the distinguished printmakers proof. I believe Kay was the best teacher I ever had, and I still call her occasionally for help.
Jen Cole in the studio
MKM: When you’re creating what’s your daily routine? rituals, patterns?
JC: My daily routine is relaxed now as I retired my jewelry business when my husband retired. I usually manage to get to Kala three days a week and other days I work at home or do “laundry” (the symbolic word for home activities). But mornings are always devoted to a meditation practice and walking the dog or/and yoga. If I can do these activities before arriving at Kala, I am ready to work.
I love the process of printmaking so much that I often let this take a long time and finishing a print is a nice outcome that sometimes happens. It means I go to work and really just enjoy whatever problem presents itself during the making of a plate. I work with very little premeditated imagery. My prints evolve and transform a great deal over time. Physical labor is definitely part of my process- scraping, burnishing, re-etching, re-aquatinting. For monotypes this means many layers and covering up parts of images that don’t work and tearing images down, whatever it takes to discover what I am looking for.
MKM: Is there an artwork you are most proud of?
JC: Being proud of artwork is a relatively new experience. When I started teaching monotype at Kala about five years ago, I realized that I was actually very well informed. Students give so much, and I have learned to become a better teacher as well.
MKM: What has been a seminal experience?
JC: Most of my seminal experiences have been of the internal kind of work–which most definitely is expressed in some way through my art. Maybe my most seminal experience was to finally understand that what I was learning through meditation and internal self-exploration was actually expressed visually in my art. It’s hard to verbalize but the joy that comes when working on printmaking is such a lovely and opening experience and that experience becomes the image.
MKM: What inspires you? Other artists, other women from history, your process, a theme?
JC: There are many artists whose work I love- Paul Klee, Kiki Smith, Kazuko Watanabi, Sean Caulfield, Golbanou Moghaddas… so many more. I like so many kinds of images. But I love prints most of all – above all other forms of art.
MKM: What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given?
JC: The best advice that was ever given me was when my kids were young and a colleague of my husband said, “be flexible”. Buddha has a lot or good advice too like “things change”.
MKM: What is your dream project?
JC: My dream project would be to have a year to just work away on prints; actually I am living my dream now!
Pantea Karimi Healing Gardens, 2019 (left to right: Buttercup, Cinquefoil, Asparagus) Digital illustration and print on aluminum
An Interview with Pantea Karimi
Pantea Karimi
MKM: Tell me about your childhood, where did you grow up? Were you always creative?
PK: I grew up in Iran (Shiraz and Tehran) during turbulent times of revolution, war and family tragedy. My father is a civil-engineer and architect and my mother is a retired history and literature teacher. Despite all the hardships, I managed to take regular classes in painting and classical music, which led to my decision to pursue art professionally. My parents supported my decision to go to art university and my father built me an art studio, in Tehran, where I taught drawing and painting to both youths and adults.
MKM: Where did you study? How has your practice changed over time?
PK: I got my bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Graphic Design from two prominent art schools in Tehran and worked as a graphic designer for design firms and as a freelancer. While I was studying graphic design, I continued taking professional painting and drawing classes and exhibited my works in Tehran’s galleries.
In 2001, I moved to England, where I studied printmaking, worked as a studio assistant for a British landscape artist and exhibited my arts in Hastings and London in different venues. My residency in England provided creative time and allowed me to explore new media and printmaking techniques. This experience created a foundation for my art practice, which I continued in 2005 at the San José State University, where later, I also obtained (2009) a second master’s degree in painting and printmaking.
My first artistic inspiration as a 5-year old was my mother’s German fashion magazines and other intriguing publications around the house. I was fascinated with their layouts and the use of photos, and colors. I used to draw on those magazine pages, thinking that I was making good changes to the layouts. As an artist, I am naturally driven by my deep feelings and childhood experiences that have shaped my perceptions of the world. This fascination with print publications and their layout and design continued to my adulthood. I gradually developed a strong interest in their history as well. To complete my master’s degree in Graphic Design at the Art University in Tehran, I researched the beginning of print industry in 19th century Iran. I gathered reproductions of those newspapers (originally were printed in lithography) and studied their illustrations, layout, and design. I became fascinated by the ways in which text and image complemented one another in novel ways and communicated meaning. In 2014, I began a new research project which revisited my earlier investigations in the history of Iranian print media. Since then, my work has been an exploration into the pages of medieval Persian, Arab and early modern European scientific manuscripts. The scientific books from these periods offer nuanced understandings of the relationship between form and text, and above all, between scientific concepts and their myriad manifestations in visual forms.
MKM: Do you have any memorable teachers from your years as a student?
PK: Three female teachers have been very influential in my practice: In Iran, drawing and painting: Minoo Asa’adi; in England, printmaking and use of creative process: Joanna Kerr-Smith; and in the United States at SJSU, printmaking and the importance of content in art: Erin Goodwin-Guerrero.
Pantea’s studio
MKM: When you’re creating what’s your daily routine? Rituals, patterns?
PK: I get to the studio at around 10:30 AM and leave at 7:30 PM, 4 days a week. Each day could be different in terms of how I start my routine; sometimes I start by checking emails and working on digital files, other times, I start with printing and painting. Every week, I create a list of projects I need to do. I go through the list and cross things out when they are done. That has created a working routine and has helped me to be organized.
MKM: What themes do you pursue in your work?
PK: My work as a multidisciplinary artist explores the intersection of art with history and science, and examines how the broader aesthetic considerations of science are closely related to art. I am captivated by the correlation between abstract ideas and their visual representations. I research illustrations and texts of medieval Persian, Arab and early modern European scientific manuscripts in five areas: mathematics, medicinal botany, anatomy, astronomy and cartography.
For me, these manuscripts provide a unique platform for investigating the influence of past scientific concepts and their manifestations on our contemporary perception of the world. They represent world cultures, their values and the progression of scientific ideas throughout history.
Utilizing conceptual and visual interpretations from my research, I create individual bodies of artwork using interactive installations, VR, silkscreen, digital illustrations, and prints. Collectively, my art highlights the pivotal role of epistemic images in presenting and communicating knowledge and generating new vision. It also represents my culture, identity, life-experience, and journey of self-discovery through science and history.
MKM: Do you focus on a specific medium or combination of mediums?
PK: I usually work with prints: digital (illustration) and manual (silkscreen and monotype). I enjoy working with interactive installation and various substrates such as paper, fabric, wood and metal. Some of my works also use mixed-media techniques, such as silkscreen combined with ink or watercolor.
MKM: Which creative medium would you love to pursue but haven’t yet?
PK: Animation
A few more views of Pantea’s studio
MKM: What is your most important tool? Is there something you can’t live without in your studio?
PK: My computer (digital graphics applications) and silkscreen equipment
MKM: Is there an artwork you are most proud of?
PK: My medieval and early modern scientific manuscript series. To me, the topic is unique and provides many opportunities for the creative process and artistic endeavor. It also presents some challenges, such as interpreting a scientific idea in visual form or gathering information about certain scientific subjects. But I see the challenges as an undeniable part of the process and in fact a positive factor; it keeps my curiosity and interest going!
MKM: What has been a seminal experience?
PK: Perhaps immigrating has been the most inspiring experience and has influenced my work strongly. I am a two-time immigrant from Iran to the UK and to the USA. On a personal level, immigration provided challenges in the beginning, but at the same time, it presented great opportunities for my art practice and creative path; traveling experiences and living in diverse communities have informed my art content and identity as an Iranian-artist woman. It has broadened my world view.
MKM: What art do you most identify with? What inspires you? Other artists, your process, a theme?
PK: I am influenced by the works of modern avant-garde artists. In terms of abstraction and arrangement of my own forms, I draw inspiration from the Russian Suprematist artists El Lissitzky (1890-1941) and Kazimir Malevich (1878-1935). These artists were in search of a style of abstract painting based on geometric shapes, which they believed promoted the supremacy of pure artistic feeling over the depiction of objects. In my art, I also draw inspiration from artists from around the world, my peers, and art genres; I am an avid museumgoer, often visit local artists’ studios, and watch art documentaries on regular basis. Among male artists, I appreciate the technicality and creativity of William Kentridge’s work. I have seen many of his animations and exhibitions in London and San Francisco and his recent Opera, which was wonderfully performed and staged. His work is very inspiring to me!
MKM: Who are your female role models from history or the present day?
PK: Strong and independent women from any age group, any race or nationality who rise above their assigned stereotypes always inspire me. When it comes to female artists, I am usually inspired by their biographical narratives such as their struggles, achievements, and creative paths. My list is quite diverse; here are a few from various cultures and times: Artemisia Gentileschi: Her female perspective was highlighted in all of her paintings. Louise Bourgeois: Her thought process and artistry. Louise Nevelson: Her use of materials and composition. Barbara Kruger: Her use of bold images and texts as well as the message of her works. Sally Mann: Her work, creative process in general. Marlene Dumas: She draws inspiration for her works’ imagery and content from published media, such as newspapers and magazines. Her female figurative paintings have elevated the subject from its roots in vanity, using it to depict personal, psychological, social, and political concerns. Her works are emotional and make me think. Es DevlinHer most amazing, creative theater and stage-sculptures. For her confident thought process and outcome. Marina Abramović: Her persistence; the power of performance and feminist art. Monir Shahroudy Farmanfarmaian: (Iran) Her beautiful use of her Iranian heritage techniques and materials: mirror-mosaics. Her work is a perfect marriage between Iranian and the Western culture while keeping her Iranian identity dominant.
MKM: What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given?
PK: I have not been given many pieces of advice but one I cherish: “Balance is the key to happiness in life.” I am very committed to my work; I always set goals and work towards them. In this process I try to strike a balance when I can, however, I haven’t been that good at it.
MKM: What is your dream project? What can we expect from you in the next year?
PK: My current project (medieval and early modern scientific manuscripts) is my dream project. I am lucky that I have had the chance to do it. Next year, I will continue my research; digging into more of these amazing archival materials. I am also working on solo exhibitions and new projects in the areas of astronomy and botanical.
Laura Gurton Unknown Species #215, 2017 Oil, alkyd, ink on linen
An Interview with Laura Gurton
MKM: Tell me about your childhood, where did you grow up? Were you always creative?
LG: I was born in 1951 in Brooklyn, NY, into a family of artists. My childhood was filled with museum visits, art books, the theater, ballet, foreign films, music, and art classes at the Brooklyn Museum. When I was young, my mother was enrolled in an art education program at Brooklyn College and became an art teacher. My father was a pianist and, when he was not working, he would be home practicing; our home was always filled with his music and he always tried to share with me and my sister his love for classical music and jazz. I also had an uncle who was a painter and printmaker. Everyone in the family had his and my mother’s paintings, etchings and linocuts hanging in their homes next to Picasso reproductions. I have fond memories of creating art with my cousin in my uncle’s studio and drawing trees in Prospect Park with my mother. My artwork was always encouraged, validated, and displayed; my mother saved a lot of what I created then and I still have those early pieces. Actually, one painting that I made in the 6th grade won the honor of being exhibited in a children’s art exhibition at Lever House Gallery in New York City. I never saw that painting again, but I remember the feeling of seeing my work framed and on display in a gallery space, of watching strangers stand in front of it, observing, studying, and praising my work.
MKM: Where did you study art in college?
LG: For my first year of college, in 1969, I attended Philadelphia College of Art (now called University of the Arts). Although I loved the foundation year, I decided to transfer to The School of Visual Arts in NYC. In the early 70’s, SVA was not an accredited college and, although I had many well-known artists as teachers, I finished my 4th year of art school without a degree. SVA only became accredited the year I finished and by then I did not have the right credits for a BFA. So, when I was in my forties, I decided to return to SVA to complete my degree and to take art education courses to become a high school art teacher. A few years later I earned a Masters in Supervision and Administration in the Arts from a joint program run by the Bank Street College of Education and Parsons School of Design—an amazing experience that allowed me to work as a vice principal and the head of the art department at the high school where I taught.
MKM: Did you have any memorable teachers?
LG: I was lucky to have had a few women artists as teachers: May Stevens was so generous with her time and her willingness to share her experience, inviting my class to her loft in Soho; Marsha Tucker, who had just started the New Museum, taught a class about the art world; Audrey Flack and Alice Neel co-taught a painting studio. Having these women as teachers and role models made it seem quite possible that I could succeed as well. There were some male instructors who were also very memorable: I had Robert Pincus Witten and Monroe Denton for art history; Don Eddy and David Mann for painting studio; Sonnenberg, Bunnell and Blackburn for printmaking, all of whom were great teachers. I was happy to have Whitfield Lovell for art education and Leon Dylan for a technique class. The person who affected me the most was Lucio Pozzi. When I went back to SVA in my 40s, the fine arts department had a new procedure: in addition to regular coursework, students also had to meet with another artist to be evaluated at the end of each term. So, I had to present my work to Lucio Pozzi who encouraged me more than anyone else had until then. He loved my work and asked about my goals. When I told him that I planned to work full-time as an art teacher, he just shook his head and said “no, you must continue with your art.”
Laura Gurton’s studio
MKM: When you’re creating what’s your daily routine? rituals, patterns? Has your practice changed over time?
LG: When I am about to start a new piece, I clear my schedule and prepare to work uninterrupted for as long as I can. Sometimes I paint for 10-12 hours straight, working continuously. I usually do not answer the phone and only stop for short breaks. The next day I’m usually exhausted and need to rest, and then I start all over again.
For many years, when I was home with my daughters, I had no choice but to work for only a couple of hours here and there. It was difficult to have to stop when a certain part of the process was incomplete. When I was teaching high school art, it was almost impossible to paint at home after a full workday. I always tried to be a working artist, but it was not until my children grew up and I was able to figure out how to support myself without teaching that I was I able to concentrate full-time on my work.
MKM: Do you focus on a specific medium or combinations of mediums?
LG: I have worked with oil paint mixed with alkyd on linen and on panels. I have also painted on top of panels on which I have first made reliefs with thick paper and matte board. That technique was inspired by the collagraph plates I used in printmaking. I have worked with acrylics on canvas and on clay board panels. I use the clay board like a scratch board, using a fine point to create textures with cross hatching and fine lines. I’ve experimented with encaustics, painted with textured gels and pastes, and, in the past few years, I’ve also developed a portfolio of digital art. I digitally manipulate photographs of my oil paintings, print the images on paper, and then work on top of the image with a variety of mediums: colored pencils, ink, gouache, metallic paint, sequins, rhinestones, beads, so as to create one of a kind mixed media pieces. I also recently added animation to the mix, and I am starting to collaborate with various musicians to create videos of my animated shapes with a musical score. I will always paint, but I have plans to exhibit the videos in galleries on a screen or projected on a wall. Right now, they are on Instagram and Facebook.
Inside Laura Gurton’s studio
MKM: What themes do you pursue?
LG: My paintings consist of concentric circular lines and colors that mimic pieces of agate, rings inside of trees, mold, other patterns in nature and—most importantly—microscopic cells. I once read that when humans are born, they have an instinctual attraction to the shape of concentric circles, which makes sense since the nipple is the first shape they need for survival. I have always been fascinated with the idea that we have instincts towards shapes. My paintings are titled the Unknown Species, a phrase that suggests that my shapes are alive. Since all of the paintings have multiple shapes varying in sizes, I see them as families that have gone through the reproductive system and are related to each other.
My way of applying paint remains constant from painting to painting, and yet, as in nature, there is still a variety in the work, revealed by the choice of colors, the relative density of the circular forms, and the overall flow of the imagery. Some paintings seem tranquil, while others I find highly energized. Some of them are reminiscent of landscapes, reinforcing the theme of the shapes in the natural world. I see the shapes with their concentric circles as representing time itself, displaying their growth like the rings in a tree which come with age.
My digital art, the Bits and Pieces Series, developed directly from photographic images of my paintings. I became intrigued with the complex patterns that developed by manipulating the image and I liked being able to see how the same image looks in various color combinations. The cellular shapes in all my paintings, digital art, and videos, which echo naturally occurring shapes, repeat the rhythms of life and existence.
MKM: Is there an artwork you are most proud of?
LG: My Unknown Species paintings are executed on the floor and I need to be able to reach the center of the canvas to be able to paint. For a while, none of my paintings were larger than 36” wide. I then realized I could do multiples, with three or more panels that were each 60” x 36”, but I would need to paint them all at the same time for them to look like one painting. The first time that I completed a triptych where the panels all looked like they belonged together was a challenge that I was proud of.
MKM: In your art career, what has been a seminal experience?
LG: After four years of painting in my present studio, a gallery I was connected to told me they received a request for applicants to exhibit in the Pallazzo Bembo, a collateral event of the 2013 Venice Biennale. I applied and got into the exhibit Personal Structures. I knew that the Venice Biennale was the first worldwide art fair and very prestigious, but what I loved the most about it was being part of an international project with artists from all over the world. It will always be one of the most amazing experiences that I have had in my career.
Laura Gurton’s studio
MKM: Do you have a sense of connection to a particular woman artist from art history or present day?
LG: I first learned about Paula Modersohn-Becker in an art history class in 1993 and I felt a connection to her because she painted many portraits of children, pregnant women and nudes, some breastfeeding. At the time I was painting portraits of my daughters and their friends. I was intrigued by her abilities, the beauty of her paintings, and the short synopsis of her life that my art history teacher presented to the class. I then found the book Paula Modersohn-Becker: The Letters and Journals and learned more about her life—that at times she left Germany, her husband, and her stepchildren to paint in Paris. The more I read, the more connected I felt to this German woman who died in 1907. She wrote about her life as an artist and the struggles she had with the expectations her family, her husband, and society put on her as a woman and as a wife; I identified with her struggles. She was incredibly brave for the time period.
MKM: Who are your female role models from history or present day?
LG: I came of age during the 60s and 70s and was influenced by Gloria Steinem and Andrea Dworkin, among others. I was interested in the suffragettes and in women’s history, joined women’s support groups, and tried to raise my daughters thinking about what they were up against. Today I appreciate the Guerrilla Girls, women’s marches, and my daughters, both very amazing and powerful women.
MKM: What’s the best advice you’ve been given?
LG: Although I get accepted to many exhibitions, I still get rejected at times. The best advice that someone once gave me is to not take rejection personally and to just keep working… and know how lucky I am just to be able to create and be part of a community of worldwide artists.
Ellen Heck Girl with a Blivet Pendant Wearing a Möbius Strip as a Hat, 2016 Woodcut, drypoint, and watercolor on Somerset Velvet paper
An Interview with Ellen Heck
MKM: Tell me about your childhood, where did you grow up? Were you always creative?
EH: My family moved often until I was 10, but then I grew up in Austin, Texas. There are several artists in my family, and I always had access to a wide range of materials. I would often use art as a tool for meeting people in a new school.
MKM: Why did you pursue art?
EH: I have always enjoyed the process. If art had not developed into a career, I would still be making things.
MKM: Where did you study?
EH: Brown and The School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
MKM: Who were your memorable teachers?
EH: My mother is a commercial artist and my most influential teacher/enabler. I was able to work freelance for her for several years in art school and at the beginning of my professional life. This allowed me to work at Kala Art Institute in Berkeley during the day and make more reliable money doing graphic design at night.
MKM: When you’re creating what’s your daily routine? Rituals, patterns?
EH: There are many steps involved in my printmaking practice. Usually, I am working on several prints at a time, each at different stages of completion. In this past year, I’ve been working on oil paintings with multiple layers of glazing, so this has been the case with the paintings as well.
Ellen Heck
MKM: How has your practice changed over time?
EH: My work changes most significantly when life presents a certain constraint, or I have access to new materials. But generally, I try to keep my practice balanced carefully between intentional conceptual planning and an openness to chance.
MKM: Do you focus on a specific medium or combination of mediums?
EH: For the past decade, I have been predominantly a printmaker, but in the past year, I’ve been painting much more.
MKM: What themes do you pursue?
I am interested in making work that shares a sense of wonder. I also like to use a body of work as a way of exploring an abstract question or concept. Generally, this gives rise to more questions, which become the foundation for the next body of work.
MKM: What is your most important tool? Is there something you can’t live without in your studio?
EH: I have an agate burnisher that works as an eraser of drypoint on a copper plate. If you make a scratch into the copper with a drypoint needle and decide that it is too deep, or misspaced, this burnisher can remove it to any degree without leaving a gray shadow on the print. It allows me to work deep into a plate and then remove the majority of those lines.
Ellen’s studio
MKM: Is there an artwork you are most proud of?
EH: There have been a few pieces that I love because they were the origins of a discovery.
MKM: What has been a seminal experience for you?
EH: Working at Kala Art Institute in Berkeley for nearly seven years was the foundation and formation of my career. I was part of a critique group of artists who became mentors and close friends. They are role models and demonstrate a variety of ways that one can sustain an art practice.
MKM: What art do you most identify with?
EH: I like to look at all types of art, but I find myself most frequently connecting with work that has some aspect of representation or a focus on harmony.
MKM:What inspires you? Other artists, other women from history, your process, or a theme?
EH: I have been deeply inspired by the work of Mary Cassatt, Dieter Roth and David Hockney. I also frequently get ideas by reading and teaching.
MKM:Do you have a sense of connection to a particular woman artist from art history?
EH: Mary Cassatt
MKM:Is there a specific work from Mary Cassatt that you find interesting?
EH: The set of 10 color prints are my favorite works by Cassatt and my favorite works of printmaking in art history. My first gallery solo show was based on this series.
MKM:Who are your female role models from history or present day?
EH: Mary Cassatt, Audrey Niffenegger, Maria Popova
MKM: What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given?
EH: Keep making work. Make more work. Persist.
MKM: What is your dream project? What can we expect from you in the next year?
EH: I’ll begin the year at the printing press if all goes well!
Ellen at work
Ellen Heck is represented by Wally Workman Gallery, Austin, TX; Davidson Galleries, Seattle, WA; Groveland Gallery, Minneapolis, MN; Kala Art Institute, Berkeley, CA and Baker Schorr Fine Art, Midland, TX.
Lisa Noonis Crisscross, 2019 Mixed Media (acrylic, graphite, collage, latex) on paper mounted to panel 28″ x 18″
Crisscross began as a drawing from a live model; it developed over time. I began simplifying lines into shapes. Then added some unexpected color through collage and paint. For a while there wasn’t anything in the background. I had been working on several still life paintings at the same time, and decided to suggest a still life in the background. For me, it put the figure in an space. I aimed to keep the figurative feel while pushing it toward abstraction. – Lisa Noonis Lisa Noonis
Lisa Noonis
Lisa Noonis grew up in a large, loving Greek family and is still inspired by the memory of her Yia-yia (grandmother) who was patient and present, teaching her that life was like sorting rice – you have to pick out the bad and keep the good. Noonis discovered art early in life, winning first place in a children’s art festival and showing so much talent that her high school art teacher insisted that she go on to art school and pursue a career in the fine arts. After a detour as an engineering student her first year of college, she went on to earn her BA in art, communications and advertising.
Noonis worked at a communications firm, then embarked on her own as a freelance graphic designer and art director, eventually forming her own successful advertising, marketing and design company. Despite this achievement, she sensed that something was missing, and always felt the need to express something “more personal and more permanent than ads, logos and brochures”. This feeling spurred her to ultimately make a leap of faith by renting an art studio and committing to seriously pursue a fine art practice. Noonis took workshops, studied with masters and became dedicated to painting every day—still life, portraits, landscapes, and anything that would “sit still in the studio or in front of her canvas”.
When interviewed for 31 Women and asked about her inspirational women, Noonis named “late-bloomer” artist Katherine Bradford as a current day heroine, noting “she’s 78!! and just hitting her stride.” In looking back, Noonis’ early work and vision were visibly influenced by such masters as Cezanne, Modigliani and Morandi. However, she cites Joan Mitchell and Helen Frankenthaler as inspirations for their courage and for the sheer scale and energy in their work. Similarly, Noonis often works in large scale. A 9’ x 19’ span of paper may stay on the studio wall for a while, allowing her the time, freedom and space for continuous thought. Once the concepts are complete, she cuts and crops into individual works to be mounted on panels.
Lisa Noonis at work in her studio
Lisa Noonis’ creative practice has changed over the years as her work shifted from advertising to fine arts; and within in her fine art as realism evolved into abstraction, painting from life moved into painting from memory, and small canvases grew into large. Today, she continues to evolve and grow as an artist as she “explores the objects, people and places in her world”.
Lisa Noonis is represented by Blue Gallery, Kansas City, MO; Carver Hill Gallery Camden, ME; Pryor Fine Art, Atlanta, GA; and Whitney Modern, Los Gatos, CA
