Christiane Danna

In creating jewelry, I am inspired by the simple elegance of both nature and contemporary design. My work often features fluid, balanced lines that give each piece a sense of cohesion and form. I use traditional metalsmithing techniques, such as sawing, forging and soldering. By applying varying use of these methods, each piece is unique, featuring finishes that range from hammer textured to highly polished, a lovely union of the natural and modern worlds.

Catherine Geyer

The centuries old art of quilling has just been reimagined as jewelry, when using silver instead of paper. Silver bezel wire is curled using the same tool as for paper, or crimped, and then formed into one or multiple pieces The pieces are then placed in a sterling silver frame and sweat soldered to a back plate. Stones or granulation can be added and are either tube or bezel set. Anything is possible with this updated technique, although I try to stay away from the traditional motifs in favor of more contemporary themes. The looks can vary from organic to tribal or contemporary depending on the piece.

Sarah Hassler

My pieces are hand cut and often recycled acrylic and bakelite cold joined with sterling silver.

Don Kelley

I use vintage sterling silver dinner forks re-forging them into fine contemporary jewelry. In the Bauhaus tradition each piece is sculpted and “cold formed” into graceful bold lines. I combine sterling, gold and bronze metals and incorporate semi-precious as well as precious stones to include diamonds and pearls for accent.

Serena Kojimoto

I use a unique combination of black neoprene, gems and pearls with hammered, forged, soldered or lost wax cast sterling silver. Each neoprene shape is hand cut and bezel set into the sterling silver.

Ansley Larsson @ansleylarsson

I make jewelry out of goose egg shells. I use batik (dye and wax resist) to put my original designs on the egg, then I cut the pieces and put epoxy on them for strength and make them into jewelry.

Chih-Yu Kevin Lin

My work is both functional and sculptural. I am inspired by architecture, nature and the figure. I use varieties of techniques such as: texturing, fusing, straw casting, cuttlebone casting, soldering, reticulation, keum-boo. Materials include: fine silver, sterling silver, 24K gold foil, 22K gold, 18K gold, 14k gold, precious stones, pearls, and found objects to express these ideas.

Susan Mahlstedt @susanmahlstedtjewelry

I make nature inspired hand fabricated jewelry exploring movement and textures. My current forms are influenced by leaves, sand dollars, shells and bamboo. Finishes include oxidized, satin, and depletion gilding. A heating process that makes the silver white. Materials are sterling silver, 18k gold detailing and accent stones.

Lois Neal

I create Sterling silver, rose gold and copper hand made chain jewelry. The rings are linked together in various patterns to form necklaces, bracelets and earrings, with the additions of stones, pearls and crystals.

Kerri Norman @kerrinormanjewelry

I am a Minneapolis based jewelry metal smith. I mostly work in silver but use other metals such as gold to enhance and embellish. My series themes range from doors to sundew plants to houses and the work is constantly evolving and changing.

Leigh Roberts

I use a variety of ancient and modern torch techniques to develop texture. These are the seeds that grow into my designs. One technique, Perforation, is achieved by heating metal in such a way that it becomes pocked and crater-like. Pieces are then cut, formed, soldered and fabricated with precious metals to produce bracelets, neckpieces, earrings and rings. The jewelry is accentuated with gemstones chosen for their color, texture and patterns.

Meri Taylor

I create one-of-a-kind jewelry out of sterling and gold honeycomb textured sheet which I also make myself. Pieces are finished with natural gems, patina, and 24kt gold. Clasps are also often handmade.

Erh Ping Tsai

I create whimsical one-of-a-kind porcelain, three-dimensional creature pins. All of my designs are true originals which were inspired by the flawless beauty of nature. With over 30 years of experience in clay, metal, sculpture, and painting, I have created a color porcelain technique based on ancient Chinese folk ceramic art, combining this technique with other mediums to create unique designs for each piece that brings out humorous and whimsical characteristics.

Claudia Winter @baubblysilver

I use traditional metalsmithing techniques to make silver jewelry, to which I add hand-tinted opaque resin inlay. Different color schemes are used on opposing sides of each piece (to make it reversible), and then it's sanded to a matte finish. Many pieces are convertible as well as being reversible.

Theresa Zahner

My body of work consists of woven wire. Most of my pieces are copper, but some are silver and others are mixed metals. Wire of varying shapes and sizes are hand woven and layered to create unique jewelry. Raw crystals, polished cabochons and beads are sometimes used to show how woven wire structures can frame and highlight their natural beauty. When I use a stone, I use a sturdier wire to create a frame that it sits in and add woven elements to capture it and keep it in place. As the woven elements are added, I use the weaving wire to lash them to the frame and to each other. This makes the piece stable and prevents the stone from moving. As wire and weaves are added, they create their own organic flow around and through the piece, building up the decorative structures and creating negative space.

Katherine Alexander @Katherine_Alexander_Art

All of my work begins with a real egg and uses the ancient Ukrainian batik method of pysanky to transform the shell. I draw inspiration from the art's original purpose: celebrating the changing seasons and beautiful symmetry found in nature.

Marian Baker @Marian.b1961

Marian Baker is an acrylic artist who paints on hand cut boards covered in vintage papers- sealed in wax

Stephen Baldauf 

Creating paintings and multimedia images with traditional themes, Stephen has a contemporary style. Working on gallery wrapped canvas, he starts with a heavy textured acrylic paint. He then adds found items, like paper images, and embeds them into the paint. Then he adds oil paint on top of the final image, and seals the work with a gloss varnish which protects the canvas, and gives it an old-world glow.

Lisa Crisman

I use a variety of mixed media including pastels, watercolor, ink, acrylic and collage. These are applied onto mounted and sanded pastel paper, pastel board or cradled board. I love using bright and non local color and creating work full of rhythm, color and fun.

Karrie Evenson @karrieevensonart

My goal is to create art that can bring joy and happiness to those who view it. I create my work using acrylic paint, oil pastel, wax, charcoal medium, and collage on canvas or cradled wood panel. Each piece is varnished and ready to hang.

Margaret Luttrell

Using the ancient medium of encaustic, I cook wax and resin and then add my own pigments to create my palate. I build my narrative on wood with collage then paint using a heated surface. I then fuse each color with a blow torch to build a solid surface that can withstand heat.

Rick Bachman

Our work consists of hand carving pine with original designs. Pieces are painted with dry brushed acrylic paints. Each piece has a sense of humor.

NICOLE BRIN

Steel is fabricated using benders, welder and plasma cutter. Every piece is hand cut. once the steel is welded together, we inlay tiles which are created using clay, resin and our own 15 colors of glaze. Multiple firings create these unique tiles. Once completed, the tiles are cut and inlayed into the steel. The tiles are then grouted and sealed. The metal is then painted.

Jan Byron

My Muses begin with wise words. These words are brought to life with a mix of polymer, colored pencil, shaped fabric, fibers, beads and found objects. Each figure's goal is to enlighten the viewer - and lighten their load...

David Gilbertsen

As a ceramicist and painter, I have been inspired by the weathering effect of wind and water upon land. I construct 3 inch deep panels, coated with cement for a stone-like texture. Then I sandblast niches, crevasses, and channels into the panels to give the viewer the sense of finding and exploring a hidden place in nature, with light and shadow on objects nestled within. Some panels are more like a stage set, with landscape paintings as backdrops. All are vignettes of sorts, minimal scenes focusing on one moment, portraits of just a few objects. The objects include old glass vases that I break/tumble to create gestural pieces to juxtapose with weather worn stones, or repurposed old aquariums for thick glass slabs. These contemporary organic constructs invite the viewer to linger in a mindful experience.

Christopher Lynch

Masks and ritualistic objects generally have always held a fascination for me. The forms these objects can take are limitless. In “primitive” cultures, these objects are painstakingly constructed with a real purpose, with function first over mere ornamentation. This I find very exciting.

John Powell

My body of work originates from the pure enchantment of beauty, form and light, woven through with satire.  My palate, primarily botanical in origin, exploits the simple effects of color juxtaposition. The mode of expression ranges from simple media to a complex variety of organic materials. It represents for me the re-discovery of guiltless instinct to reveal what Shelley described as "the blank astonishment .. that charms every sense and makes all thought take wing" 

Earnest Benton, Jr

As an artist I truly enjoy the process of creating a piece, from its conception, to building and layering textures, to selecting a color palette, and finally to see shapes and figures come together and form a unique, beautiful, and moving piece. Of my creative process, I am inspired by passion, beauty, and the abstracts and intangibles of music, thought, shapes, and form. My medium of choice is acrylic on canvas, and my palette is a mixture of earth tones, cool pastels, and vivid primary colors.

MARILYNNE BRADLEY

The geometric transformations are influenced strongly by Cubism and Futurism, which depict in precise, sharply defined spatial environments. Changing the formal structure of organic shapes into rigid linear constructions alters the mood of a scene, not to mention the contrast it provides to shadows. This geometric analysis of form holds the composition together. The composition is compressed within lines leading the eye to one point of interest. Patterns of shapes evolve.

Sergey Cherep @sergeycherep

The technique of painting that I have embraced is definitely the Post Impressionism style made famous by Van Gogh. I love the simplicity of colors and the energy found in his work. The bold, unrealistic colors and expressive brushstrokes of my predecessors are my toll as I try to bring a three-dimensional feeling out from the paintings by using color, perspective, and a thick texture.

Mollie Chounard @molliechounard

I'm a conceptual surrealist painter working primarily in acrylics on canvas. I strive to create art that conveys a story or idea. Being able to imbue my art with deeper meaning is everything to me, and I do it in a contemporary pop surrealistic way. I typically use a limited palette and use thin transparent layers to create a naturalistic blended feel.

Scott Clark

My story starts with a blank canvas and an ending not yet determined. I begin with one thin coat of oil paint and will place another forty to fifty transparent layers of paint before the story is completed over a four-month period. Each layer takes the painting in a new direction and the story begins to fold in front of me. Each painting’s story is being told as it is being painted. With no conclusion predetermined, the journey is exciting and real for me. This process allows me the opportunity to discover a truth within the painting.

Benjamin Guffee

I create oil paintings based on imagery and forms observed in nature. The paintings feature extensive layering of thin glazes of color. Traditional perspective techniques are eschewed in favor of a method of "stacking" layers to subtly create a sense of depth. The shapes present in the paintings are carefully duplicated from photo reference of an actual place and moment. I am drawn to the idea of simplifying images down to the basic elements that register with a viewer’s brain. As the more literal references are eliminated from a work (for example, the use of naturalistic color or depiction of an identifiable scene), the viewer is called upon to engage his or her own memories and create a personal connection to the piece.

Niki Gulley @Nikigulley

Gulley strives to capture the vibrant energy and intrinsic beauty of our natural surroundings so as to uplift one’s spirits and suggest childlike wonder. By applying paint thickly using palette knives, the resulting style achieves a richness of depth that explodes with color, flows with light, and evokes an emotional response.

Jessica Ladd

In my current work I try to create excitement while ordering chaos. My paintings are comprised of subjects that are both realistic and abstract, on the edge between here and there. The work is a comment on both thinking and seeing, a study on trying to not see anything for itself alone, but as part of a whole.

Sarah MacEwan

I am an artist living and working in Saint Louis, Missouri. I appreciate the beauty in natural scenes and work to reproduce this beauty on the canvas using acrylic paint. I have traveled around the world documenting a variety of natural scenes and am continually drawn to the ephemeral qualities of water and light in natural compositions.

Jessica Mahan @jessica_mahan_art

My inspiration is found in the natural world. While traveling, hiking, camping or spending quiet time in the woods, I use watercolor and indian ink to sketch out my environment and ideas. Later, I take several of these ideas to my studio, where I use acrylic paint and a variety of texture. I experiment with balancing organic, fluid paint with controlled details and fine lines. I start by pouring the paint on a level surface or loosely painting in forms to create initial movement. I then add a combination of tactile and visual texture using heavy modeling paste and fine line detail.

Jin Powell @jinhuangpowell

As a female Chinese American artist, I strive to portray beauty and the energy of the human soul. The intent of my work is to express an emotion, thought and journey. My work than becomes a mirror were the viewer reflects in the reflection.

John Schafer @johnnypauljohnnypaul

I make bold and kinetic original oil paintings on hand-stretched canvas. All of my materials are archival and artist-grade. I first prime my canvases with an archival gesso, which is a various mixture of resins, plaster of Paris and binders. Once primed, I begin layering multiple washes of diluted pigments, splashing and dashing as I go. I work intuitively, each stroke promoting the next one. I continue this initial process until the canvas is fully saturated with a myriad of shapes and pattern that can be defined in a myriad of ways. Both by design and by process of elimination, I choose shapes and patterns that share visual relationships that bring balance, tension and movement to my compositions. These are the ones I exploit, drawing them out with finishing glazes. The process continues, like a conversation between me and the canvas. Stroke by stroke until we arrive. The image is resolved.

Michael Steddum @michaelsteddum

I use glass objects in my art to represent people or situations that we all know. There is a narrative with each painting. Sometimes humorous and others are serious. On the technical side, I strive to capture light, clarity and luminous color in my oils making the still-life radiant with energy.

Don Ament

Today, an ongoing and routinely disturbing internal thrum drives my image making. I can’t seem to get away from this attempt to give voice to a planet we have forgotten how to care for. Seeking some form of redemption, I delve ever deeper into the emotional crafting of a fine photographic print, Yet, creating simple images of land, water and sky seems like such small potatoes compared to what really needs to be done.

Cort Anderson

My photography is heavily influenced by my time as a photojournalist, it is why I work in B&W. Driving and observing life around me is how I often found images for the newspaper. It is how I work now. The creative challenge is the same, create compelling photographs from ordinary life. Documenting rural churches and front porches are two of my current projects. Route 66 is another longer term project. These are in addition to finding images in everyday life.

Neil Brown

Neil R. Brown is a self-taught photographer with a BA in Fine Arts from the Kansas City Art Institute. Neil uses natural light to capture the mood and feel of the places he travels and people he meets. Neil specializes in black and white photographs developed in a dark room. He has recently started exploring digital photography with an emphasis on infrared images.

Rick Canham

I make medium format painterly impressions in extraordinary light. Each image is printed from the original film negative, using traditional wet-darkroom techniques, and the most archival papers available. Compositions are strong, and visually compelling. The images are emotive, abstract, and minimalist. There is NO digital involvement in producing the work. Prints are presented in a laminated glassless format, which protects the photograph while allowing it to be as brilliant as possible, with no reflected glare. Images are available in five sizes. All are limited editions.

Christopher Doherty

Driven by his determination to protect the underwater world, Christopher has made it his mission to capture the beauty of the ocean. He believes it is his job to help educate others in this world, hoping that as more people experience the underwater world, more people will want to protect it. Chris has now traveled across the globe and has since become an award winning and widely published photographer. So come and enjoy his work as he brings you the magic of the underwater world through his lens. 

Rob Gilmore

Rob sees his work as impressionistic and expressionistic ideas, rather than just pretty postcard landscapes or travel pictures. “I see energy and current in the natural world,” says Rob. “This energy has ebb and flow, and it is shaped both by slow geologic time and moment by moment with the changing light, wind, and atmosphere. I try to express my fascination with this dynamic through my images.”

James Irwin

I do photography of African animals. I process, print, mat and frame almost all of my art. I use archival materials and display in quality wooden frames. My prints are all limited editions. All art pieces have a numbered, described and signed authenticity certificate on the back side.

James Parker @dakota.kid

"Stories Told in Things Left Behind: A Disappearing American Landscape"
This work focuses on the absence of people in rural communities. The stories evident in the artifacts left behind are my subjects, in a landscape that is often lonely and quiet. Each viewer brings his own experience when looking at these photographs. My hope is that the subtle manipulation of color, composition and content will strike an emotional chord with everyone who views the work.

Dan Westfall @danwestfallphotography

I prefer to shoot sculpture and architecture many times off the beaten path around the globe. Long exposure with architecture works great with modern skylines giving a relaxing dreamlike euphoria in a sometimes chaotic world.

Scott Williams @photoguyscott

Photography is something that I have to do, it chose me and it has been a labor of love ever since. That’s how I approach my photography, as a love affair with life, with a need as strong as breathing. My images are the result and it’s here when viewing an image, if a person is transported to the scene or can feel the emotion, then for that one instant, I’ve shared some small part of myself and the world we all inhabit.

Lisa Hilton

Each individual figurative clay sculpture and base is created using slab, additive and reductive hand building techniques. After initial bisque firing, slips and washes are applied and pieces are fired multiple times to create the final finish. Unique clay supports are also made for each piece to protect against cracking during the firing process. No molds are used.

The ability of others to work within themselves as well as with partners, groups and communities to find a healthy, workable equilibrium interests me. Finding balance in life is an ever changing and often-elusive quest as we are filled with personal desires, hopes, dreams, and goals that may or may not be aligned with people or events we experience. Striving for a life lived in harmony with others while honoring our own agenda is a lifelong journey.

Darren Miller @darrenmillerart

My work engages contemplations of the dance. The interconnected and spacial working together to form a symbiotic whole. Juxtaposing intractable metal with fluidity of motion.

Charles White

Nature is my stimulus and I strive to create a feeling of motion and emotion. My work is hand fabricated in bronze, copper, steel, and brass and finished with a variety of treatments, from layering patinas and dyes to heating then scrubbing with a brass brush for a golden hue. One of my main interests has been designing with water, with a focus on a controlled flow and soothing sounds. I like the linear quality I get from constructing in metal, as if I am creating three-dimensional drawings.

JK Creative Wood @jkcreativewood

Solid domestic woods such as walnut, cherry, maple, ash, oak, elm and sycamore are planed and sanded before they are cut into strips. Each glue joint looks seamless because the joints have been sanded first, creating a perfectly smooth and level bonding surface. Each piece is individually designed with exotic wood accents such as Padauk (from Africa) or Purple Heart (from South America). When the pieces are glued, the chevron design is created by cutting the wood at an angle and gluing it once again. The artist enjoys forming artful, yet useful desk and dining accessories. A food safe, mineral oil finish is applied on the cutting boards and trivets. Moisture proof conversion varnish is used on many desk and dining accessories. All by-products are re-purposed into fuel. Our Amish neighbors use our sawdust in their barns and ultimately as natural fertilizers on the fields.

Steve & Valerie Doerr

As artists, our primary goal is to discover and reveal the beautiful grains and colors that God has hidden in so many different trees. We accomplish this by creating one-of-a-kind handcrafted turnings of visual and functional art made from both domestic and exotic woods. Granular turquoise and embellishing techniques such as pyrography and dying are sometimes used to enhance the beauty of the turnings. As woodturners, we use a lathe and hand-held tools to focus our energy on creating bowls, hollow forms, platters, pens and pendants. Because of the nature of the grain and color of wood, no two turnings are ever the same.

Matt Estrada @churpmodern

I make mid century Modern inspired functional bird homes.

Mitch Evans @mitchevans57

The Son of a Slovenian is a guy named Mitch Evans. A resident of Baton Rouge since the summer of 1976. And yes, he really is a son of a Slovenian. The name is a homage to his mother Joida Turk Evans, who planted the seed of artistic creativity long ago……a sincere thanks to this wonderful and amazing woman. Mitch is just plain and simply put, a wood geek. He loves most everything there is about trees and wood. In many ways, his relationship with his wooden creations is his own personal religion. He finds wonder and amazement in the pure and simple beauty of wood as it is revealed in all stages of its life and eventual death.

Gary Halsey

I hand craft stunning pieces of 3D wood artwork which is also functional as a butcher block. Each board is unique and one of a kind as each is handmade, individually, to guarantee originality in wood grains, character and coloration. Using precision cuts I assemble each piece to create designs that have depth and the illusion of texture. I use a variety of local hardwood that I season with oil and that gives the wood deep rich warm colors. Well cared for, my art becomes more attractive with age.

bill lepak

I work with salvaged or reclaimed trees from the St. Louis area. My work is done with a technique called, “once turned.” I mount the wood while the wood is green, still wet, and then proceed to turn it to its final shape and thickness. While drying, the wood moves and distorts due to various stresses from the grain of the tree. Once it is dry I finish the art with various food safe finishes and acrylic paints.

Holt Lewis

I collect unusual pieces of lumber - usually without an intended project in mind - from sources ranging from importers of exotic hardwoods to urban companies who reclaim neighborhood trees. When I start a new board, my inspiration comes from holding the wood & studying the grain patterns & colors. Mother Nature often leaves me opportunities to accent the piece with tiny rocks set in epoxy. A design may be the same, but the board itself is truly unique.

Steven Martin

My sculptural boxes are fashioned from a solid piece of native hardwood using a “bandsaw box” technique I have perfected over my 42 year woodworking career. Each box has one or more “push-button” drawers and a secret hiding place. The finish is a clear hand rubbed oil.

Terry "Buddy" Shaw @biggarandshaw

​Biggar & Shaw believes in quality over quantity. We don't mass produce looking to make a quick buck. Every item that leaves our workshop is designed and handmade by master craftsman Buddy Shaw. Biggar & Shaw's ultimate goal is creating long lasting, heirloom quality pieces to be passed through generations. It isn't just furniture. It's family.

charles shotton

Shotton Woodworks is located in Blue Springs, Missouri. I make handmade rocking chairs, tables and benches. My artistic talent is building beautiful functional furniture pieces from native Missouri hardwoods. I work from the heart and try to evoke an emotional response through my designs.

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Christiane Danna

In creating jewelry, I am inspired by the simple elegance of both nature and contemporary design. My work often features fluid, balanced lines that give each piece a sense of cohesion and form. I use traditional metalsmithing techniques, such as sawing, forging and soldering. By applying varying use of these methods, each piece is unique, featuring finishes that range from hammer textured to highly polished, a lovely union of the natural and modern worlds.

Catherine Geyer

The centuries old art of quilling has just been reimagined as jewelry, when using silver instead of paper. Silver bezel wire is curled using the same tool as for paper, or crimped, and then formed into one or multiple pieces The pieces are then placed in a sterling silver frame and sweat soldered to a back plate. Stones or granulation can be added and are either tube or bezel set. Anything is possible with this updated technique, although I try to stay away from the traditional motifs in favor of more contemporary themes. The looks can vary from organic to tribal or contemporary depending on the piece.

Sarah Hassler

My pieces are hand cut and often recycled acrylic and bakelite cold joined with sterling silver.

Don Kelley

I use vintage sterling silver dinner forks re-forging them into fine contemporary jewelry. In the Bauhaus tradition each piece is sculpted and “cold formed” into graceful bold lines. I combine sterling, gold and bronze metals and incorporate semi-precious as well as precious stones to include diamonds and pearls for accent.

Serena Kojimoto

I use a unique combination of black neoprene, gems and pearls with hammered, forged, soldered or lost wax cast sterling silver. Each neoprene shape is hand cut and bezel set into the sterling silver.

Ansley Larsson @ansleylarsson

I make jewelry out of goose egg shells. I use batik (dye and wax resist) to put my original designs on the egg, then I cut the pieces and put epoxy on them for strength and make them into jewelry.

Chih-Yu Kevin Lin

My work is both functional and sculptural. I am inspired by architecture, nature and the figure. I use varieties of techniques such as: texturing, fusing, straw casting, cuttlebone casting, soldering, reticulation, keum-boo. Materials include: fine silver, sterling silver, 24K gold foil, 22K gold, 18K gold, 14k gold, precious stones, pearls, and found objects to express these ideas.

Susan Mahlstedt @susanmahlstedtjewelry

I make nature inspired hand fabricated jewelry exploring movement and textures. My current forms are influenced by leaves, sand dollars, shells and bamboo. Finishes include oxidized, satin, and depletion gilding. A heating process that makes the silver white. Materials are sterling silver, 18k gold detailing and accent stones.

Lois Neal

I create Sterling silver, rose gold and copper hand made chain jewelry. The rings are linked together in various patterns to form necklaces, bracelets and earrings, with the additions of stones, pearls and crystals.

Kerri Norman @kerrinormanjewelry

I am a Minneapolis based jewelry metal smith. I mostly work in silver but use other metals such as gold to enhance and embellish. My series themes range from doors to sundew plants to houses and the work is constantly evolving and changing.

Leigh Roberts

I use a variety of ancient and modern torch techniques to develop texture. These are the seeds that grow into my designs. One technique, Perforation, is achieved by heating metal in such a way that it becomes pocked and crater-like. Pieces are then cut, formed, soldered and fabricated with precious metals to produce bracelets, neckpieces, earrings and rings. The jewelry is accentuated with gemstones chosen for their color, texture and patterns.

Meri Taylor

I create one-of-a-kind jewelry out of sterling and gold honeycomb textured sheet which I also make myself. Pieces are finished with natural gems, patina, and 24kt gold. Clasps are also often handmade.

Erh Ping Tsai

I create whimsical one-of-a-kind porcelain, three-dimensional creature pins. All of my designs are true originals which were inspired by the flawless beauty of nature. With over 30 years of experience in clay, metal, sculpture, and painting, I have created a color porcelain technique based on ancient Chinese folk ceramic art, combining this technique with other mediums to create unique designs for each piece that brings out humorous and whimsical characteristics.

Claudia Winter @baubblysilver

I use traditional metalsmithing techniques to make silver jewelry, to which I add hand-tinted opaque resin inlay. Different color schemes are used on opposing sides of each piece (to make it reversible), and then it's sanded to a matte finish. Many pieces are convertible as well as being reversible.

Theresa Zahner

My body of work consists of woven wire. Most of my pieces are copper, but some are silver and others are mixed metals. Wire of varying shapes and sizes are hand woven and layered to create unique jewelry. Raw crystals, polished cabochons and beads are sometimes used to show how woven wire structures can frame and highlight their natural beauty. When I use a stone, I use a sturdier wire to create a frame that it sits in and add woven elements to capture it and keep it in place. As the woven elements are added, I use the weaving wire to lash them to the frame and to each other. This makes the piece stable and prevents the stone from moving. As wire and weaves are added, they create their own organic flow around and through the piece, building up the decorative structures and creating negative space.

Katherine Alexander @Katherine_Alexander_Art

All of my work begins with a real egg and uses the ancient Ukrainian batik method of pysanky to transform the shell. I draw inspiration from the art's original purpose: celebrating the changing seasons and beautiful symmetry found in nature.

Marian Baker @Marian.b1961

Marian Baker is an acrylic artist who paints on hand cut boards covered in vintage papers- sealed in wax

Stephen Baldauf @Stephen Baldauf Fine Art 

Creating paintings and multimedia images with traditional themes, Stephen has a contemporary style. Working on gallery wrapped canvas, he starts with a heavy textured acrylic paint. He then adds found items, like paper images, and embeds them into the paint. Then he adds oil paint on top of the final image, and seals the work with a gloss varnish which protects the canvas, and gives it an old-world glow.

Lisa Crisman @LisaCrismanLeftEarArt

I use a variety of mixed media including pastels, watercolor, ink, acrylic and collage. These are applied onto mounted and sanded pastel paper, pastel board or cradled board. I love using bright and non local color and creating work full of rhythm, color and fun.

Karrie Evenson @karrieevensonart

My goal is to create art that can bring joy and happiness to those who view it. I create my work using acrylic paint, oil pastel, wax, charcoal medium, and collage on canvas or cradled wood panel. Each piece is varnished and ready to hang.

Margaret Luttrell

Using the ancient medium of encaustic, I cook wax and resin and then add my own pigments to create my palate. I build my narrative on wood with collage then paint using a heated surface. I then fuse each color with a blow torch to build a solid surface that can withstand heat.

Rick Bachman

Our work consists of hand carving pine with original designs. Pieces are painted with dry brushed acrylic paints. Each piece has a sense of humor.

NICOLE BRIN

Steel is fabricated using benders, welder and plasma cutter. Every piece is hand cut. once the steel is welded together, we inlay tiles which are created using clay, resin and our own 15 colors of glaze. Multiple firings create these unique tiles. Once completed, the tiles are cut and inlayed into the steel. The tiles are then grouted and sealed. The metal is then painted.

Jan Byron

My Muses begin with wise words. These words are brought to life with a mix of polymer, colored pencil, shaped fabric, fibers, beads and found objects. Each figure's goal is to enlighten the viewer - and lighten their load...

David Gilbertsen

As a ceramicist and painter, I have been inspired by the weathering effect of wind and water upon land. I construct 3 inch deep panels, coated with cement for a stone-like texture. Then I sandblast niches, crevasses, and channels into the panels to give the viewer the sense of finding and exploring a hidden place in nature, with light and shadow on objects nestled within. Some panels are more like a stage set, with landscape paintings as backdrops. All are vignettes of sorts, minimal scenes focusing on one moment, portraits of just a few objects. The objects include old glass vases that I break/tumble to create gestural pieces to juxtapose with weather worn stones, or repurposed old aquariums for thick glass slabs. These contemporary organic constructs invite the viewer to linger in a mindful experience.

Christopher Lynch

Masks and ritualistic objects generally have always held a fascination for me. The forms these objects can take are limitless. In “primitive” cultures, these objects are painstakingly constructed with a real purpose, with function first over mere ornamentation. This I find very exciting.

John Powell

My body of work originates from the pure enchantment of beauty, form and light, woven through with satire.  My palate, primarily botanical in origin, exploits the simple effects of color juxtaposition. The mode of expression ranges from simple media to a complex variety of organic materials. It represents for me the re-discovery of guiltless instinct to reveal what Shelley described as "the blank astonishment .. that charms every sense and makes all thought take wing" 

Earnest Benton, Jr

As an artist I truly enjoy the process of creating a piece, from its conception, to building and layering textures, to selecting a color palette, and finally to see shapes and figures come together and form a unique, beautiful, and moving piece. Of my creative process, I am inspired by passion, beauty, and the abstracts and intangibles of music, thought, shapes, and form. My medium of choice is acrylic on canvas, and my palette is a mixture of earth tones, cool pastels, and vivid primary colors.

MARILYNNE BRADLEY

The geometric transformations are influenced strongly by Cubism and Futurism, which depict in precise, sharply defined spatial environments. Changing the formal structure of organic shapes into rigid linear constructions alters the mood of a scene, not to mention the contrast it provides to shadows. This geometric analysis of form holds the composition together. The composition is compressed within lines leading the eye to one point of interest. Patterns of shapes evolve.

Sergey Cherep @sergeycherep

The technique of painting that I have embraced is definitely the Post Impressionism style made famous by Van Gogh. I love the simplicity of colors and the energy found in his work. The bold, unrealistic colors and expressive brushstrokes of my predecessors are my toll as I try to bring a three-dimensional feeling out from the paintings by using color, perspective, and a thick texture.

Mollie Chounard @molliechounard

I'm a conceptual surrealist painter working primarily in acrylics on canvas. I strive to create art that conveys a story or idea. Being able to imbue my art with deeper meaning is everything to me, and I do it in a contemporary pop surrealistic way. I typically use a limited palette and use thin transparent layers to create a naturalistic blended feel.

Scott Clark

My story starts with a blank canvas and an ending not yet determined. I begin with one thin coat of oil paint and will place another forty to fifty transparent layers of paint before the story is completed over a four-month period. Each layer takes the painting in a new direction and the story begins to fold in front of me. Each painting’s story is being told as it is being painted. With no conclusion predetermined, the journey is exciting and real for me. This process allows me the opportunity to discover a truth within the painting.

Benjamin Guffee

I create oil paintings based on imagery and forms observed in nature. The paintings feature extensive layering of thin glazes of color. Traditional perspective techniques are eschewed in favor of a method of "stacking" layers to subtly create a sense of depth. The shapes present in the paintings are carefully duplicated from photo reference of an actual place and moment. I am drawn to the idea of simplifying images down to the basic elements that register with a viewer’s brain. As the more literal references are eliminated from a work (for example, the use of naturalistic color or depiction of an identifiable scene), the viewer is called upon to engage his or her own memories and create a personal connection to the piece.

Niki Gulley @Nikigulley

Gulley strives to capture the vibrant energy and intrinsic beauty of our natural surroundings so as to uplift one’s spirits and suggest childlike wonder. By applying paint thickly using palette knives, the resulting style achieves a richness of depth that explodes with color, flows with light, and evokes an emotional response.

Jessica Ladd

In my current work I try to create excitement while ordering chaos. My paintings are comprised of subjects that are both realistic and abstract, on the edge between here and there. The work is a comment on both thinking and seeing, a study on trying to not see anything for itself alone, but as part of a whole.

Sarah MacEwan

I am an artist living and working in Saint Louis, Missouri. I appreciate the beauty in natural scenes and work to reproduce this beauty on the canvas using acrylic paint. I have traveled around the world documenting a variety of natural scenes and am continually drawn to the ephemeral qualities of water and light in natural compositions.

Jessica Mahan @jessica_mahan_art

My inspiration is found in the natural world. While traveling, hiking, camping or spending quiet time in the woods, I use watercolor and indian ink to sketch out my environment and ideas. Later, I take several of these ideas to my studio, where I use acrylic paint and a variety of texture. I experiment with balancing organic, fluid paint with controlled details and fine lines. I start by pouring the paint on a level surface or loosely painting in forms to create initial movement. I then add a combination of tactile and visual texture using heavy modeling paste and fine line detail.

Jin Powell @jinhuangpowell

As a female Chinese American artist, I strive to portray beauty and the energy of the human soul. The intent of my work is to express an emotion, thought and journey. My work than becomes a mirror were the viewer reflects in the reflection.

John Schafer @johnnypauljohnnypaul

I make bold and kinetic original oil paintings on hand-stretched canvas. All of my materials are archival and artist-grade. I first prime my canvases with an archival gesso, which is a various mixture of resins, plaster of Paris and binders. Once primed, I begin layering multiple washes of diluted pigments, splashing and dashing as I go. I work intuitively, each stroke promoting the next one. I continue this initial process until the canvas is fully saturated with a myriad of shapes and pattern that can be defined in a myriad of ways. Both by design and by process of elimination, I choose shapes and patterns that share visual relationships that bring balance, tension and movement to my compositions. These are the ones I exploit, drawing them out with finishing glazes. The process continues, like a conversation between me and the canvas. Stroke by stroke until we arrive. The image is resolved.

Michael Steddum @michaelsteddum

I use glass objects in my art to represent people or situations that we all know. There is a narrative with each painting. Sometimes humorous and others are serious. On the technical side, I strive to capture light, clarity and luminous color in my oils making the still-life radiant with energy.

Don Ament

Today, an ongoing and routinely disturbing internal thrum drives my image making. I can’t seem to get away from this attempt to give voice to a planet we have forgotten how to care for. Seeking some form of redemption, I delve ever deeper into the emotional crafting of a fine photographic print, Yet, creating simple images of land, water and sky seems like such small potatoes compared to what really needs to be done.

Cort Anderson

My photography is heavily influenced by my time as a photojournalist, it is why I work in B&W. Driving and observing life around me is how I often found images for the newspaper. It is how I work now. The creative challenge is the same, create compelling photographs from ordinary life. Documenting rural churches and front porches are two of my current projects. Route 66 is another longer term project. These are in addition to finding images in everyday life.

Neil Brown

Neil R. Brown is a self-taught photographer with a BA in Fine Arts from the Kansas City Art Institute. Neil uses natural light to capture the mood and feel of the places he travels and people he meets. Neil specializes in black and white photographs developed in a dark room. He has recently started exploring digital photography with an emphasis on infrared images.

Rick Canham

I make medium format painterly impressions in extraordinary light. Each image is printed from the original film negative, using traditional wet-darkroom techniques, and the most archival papers available. Compositions are strong, and visually compelling. The images are emotive, abstract, and minimalist. There is NO digital involvement in producing the work. Prints are presented in a laminated glassless format, which protects the photograph while allowing it to be as brilliant as possible, with no reflected glare. Images are available in five sizes. All are limited editions.

Christopher Doherty

Driven by his determination to protect the underwater world, Christopher has made it his mission to capture the beauty of the ocean. He believes it is his job to help educate others in this world, hoping that as more people experience the underwater world, more people will want to protect it. Chris has now traveled across the globe and has since become an award winning and widely published photographer. So come and enjoy his work as he brings you the magic of the underwater world through his lens. 

Rob Gilmore

Rob sees his work as impressionistic and expressionistic ideas, rather than just pretty postcard landscapes or travel pictures. “I see energy and current in the natural world,” says Rob. “This energy has ebb and flow, and it is shaped both by slow geologic time and moment by moment with the changing light, wind, and atmosphere. I try to express my fascination with this dynamic through my images.”

James Irwin

I do photography of African animals. I process, print, mat and frame almost all of my art. I use archival materials and display in quality wooden frames. My prints are all limited editions. All art pieces have a numbered, described and signed authenticity certificate on the back side.

James Parker @dakota.kid

"Stories Told in Things Left Behind: A Disappearing American Landscape"
This work focuses on the absence of people in rural communities. The stories evident in the artifacts left behind are my subjects, in a landscape that is often lonely and quiet. Each viewer brings his own experience when looking at these photographs. My hope is that the subtle manipulation of color, composition and content will strike an emotional chord with everyone who views the work.

Dan Westfall @danwestfallphotography

I prefer to shoot sculpture and architecture many times off the beaten path around the globe. Long exposure with architecture works great with modern skylines giving a relaxing dreamlike euphoria in a sometimes chaotic world.

Scott Williams @photoguyscott

Photography is something that I have to do, it chose me and it has been a labor of love ever since. That’s how I approach my photography, as a love affair with life, with a need as strong as breathing. My images are the result and it’s here when viewing an image, if a person is transported to the scene or can feel the emotion, then for that one instant, I’ve shared some small part of myself and the world we all inhabit.

Lisa Hilton

Each individual figurative clay sculpture and base is created using slab, additive and reductive hand building techniques. After initial bisque firing, slips and washes are applied and pieces are fired multiple times to create the final finish. Unique clay supports are also made for each piece to protect against cracking during the firing process. No molds are used.

The ability of others to work within themselves as well as with partners, groups and communities to find a healthy, workable equilibrium interests me. Finding balance in life is an ever changing and often-elusive quest as we are filled with personal desires, hopes, dreams, and goals that may or may not be aligned with people or events we experience. Striving for a life lived in harmony with others while honoring our own agenda is a lifelong journey.

Darren Miller @darrenmillerart

My work engages contemplations of the dance. The interconnected and spacial working together to form a symbiotic whole. Juxtaposing intractable metal with fluidity of motion.

Charles White

Nature is my stimulus and I strive to create a feeling of motion and emotion. My work is hand fabricated in bronze, copper, steel, and brass and finished with a variety of treatments, from layering patinas and dyes to heating then scrubbing with a brass brush for a golden hue. One of my main interests has been designing with water, with a focus on a controlled flow and soothing sounds. I like the linear quality I get from constructing in metal, as if I am creating three-dimensional drawings.

JK Creative Wood @jkcreativewood

Solid domestic woods such as walnut, cherry, maple, ash, oak, elm and sycamore are planed and sanded before they are cut into strips. Each glue joint looks seamless because the joints have been sanded first, creating a perfectly smooth and level bonding surface. Each piece is individually designed with exotic wood accents such as Padauk (from Africa) or Purple Heart (from South America). When the pieces are glued, the chevron design is created by cutting the wood at an angle and gluing it once again. The artist enjoys forming artful, yet useful desk and dining accessories. A food safe, mineral oil finish is applied on the cutting boards and trivets. Moisture proof conversion varnish is used on many desk and dining accessories. All by-products are re-purposed into fuel. Our Amish neighbors use our sawdust in their barns and ultimately as natural fertilizers on the fields.

Steve & Valerie Doerr

As artists, our primary goal is to discover and reveal the beautiful grains and colors that God has hidden in so many different trees. We accomplish this by creating one-of-a-kind handcrafted turnings of visual and functional art made from both domestic and exotic woods. Granular turquoise and embellishing techniques such as pyrography and dying are sometimes used to enhance the beauty of the turnings. As woodturners, we use a lathe and hand-held tools to focus our energy on creating bowls, hollow forms, platters, pens and pendants. Because of the nature of the grain and color of wood, no two turnings are ever the same.

Matt Estrada @churpmodern

I make mid century Modern inspired functional bird homes.

Mitch Evans @mitchevans57

The Son of a Slovenian is a guy named Mitch Evans. A resident of Baton Rouge since the summer of 1976. And yes, he really is a son of a Slovenian. The name is a homage to his mother Joida Turk Evans, who planted the seed of artistic creativity long ago……a sincere thanks to this wonderful and amazing woman. Mitch is just plain and simply put, a wood geek. He loves most everything there is about trees and wood. In many ways, his relationship with his wooden creations is his own personal religion. He finds wonder and amazement in the pure and simple beauty of wood as it is revealed in all stages of its life and eventual death.

Gary Halsey

I hand craft stunning pieces of 3D wood artwork which is also functional as a butcher block. Each board is unique and one of a kind as each is handmade, individually, to guarantee originality in wood grains, character and coloration. Using precision cuts I assemble each piece to create designs that have depth and the illusion of texture. I use a variety of local hardwood that I season with oil and that gives the wood deep rich warm colors. Well cared for, my art becomes more attractive with age.

bill lepak

I work with salvaged or reclaimed trees from the St. Louis area. My work is done with a technique called, “once turned.” I mount the wood while the wood is green, still wet, and then proceed to turn it to its final shape and thickness. While drying, the wood moves and distorts due to various stresses from the grain of the tree. Once it is dry I finish the art with various food safe finishes and acrylic paints.

Holt Lewis

I collect unusual pieces of lumber - usually without an intended project in mind - from sources ranging from importers of exotic hardwoods to urban companies who reclaim neighborhood trees. When I start a new board, my inspiration comes from holding the wood & studying the grain patterns & colors. Mother Nature often leaves me opportunities to accent the piece with tiny rocks set in epoxy. A design may be the same, but the board itself is truly unique.

Steven Martin

My sculptural boxes are fashioned from a solid piece of native hardwood using a “bandsaw box” technique I have perfected over my 42 year woodworking career. Each box has one or more “push-button” drawers and a secret hiding place. The finish is a clear hand rubbed oil.

Terry "Buddy" Shaw @biggarandshaw

​Biggar & Shaw believes in quality over quantity. We don't mass produce looking to make a quick buck. Every item that leaves our workshop is designed and handmade by master craftsman Buddy Shaw. Biggar & Shaw's ultimate goal is creating long lasting, heirloom quality pieces to be passed through generations. It isn't just furniture. It's family.

charles shotton

Shotton Woodworks is located in Blue Springs, Missouri. I make handmade rocking chairs, tables and benches. My artistic talent is building beautiful functional furniture pieces from native Missouri hardwoods. I work from the heart and try to evoke an emotional response through my designs.

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