I'm interested in combining different materials and elements to create or change an image, to elevate it or diminish its glow and power. In this work, I am exploring the myth of celebrity and beauty, of what is classic or sacred, I use photographs by Annie Leibovitz, classic paintings by Da Vinci or Lautrec, cut out pages of W or Vanity Fair magazines, old record covers, or poetry books as my essential elements of expression. I see their beauty and power, and I want to reinterpret, to enhance, or metamorphosize these powerful images.

For me to make art, I must be profoundly moved by an experience or thought. I share life stories through my work. My studio is my sanctuary to make art, free of outside influences and judgment of others. Being in a place that feels safe is important to me. My inner world is feminine; I select specific colors to evoke a feeling or luscious fabrics to create a veil, like a soft shield of protection. From that point, there is a pouring out of emotions where I expose my personal life’s journey. This vital process is the vehicle that helps to promote healing within and it is why I continue to make art.

I was always intrigued by the idea of mixing construction or industrial materials with the fine arts to achieve a dream-like beauty and that combination is exactly what my new artwork encapsulates.

In my series of metal meshwork, I use industrial materials such as stainless steel mesh as my main material. With a blow-torch, I employ visual language to express organic-based themes with botanic, arborist, and even oceanic influences.

When it is finished, my artwork seems to be made of soft silk. But when it is touched, it is surprisingly cold and sharply metallic. I believe these kinds of illusions reflect life. And when I burn the metal screen with a flame from the blow-torch, it is all free-hand without any back drawing. This technique is similar to what my Asian ancestors did with Sumi ink over the last thousands of years, and when I work on my pieces, I feel the spirit of the ancient art coming through to me from long ago.

I would use various organic themes to accentuate this industrial element in the work: maritime elements as sea kelps, sea anemones and often abstract giant botanical forms and simplified tree lines—tangled and overlapped as if there was a permanent breeze in the air. I add colors by letting the background seep through the mesh as if you were to see the world through a magic veil.

With harsh industrial materials and tools, I am to recapture this unusual beauty, inscribing the ephemeral existence of sublime nature onto shimmering metal mesh.

Artist Jonah Ward creates works of art that, in their most literal form, are compellingly aesthetic; in their most metaphorical, they are a testament to our always relevant interaction with the natural world.

While requiring sustained physical interaction with natural materials, Jonah’s works are also paradoxically devoid of his literal touch or imprint. He acts more as a facilitator—harnessing natural processes and phenomenon, while also according them their proper respect for their capacity for both incommensurable beauty and destruction.

Jonah's original, and most prevalent series of work is composed of panels of wood stamped with what could be tar-like paint and printed with abstract designs and meanderings. Upon closer inspection, the woods—with their different grains, colors, and textures—are scarred with burns: what is left over when Jonah drips, ladles, presses, cools, and peels molten glass from them. 

Pursuing his use of natural elements, Jonah combines paper, water, fire and light to create another series of work he's titled "Burning Water". For this intense process, Jonah blasts fire at paper masked by streams of cool water, orchestrating a battle between these opposing forces. The aftermath is a composition of beautiful destruction—a moment Jonah describes as "controlled chaos frozen in time".

In his most recent series titled “Textured ‘Paintings,’” Jonah reinterprets the idea of what traditionally defines a painting or drawing. Rectangular pieces of madrone tree bark, leaves and paper from bald faced hornet's nests are separately adhered to wood canvases in a patchwork pattern, resulting in painting-like forms containing a richness and depth only matched by other natural occurring colors, textures and materials. 

Jonah’s final works represent an organization of seemingly chaotic content and situations, yet are bound by a sense of structure—a common thread that has become prevalent in all of his work.

I believe in making the most of my hands, therefore I weave, knit or embroider. Being able to touch is very important to me and I love tactile items. I always encourage people to touch my work. I intertwine my energy of recycling/reusing with emotions, experiences, observations and conversations. Majority of the items I use, are gathered from various places, situations and people. My theory is, every discarded item has another use before it gets tossed into our over flowing landfills. With that theory, I see it as my responsibility to see items are reused, just as items are recycled in the blue bins. Depending in the mood or mode I am in, I'll weave, knit or embroider just about anything. I see many different possibilities in the future. I also, see many different possibilities in one item.

Memories of my childhood play a tremendous role in my approach to creating art today. In my early years my mother a single parent lived in fear for my health due to the environmental hazards of San Francisco’s Hunters Point district. I suffered with asthma. Therefore, my innate interest to drawing and painting became that of a marriage over sports modeling my pursuit for constant spiritual mental and physical elevation. Having siblings among others as viewers of my work challenged me to go beyond my limitations. I remember my late grandmother a Barber and tailor sewing for hours at her machine after coming home from work. I would sit at her feet and draw on a paper bag with a pen, marker, crayon or a number two pencil. Art is an absolute liberation of my imagination, a tool I use to communicate and share my “inner-light.” I have regular memories of my childhood working at the local super market, helping elders with their shopping bags. Receiving tips helping my grandmother in her barber shop by sweeping up the hairs to find money mysteriously hidden in large clumps. At the end of each service, those who knew me would say, “Keep up the good work and never stop doing your art.” From these experiences, I have learned the treasure of focusing on minuet details. Eventually, I realized in my artistic process that I too would hide treasures. Living with this artistic expression is ritualistic in act and meditative in thought. Many times in the midst of creating, I experience dejavu. The realization of a single moment is obsolete only until it is captured by a memory of a stroke; a thought or pause for observation that I have discovered represents reincarnation of that tangible moment. Because of this, the very act of creating fine art is imparted with the relationship and responsibility I have with THE CREATOR. “The purpose of my existence.” I also feel it is my duty as self taught artist to have an internal dialog with the viewer and in many cases the ancestors, where at this point I find inspiration for artistic expression. Fathering my child, serving my community, drumming, martial arts, poetry, philosophy and ancestral facts (history), all helps with the enhancement of my expression, to captures the Black, experience in America. I enjoy manipulating dry water-based paints, oil pastels, ink pen, found objects or assemblage. Book illustrations, portraiture, and public art projects have brought me closer to my community. The purpose of my compositions is to elevate the social, political, environmental and spiritual issues of people deeply challenged by oppression. This has been my greatest enrapture. Kenya and Haiti are places for instance that influence the bold and dramatic colors in my works. Henry Ossawa Tanner, Aaron Douglas, John Biggers and Jean-Michel Basquiat (to name a few) has inspired my artistic direction. Being an artist and growing up with-in low-income housing projects, surrounded by the early stages of Hip-Hop, had an immense impact on my ability to create freely. Although this bold life style of music, poetry, art, dance, and intense research today seems barbaric. It nevertheless has influenced me to be boundless in my creative efforts to deliver messages of empowerment to the indigenous peoples of the world.

My artwork ties into my training and skills as an engineer and manifests itself as kinematic art - involving motion both physical and perceived (light and sound giving the impression of motion.) I work with robotics, mechanics, light, and sound, creating mobiles, stabiles, and other geometric sculptures. I am examining the relationships of light and motion, reality and optical illusion, spinny and blinky.

Visionary Artist & Teacher Illuminating the Possibilities Elizabeth Gibbons is a visionary artist and teacher. Her art depicts a spiritual journey, the telling of a story that contacts us at the level of the soul. As we view layers and layers of prayer, hope, paradox and spirit woven between particles of paint, bead, glitter and rhinestone we are inspired to embark upon our own journey. As a teacher, Elizabeth encourages us to explore materials that animate our sense of wonder, joy and play. By playing with the sparkle of jewels, beads & glitter the divine spark of imagination that lives within each of us is illuminated and we are transported to the land of infinite possibilities.

My work is meant to stir the intellect and yet be meditative. My pieces are organic or biological in essence, looking like things one would see in nature.  Repetition of form is another theme seen in my work.  The scale of my sculptures range from the intimate to large-scale installations. Some artworks are ceramic paintings, ceramic forms attached to wood panels. Others sculptures are ceramic forms installed directly on the wall.   Most recently I am making freestanding sculptures as well.  My work is hand built, primarily using low fire clay and glazes. Form and color are important elements in my work. The seductive qualities of the ceramic medium of color and surface are used to attract the attention of the viewers so that they will spend time looking at the work, embarking on their individual journey of discovery.