Sally Linder. She paints fascinating subject matter. Sally’s subject matter makes you think. When you read her words and see her paintings you truly want to help the cause and help the world become a better place. Not just in the area where you live, but in all of the world… Sally travels far and wide and really knows about what she paints.

Sally is an amazing person as well as a deeply connected artist. Deeply connected in saving the world and making it a better place for all of us. We need more Sally’s in the world! This is just one of many wonderful paintings. Be sure to check out her website! This painting is in the “Approaching a Threshold Series”.

In Sally’s words:

Many of the legends of the polar north, as told by the Inuit elders, speak of the spirits of the great white bear and man as being interchangeable.  For in the telling, when the polar bears enter their dens they shed their hides and become men, and only upon returning to the frigid outdoors do they don their furs once again.

Read a blip about Sally, from her website:

Born in the United States, I was educated in the US and Canada. A strong foundation in drawing enables me to move seamlessly between representation and abstraction, determined by my subject’s desire to be recognized or left to the imagination. Inspired by Earth’s beauty and the social and political issues that confront humankind, each of my artistic endeavors has sprung from a deep commitment to Earth and all living beings. This love of life with its contrast and balance of agonies and ecstasies prompts both activism and playfulness in my work. The paintings chronicle a quest for a better and more conscience driven world and my passion becomes their purpose and content.

Painting in series provides the opportunity to be immersed in each subject’s distinct, emotive language conveyed through choice of color, form, and mark. Particularly in the more representational work, this immersion is linked to considerable research for each series involving historical, scientific and spiritual elements. It is from this deepening well that the layers of paint emerge on the canvas, paper or drafting film.  The images that are inspired become symbols of a compassionate, participatory commitment to life. This vision provides us with the opportunity to turn around so that we may know who the others are and our connection to them. So evolves an intimate partnership between artist, subject, canvas, and viewer.

I have exhibited worldwide in Bangalore, India, Amsterdam, Netherlands, Jakarta, Indonesia, throughout the United States, Yaounde, Cameron, and Johannesburg, South Africa. I am the recipient of national and international awards including from the International Music and Art Foundation in Liechtenstein, the National Endowment for the Arts/Vermont Arts Council, the Philanthropic Collaborative in New York, and the Board of Governors’ Medal from Concordia University, Montreal, Canada. My work has appeared in Orion Magazine, Yes!, the National Geographic Magazine, Art New England, The Best of Acrylic Painting, and Femina Magazine. Speaking engagements have included the United Nations, the Earth Charter’s venues at the World Summit on Sustainable Development in South Africa, Brown University, the International Women’s Conference in Bangalore, India, Middlebury College, and the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City.

All images via SallyLinder.com, used with permission…

Catch you back here tomorrow!

John Matthew Moore. Stunning work. So intricate and detailed. Stunning and just so beautiful! Fred and I met Moore on Monhegan (Maine) many years – such a nice guy. (The group we meet on Monhegan every year has become a treasured tradition… one that we look forward to from the moment we step off the island… see you soon Jennifer, Hank, Ruth, Jimmie, Matthew, Frank, Sally & Bob… the list goes on and we add to it each year, I love that!). We’ve met many artists on Monhegan… I write their names down and when I get home so that I can check out their work… and when I ran across John work… W O W ! Stunning. Such intricate detail. Elegant and classy. Elaborate and well thought out. Each painting is a treat for your eyes! Check out John’s Facebook page for even more work as well as upcoming Designer Show Homes that his work is featured in!

This double orchid is beyond gorgeous. Just look at the light in this piece – whew, takes my breath away! Such luscious greens, I have no idea how he does it! BUT, I’m glad he does!

Atlanta Designer Danielle Rollins did a spotlight feature about John and his work on her website – it’s a must read! Gorgeous paintings! Great write up!

Read a bit about John from his website:

John Matthew Moore is a botanical artist with a fresh approach to this well know genre. Moore’s medium of choice is the velvety, chalk enriched watercolour known as gouache, with which he excels in the mastery of colour and attention to detail.  The opaque pigments of gouache enable Moore to achieve stunning effects ranging from light shining through petals to the deep, dark, rich tones of his red tulips.

Although the inspiration for his works is drawn from 17th and 18th century botanical and classical works of art, Moore’s own vision is evident.  His paintings are larger than life, seeming to explode off of the page while maintaining their scientific integrity, resulting in a photo-realistic effect.

Moore’s paintings are displayed in many prominent international private and public collections due to representation in London, Beverly Hills, New York, Washington, DC, and Atlanta. In addition, his works have been placed in prestigious show homes including Southern Accents 2000 Capital Design House in Washington, DC (Barry Dixon, designer), the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra’s Design House, (Franya Waide, designer) and the 2008 Holiday Show House in New York City, (Kelly Proxmire, designer) to name a few.

Catch you back here tomorrow!

Shaun Downey. An amazing artist from Canada. His paintings draw you in. Just look at the classy elegance of Into the Distance. I wonder what she’s looking at? Is she waiting for her date to arrive? Is that him far in the distance? I love possibilities… and stories, all told through a painting without saying a single word. Very. Cool. Check out more of Shaun’s work, I’m sure you’ll agree that it’s quite amazing!

A bit about Shaun from Galerie de Bellefeville’s website (in Montreal, Quebec (Canada))

As outside viewers, we find ourselves longing to understand who Shaun Downey’s subjects are. What their lives are like, and which chain of events led them to the exact moment the artist has captured. His meticulously rendered paintings call out to be understood, but we the viewer are left to make our own assumptions.

Shaun Downey strives to breathe fresh life into realist painting by combining classical ideals within the context of his own life and surroundings. His paintings have elements of decades past, but are firmly grounded in present day. Often painting his wife and friends within the confines of his home, we are allowed a voyeuristic glance into his world as he reveals his efforts to capture the fleeting beauty of modern life.

Image via ShaunDowney.com, used with permission…

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Terry Miura. Wow. Scrolling through paintings posted on Facebook by various artists I love it when a painting jumps out at me. And *POW* This one… jumped! Incredible in every way, including the title. This painting tells a story, which I love!

Without clearly seeing her face, you can feel that this woman is clearly having second thoughts about something? What could it be? Perhaps she shouldn’t meet that young man she was introduced to earlier like she told him she would? Maybe she should cancel her dessert order, the cheesecake sounded good, but can she live with herself if she eats it?? Should she have said YES to that job offer in a different state? Or should she just stay here where its comfortable?  So many stories run through my mind! I love paintings that draw you in, make you think…

If you’re an artist looking for a workshop, Terry has several coming up, check them out! Also you might want to take a peek at Terry’s blog, full of great info!

Terry is one amazing artist, here is a bit about him from his website:

(b.1964) After graduating from Art Center College of Design in 1990, Terry Miura headed out to New York City to pay his dues. He began his career as a freelance illustrator, creating imagery for such clients as Time, Newsweek, Rollingstone, and Sports Illustrated, to name a few.​

In between illustration assignments he painted and exhibited cityscapes, and continued his transition to becoming a full time painter after returning to the West Coast in 1996.​

Miura’s evocative tonalist landscapes explore the relationship between memory, emotions, and identity. “Although they’re still very much representational,” says Miura, “they’re not about specific locations. Well, actually they are, but the locations are found in my and the viewer’s memories. Not out there in the physical world. “​

With atmosphere, mood, and abstraction as driving characteristics of his work, Miura has, more recently been revisiting the complexities of the cityscape as a major part of his repertoire. Urban Aria, his latest solo exhibition at Thomas Reynolds Gallery in San Francisco, illustrates his mastery in this genre.​

Emotion and abstraction carries over to his figurative works. It is in this genre that Miura finds most personal expression; “In painting the figure, I allow myself to get lost in the process and take more risks. Only by deconstructing the representational and the objective, am I able to tap into the more subconscious, intuitive voice which for me, is at once mysterious and authentic.”

His works are represented by The Christopher Hill Gallery in St. Helena and Healdsburg, Sloane Merrill Gallery in Boston, Thomas Reynolds Gallery in San Francisco, Anne Irwin Gallery in Atlanta, Sekula’s in Sacramento, and Holton Studio in Emeryville, Ca.

Image via TerryMiura.com, used with permission…

Catch you back here tomorrow!