September 12, 2003

The Artists of the City Link Gallery Page 2002-03

Who says South Florida has no art scene? Every week, City Link features a local artist and his or her works on our Gallery page. The following 46 have appeared there since our last Art Issue, and many will have works on view in our 10th annual Artists of the City Link Gallery Page exhibition, which just goes to show that you only have to know where to look — right here.

by Candice Russell

Be part of next year's Gallery Exhibit.

Paul Richard Aho

Kudos keep coming for West Palm Beach’s Aho, who is included in the just-published book New American Paintings and the latest edition of Who’s Who in American Art. “These are verifications that make you feel good,” says the artist, who uses a variety of media and digital imaging. “I work in photographic processes and traditional printmaking as well as layering, as in Photoshop.” Aho can be reached at 561/582-9255 or during the day in his job as chief program officer of the Palm Beach Photographic Centre in Delray Beach at 561/276-9797.

Isaias Alezones

Mixing painting and sculpture, Venezuelan native Alezones creates three-dimensional pieces. “I call my style abstract constructivism,” says the artist, who also does installations in metal and wood. “Originally, my work was more figurative. Now, it’s more abstract.” In the past six years, he has had numerous one-man shows primarily in South Florida but also in Spain. While he used to have an agent representing his art, he now handles the marketing and publicity chores himself. His innovative work can be seen on the Web site www.alezones.com. He can be reached at 954/957-9693 or info@alezones.com.

Beto Alvarez

Working from his home studio in West Palm Beach, Colombian-born mixed-media artist Alvarez believes that all his life is about art. The materials he uses include plaster, resin, bronze, steel, wood, stone and ceramics. He had a one-man show last winter at the Stonewall Library and Archives in Fort Lauderdale that featured castings of the erect penises of friends, clients and himself. Alvarez can be reached at 561/688-1258.

Troy Ammons

Architect and oil painter Ammons has no one specific style. “I do a little bit of everything,” the Deerfield Beach resident says of his figurative work, abstract expressionism and surrealism. Last fall, he participated in a group show at New York City’s Agora Gallery. “I’m trying to capture some emotional content with enough detail, depth and subject matter to keep you from walking away,” he says. Ammons, whose work is on view online at www.troyammons.com, can be reached at 954/480-6191 or art@troyammons.com.

Barbara Aruanno

“I never know when I’m finished,” says Fort Lauderdale oil painter Aruanno. “I’ve been doing local scenes at Middle River with the yellow Water Taxi and at Dania Canal. I paint figures outside in shade with spots of light, which I find very exciting.” She has also been working on scenes of Savannah, Ga., a favorite spot of hers. Aruanno can be reached at 954/566-0079.

Fran Bitett Beck

Pembroke Pines photographer Beck has won $15,000 from the South Florida Cultural Consortium on two occasions — in 1996 and this year — for different bodies of work. The first series involved pictures of people and their pets. The second, ongoing series features panoramic, black-and-white shots of abandoned buildings in desolate locations done with infrared film. This fall, Beck plans to return to the region outside Rochester, N.Y., to shoot in infrared and color film. Beck can be reached at 954/432-2634.

Lauri Blank

Paintings of classically beautiful women are the stock in trade of Fort Lauderdale’s Blank. She recently finished “an absolutely huge job” in Washington, D.C., painting the very large ceiling of a private home. “I stood on scaffolding with my head back and took six Tylenols a day,” she explains. “It’s a castlelike fresco with horses, lions and women.” Her most unusual commission was to paint the dome of an 18th-century Romanian church in Montreal. Blank’s romantic work can be seen on the Web site www.blankstudio.com. She can be reached at 954/564-8518 or lblank@blankstudio.com.

M. Rita Boutros

Boutros is involved in lots of new events and activities: an upcoming solo show at Palm Springs Public Library, new gallery representation by Diego Victoria Fine Arts in Miami Beach and teaching youth art programs in Palm Beach Gardens and Royal Palm Beach, where she lives. The Egyptian-born artist, who came to the United States at age 3, paints acrylics on canvas. Her current interests include representational art. “I do highly emotionally charged work that stems from personal experience,” she says. Boutros can be reached at 561/798-0767.

Earl Bronsteen

This master of installations has about 85 of them in adjoining Boca Raton warehouses, where he creates six days a week. Bronsteen’s work comments on social problems, such as mistreatment of the elderly, abortion and consumerism. He’s presently creating a line of six dresses. “I made the first one out of credit cards,” says Bronsteen, who never went to art school. Last year, his work, including a 40-foot-long wall with letters of rejection, was shown at the Gulf Coast Museum in Largo. Bronsteen can be reached at 561/241-2853.

Colin Christian

From his innovative Oakland Park studio, Christian can make almost anything a client wants, from a mascot for the Green Bay Packers to a realistic loggerhead turtle for a local nature preserve. He just completed a third artwork for the president of Nike Corp. — a space-suited girl with a ray gun surrounded by B-movie monsters. This week, he’s participating in a Woodstock, N.Y., tattoo show with Skot Olsen and two other cartoon-inspired, over-the-top sculptural artworks. Christian can be reached at Hotbox Designs, the studio he runs with wife Sas (see below), at 954/567-1711 or hotbox2001@aol.com. The studio’s Web site, www.hotboxdesigns.com, displays some of his works.

Sas Christian

Christian works painstakingly slow. She takes 70 to 80 hours to finish a painting of 12 inches by 16 inches, with the result of a brushless patina. Classified as a lowbrow artist, she emphasizes the eyes of her pretty, fawnlike girl subjects. “The eyes are the most compelling part of anybody,” she says. With a show at Copro Nason Gallery in Los Angeles through Sept. 20, another opening Sept. 13 at Th’ink Tank Tattoo and Gallery in Denver with Skot Olsen and prices for her work increasing every year, Christian is on a red-hot career ascendancy that local galleries inexplicably fail to acknowledge. Her work can be seen at www.hotboxdesigns.com. She can be reached at 954/567-1711 or hotbox2001@aol.com.

Michael Dubiner

Photography on the fly is the specialty of Wellington resident Dubiner. His favorite places to shoot include malls, restaurants, grocery stores, streets, airports, flea markets and tattoo festivals. He takes pictures of people extremely close-up, from three to five feet away, using a 28 mm lens. He also writes a twice-monthly column on photography for www.pixieport.com. Dubiner’s images can be found on his Web site, www.duby.com. He can be reached at 561/790-0300.

Tom Edmonds

A folk-art flair mixed with the color sophistication of fauvist painter Raoul Dufy is present in the oil paintings of Edmonds. Influenced by life in South Florida, the Kansas native began a series of beach scenes combined with city backgrounds two years ago. This Hollywood resident, who works as assistant director and curator of Fort Lauderdale’s Bonnet House, started the Bonnet House Fine Artists’ Group to promote the museum and local artists. Look for monthly meet-the-artist events on site beginning in October. Edmonds can be reached at 954/922-4511.

Richard Favilli

This self-described “modern primitive with a little surrealism” is a mixed-media artist who makes dolls from PVC clay, among other things. Fort Lauderdale resident Favilli, who works as a neonatal intensive care unit nurse at Broward General Medical Center, is a featured artist, along with Hegina Rodrigues, in a group show titled Metamorphosis opening Sept. 20 at Red Pearl Yoga (formerly Inspire Yoga) in Fort Lauderdale. He’s currently working on a series of sculptural characters inspired by the short stories of Gabriel García Márquez. Favilli can be reached at 954/792-7502.

John Garner

Garner uses a computer to combine his photography, scanned images, drawings and paintings. He’s also getting to be a fixture on the local outdoor art show scene. How’s business? “Depends on what week it is,” he says, adding that he recently shipped some of his art to customers in Jacksonville. Garner can be reached at 561/470-1430.

Huong

In 2000, Vietnamese native Huong opened her palatial Miami home to the public to view her War Pieces, a series of large paintings that protest conflict. She continues creating works using this theme. Since Sept. 11, 2001, she has been working on a mural project related to peace “with a more international flavor,” she says. “My work touches the hearts of many people as it brings the reality of history to life. It also brings the message of peace clearly.” Her paintings can be seen at www.studioegallery.com, the Web site of Jupiter’s Studio E Gallery, while her own site, www.huong.org, is under construction. Huong can be reached at 305/275-8547.

Benjamin Kenagen

When Boca Raton’s Kenagen travels, he brings three cameras — one with slides, one for color prints and one for black-and-white photos. He’s trying to tell stories with his photos in a style he calls “a combination of fine art and contemporary journalism.” His color image “Snack Bar,” shot in Delray Beach, was shown last December at the prestigious Society of the Four Arts competition in Palm Beach. In the age of the digital camera, he remains a traditionalist because he’s having fun with traditional cameras. Kenagen can be reached at 561/439-8103.

Peter Langoné

Fort Lauderdale photographer Langoné recently completed a book titled God As a Woman and is currently talking to publishers. The pictures capture females from birth to adulthood and the trials and tribulations they face. This globetrotting fashion photographer, who also works as a City Link contributing photographer, has a long roster of corporate clients who use images to advertise their products and services. His work can be seen at www.peterlangone.com. Langoné can be reached at 954/467-0654 or langone@peterlangone.com.

David Le Batard

Native New Yorker Le Batard paints in a style that straddles illustration and comic book art; he calls it “postmodern cartoon expressionism.” He has had seven solo shows since 1996. In 2001, he participated in group exhibitions in Los Angeles, Toronto and New Orleans. This Pembroke Pines resident, who works under the name Lebo, recently finished a mural on the side of The Pinnacle, a 15-story Miami apartment building. Le Batard can be reached at www.leboland.com or 954/435-0090.

Kellie LeFever

People and pets are the focus of photographer LeFever, who recently completed a black-and-white photo shoot at the Pet Connection, a groomer in Wilton Manors. She finds dogs and cats equally difficult to capture. “When it comes to photographing people with their pets, I like to get their personalities and the love they have for each other,” she says. Another new avenue for her is architectural photography, both interiors and exteriors. Her landscape photographs are on view at RaZoo Gallery in Fort Lauderdale. LeFever can be reached at 954/803-5884 or via her Web site at www.feverphoto.com.

Mira Lehr

Lehr recently completed a self-made book with 95 pages of what she describes as “beautiful little paintings.” With text by Lehr and the late designer and architect Buckminster Fuller, with whom she worked in 1969, the book was an opportunity for the Miami Beach artist to become re-acquainted with Fuller’s philosophy about maximizing natural resources while producing minimal waste. Lehr’s nature-influenced abstract paintings were showcased earlier this year in the solo exhibition Affinities With the East at the Elaine Baker Gallery in Boca Raton. Look for the artist’s work in a group show featuring birdhouses next year at the Bernice Steinbaum Gallery in Miami. Lehr’s work can be seen online at www.miralehr.com, and she can be reached at 305/868-4401 or mira@miralehr.com.

Effie Lewis

Having lived in South Florida most of her life, watercolorist Lewis of Pembroke Pines is naturally drawn to capturing in the area’s wildlife and outdoors in her works. She considers herself a realist with a controlled technique. Her specialty is producing works with a nearly photo-realistic punch. As a fixture on Florida’s outdoor art show scene, she says she sold “very nicely” this past winter and is looking forward to shows this fall in Tampa and Winter Park. Lewis has a Web site, www.effielewisart.com, and can be reached at 954/435-9161.

Francesco LoCastro

LoCastro calls his style of painting “cartoon surrealism.” Within that category, he sets himself apart from his peers by getting into social and political commentary. With acrylic paintings such as “The Altar Boy’s Revelation,” which shows a sexual encounter between a boy and a priest, LoCastro knows he’s going to make some enemies. Nonetheless, his career is on the upswing. His work will appear in a show opening Sept. 19 at the 1300 Gallery in Cleveland. LoCastro, whose work can be seen on the Web at www.francescolocastro.com, can be reached by e-mailing artist@francescolocastro.com.

Richard Lund

Changing his style is part of the fun for Fort Lauderdale native and resident Lund, who works as a graphic-design artist for the Sun-Sentinel. This graduate of the Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale has had his work accepted into the Hortt Competition and Exhibition four times. He won a $15,000 grant in 1993 from the South Florida Cultural Consortium for sculptures made from found objects, among other honors. His current work, suffused with symbolism, is in black-and-white gessoes in a style he describes as slightly realistic. Lund, who recently finished a series on dreams, can be reached at 954/565-5615. His work can be seen at www.anew.org/lund.

Kevin MacIvor

Fort Lauderdale’s MacIvor calls his recent works “space paintings,” in reference to both inner and outer space. Last December, he exhibited his work as part of a group show at the now-closed Zagami Fine Art gallery. “A lot of my work has to do with space or higher steps of nature,” he explains. “The idea of plumbing or the circulatory system is of interest to me.” Although schooled in Tibetan religious thought, the artist prefers not to be called either religious or spiritual. Contact MacIvor at 954/587-3839.

Joe Muraskin

Hallandale Beach resident Muraskin worked with painters Sam Adler and Philip Guston in what he calls “the heady days of abstract expressionism.” Committed to his favorite medium, oil, he avoids using acrylics because they appear flat. This lawyer specializes in real estate exhibits with Art and More Gallery in Pembroke Park. People might call him an abstract expressionist, but figures and portraits are also part of his repertoire. Muraskin can be reached at 954/457-3971.

Hanne Niederhausen

Three-dimensional art, including book assemblages inspired by medieval prayer guides, are the province of Boca Raton resident Niederhausen. She’s also at work on a series of big paintings that is “somewhat botanical but not a true depiction,” she says. “They’re between abstraction and realism.” With a one-woman show at the Northwest Regional Library in Coral Springs last April, the artist continues to be active on the local art scene. When not creating art, she teaches German at Florida Atlantic University. Niederhausen has an online gallery of her works at www.niederhausen.net/hanne and can be reached at 561/368-3793 or niederhausen@netscape.net.

Peter Olsen

Biblically minded painter Olsen has spent the past 30 years visually translating 22 chapters of the Book of Revelation into paintings. By last spring, the Fort Lauderdale resident had completed 110 artworks. He also spent the past year working on a series of paintings done in a Flemish style on the 12 minor prophets from the Old Testament, a portion of which will be shown in September at the Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church. All these paintings will be displayed in January at the Glass Gallery in Pembroke Pines. Olsen’s work can be seen at www.peterolsenart.com. He can be reached at 954/491-7744.

Skot Olsen

Weston painter Olsen tackles subjects such as religious piety and unsanitary butcher shops with an almost gleeful sense of humor. On an upward career trajectory, he recently had a solo show in Manhattan and a two-man show in Los Angeles. This month, he’s participating in an exhibition in Denver with fellow painter Sas Christian and a group show at the Woodstock Tattoo and Body Arts Festival in New York with Colin Christian and other lowbrow artists. “I’ve been doing more nautical paintings,” he says. “I’m going to work more in oils. I’ve been working in acrylic because of time.” He will also have a show in the spring at Florida Collectors Gallery in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea. Look for his signed, limited-edition giclées on his Web site, www.skotolsen.com. Olsen can be reached by calling 954/389-7453 or e-mailing skot@skotolsen.com.

Laura Marie Peterson

Versatile Fort Lauderdale photographer Peterson uses Polaroid transfers and experiments with colored paper using negatives and positives. People and fashion are her favorite topics. She recently started shooting weddings, many of which are outdoors. Capturing her subjects is the thing she does best: “I feel like I have their essence. … I usually shoot very candidly.” Peterson can be reached at 954/290-3051.

Tanya Pfeffer-Witzel

Palm Beach Gardens resident Pfeffer-Witzel describes her paintings as “architectural fantasies.” She takes photographs of buildings that intrigue her, then uses them as a launching pad for inspiration. Explaining that much of her work is mathematical, the artist employs a ruler to get the perspective just right. She takes up to four weeks to complete a single acrylic painting on canvas. Pfeffer-Witzel can be reached at 561/775-8505.

Cecilia Rivera

“People can look at my paintings and imagine something else,” says Mexican native Rivera. She sees her abstract oil paintings as part of a new art movement she describes as “magical, mythical and poetical.” Rivera moved to Florida in 2003 because of the region’s Latin American connection and art scene. She chose to live in Fort Lauderdale because it’s more peaceful than Miami. With a recent exhibition of her work in Los Angeles, she is preparing paintings for a solo show in Atlanta next month. Rivera can be reached at 954/568-7740.

Hegina Rodrigues

This Pompano Beach painter has a busy life, working as an art teacher and yoga instructor, among other things. As a result, she has very little time to devote to her art. Represented exclusively by RaZoo Gallery in Fort Lauderdale, Rodrigues recently had expressive, mixed-media paintings on view at the Art and Culture Center of Hollywood’s juried biennial exhibition and in the 52nd Annual All Florida Competition and Exhibition at the Boca Raton Museum of Art and, along with Richard Favilli, will be a featured artist in Metamorphosis, a show opening Sept. 20 at Red Pearl Yoga (formerly Inspire Yoga) in Fort Lauderdale. She sees a change developing in her body of figurative work: “Maybe I’m getting a little looser and more raw.” Rodrigues can be reached at 954/946-7969.

Eva Roffe

Miami Beach resident and art teacher Roffe recently embarked on a series of paintings that deals with Jewish mysticism. “It’s Kabbalah and whatever I know,” says the artist, who was born to Holocaust survivors in postwar Poland. “I want my paintings to be charged with visual, intellectual, emotional and spiritual beauty.” Roffe can be reached at 305/651-2266.

Patricia Saidon

Emotion and experience drive Saidon’s oil and watercolor paintings. This Boca Raton resident recently completed three large works on commission, including a triptych. With 10 shows under her belt so far this year, she says, “It’s very important for me to show with feeling the experiences of my life and where I’ve been, like Paris, Barcelona and Cuba.” Her works appear on www.genesislasolas.com, the Web site of Fort Lauderdale gallery Genesis Fine Art. Saidon can be reached at 561/470-2126.

Martin Schreiber

Boynton Beach artist Schreiber calls himself “a geometric illusionist.” His paintings, comprising lines and boxes, toy with perception. Since his first show in New York in 1955, he has participated in dozens of group and solo exhibitions, achieving praise from critics in The New York Times and Newsday. The accolades keep coming: He recently had a painting in the 52nd Annual All Florida Competition and Exhibition at the Boca Raton Museum of Art. Schreiber can be reached at 561/733-3788 or through his Web page, www.bocamuseumartistguild.org/schreiber.

Pablo Serrano

Working in oil and watercolor, Serrano says he doesn’t like to “get stuck” in one technique. This Colombian native’s paintings have been seen in five Broward County exhibitions within the past two years. Represented by the RaZoo Gallery in Fort Lauderdale, Serrano is known for paintings that combine humans and animals in ways that are mysterious and intriguing. The Pompano Beach resident also teaches art and guitar. Serrano can be reached at 954/261-1439, at kutuco@yahoo.com or via his Web site, www.repgraph.com/artfactory.

Larry Singer

Digital photographer Singer had a one-man show at a Hollywood branch library in July and sells greeting cards and art to Just Hearts, a shop in Delray Beach. Singer, who will be profiled in the November 2003 issue of Range Finder magazine, wants to produce a style of work that has never been seen before. “I really want to take photography to a new level,” he says. Singer can be reached at 954/485-1959.

Stan Slutsky

“I consider myself a geometric, optical-illusion artist,” says Delray Beach’s Slutsky. “Every one of my paintings is made up of the rainbows of the sun. I love it. It’s like breathing fresh air when I paint.” Two different companies are publishing giclées and prints of his paintings, a development he calls “exciting.” The self-taught artist once took a course in drafting to help him with the geometric aspect of his work. His work can be seen at www.stanslutsky.com. Slutsky can be reached at 561/865-1285 or info@stanslutsky.com.

Bea Stanley

A fixture on the local art scene and a regular contributor to City Link since 1994, artist-illustrator Brenda “Bea” Stanley, also known as B. Hovancak, lost her battle with cancer in January at the age of 41. Her clever drawings accompanied the magazine’s restaurant reviews and cover stories. She also did a range of fine-art pieces. “Her most recent works were a departure from her normal style,” says her widower, Ben Stanley. “She was freer and wanted to do paintings that conveyed happiness and love.”

Vickie Suarez

The photography of Fort Lauderdale’s Suarez has a decidedly dark feel. She credits this to her appreciation for film noir and her own dreams, which she records in a journal. Rather than cite the influence of other still photographers, she names Blue Velvet and Mulholland Drive movie director David Lynch as a major influence. Her work was shown last year at Galerie Macabre. Suarez, whose works can be seen online at www.vickiesuarez.com, can be reached at 954/455-7015 or vickie@vickiesuarez.com.

Carol Thaw

Weston watercolorist Thaw directs the Painting in Plein Air program for the Gold Coast Watercolor Society. She recently took a group of artists to Las Olas Boulevard in Fort Lauderdale, where they captured storefronts and passersby. “I got some great work from it,” she says. “I’m very colorful. I live and breathe my paintings.” Look for her work through Oct. 9 in the group show Twelve Voices Speaking for Art at the Glass Gallery in Pembroke Pines City Hall. Thaw’s works can be seen at www.artmeister.com/carolthaw.html, and she can be reached at 954/389-0374.

Vangelis

According to the Greek-born Vangelis, the large, lush, super-realistic floral blooms in his oil paintings have caught the eye of some very prominent collectors. The artist has a studio in Wilton Manors, where he paints on canvas in many meticulous coats to get the effects he wants. Represented by De Graaf Fine Art in West Palm Beach, the self-taught Vangelis says, “I want every painting to stand alone as a masterpiece.” He can be reached at 954/564-2596.

Soni Wallace

Exhibitions and awards are commonplace for Wallace, who taught herself the art of infrared photography. As a member of the Artist Guild of the Boca Raton Museum of Art, she won three awards in the group’s past four shows. In May, she had an exhibition at the John Henry Center for Integrative Medicine in Boca Raton featuring her nature shots with a spiritual undercurrent. This former New Yorker moved to Florida six years ago to be near her daughter, who lives in Miami. Wallace can be reached at 561/347-8716 or via her Web page, www.bocamuseumartistguild.org/wallace.

Barbara Wasserman

Wasserman’s lyrical paintings of emotional women were shown this spring at Gallery Camino Real in Boca Raton. She creates in oil, graphite and pencil and says, “I adore drawing. It’s almost like handwriting. I use a lot of graphite on paper and birch wood that I finely sand.” Her Boca Raton home reflects her eclectic taste in folk art, her own mastery at decorating furniture and 20 years spent living in Mexico. Wasserman’s work is displayed online at www.twoplusthree.org, and she can be reached at 561/368-2926 or artteachergirl@aol.com.

Sal Zagami

Opened in 2002 and closed this summer, Zagami Fine Art in Fort Lauderdale showcased the works of local and international artists. Its owner, Sal Zagami, is an artist himself and was represented by the Carone Gallery in Fort Lauderdale for 22 years. “I’ve worked with all media to find my personal expression,” he says. As an experienced sculptor recently entering the field of digital photography, he is unafraid to try new media. Zagami can be reached at 954/599-5504.

The Artists of the City Link Gallery Page 2003 exhibit will feature works by many of these artists. The exhibition runs through Sept. 18 at the ArtServe JM Family Enterprises Gallery, 1350 E. Sunrise Blvd. in Fort Lauderdale. Call 954/462-9191.

Contact Candice Russell at citylink@citylinkmagazine.com.