Jeanine Murch

Jeanine is a freelance illustrator who loves creating whimsical & colorful art and hand lettering for books, greeting cards, magazines, and advertising campaigns. Her work is a unique integration of hand-drawn typography and illustration, executed with bright colors and a fun stylization. She holds a BFA in illustration from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia and started her creative career as a children’s book designer in the publishing houses of NYC. After nearly a decade, she made the leap from the corporate world to running her own freelance business and now lives in her hometown of Pittsburgh, PA with her family. www.jeaninemurch.com

John Eastman

John is an abstract painter, wood sculpture-furniture designer, and mixed-media installation artist focusing on minimalism and negative space. He currently works in several studios in Pittsburgh, PA. Eastman is a native of South Western Pennsylvania frequents multiple areas of Europe, and New Mexico. He started as a self-taught abstract painter of large works in 2002 and began to exhibit in galleries and museums within three years, adding wood sculpture and furniture to his body of work in 2010. In the past five years, his work has evolved into designing and building small buildings wrapped in corrugated sheet metal and framed wood, with art installations residing within, creating an exterior artwork structure, with interior art. The structures blend into the industrial past of the Western Pennsylvania, while reflecting the current neighborhood surroundings of nature, buildings, lights, and streets.

Eastman’s work is often the result of long-term concept planning and sketch-study development, resulting in series works. His November of 2022 Exhibit at Double Dog Studios, The Afterlife of Trees, presented charred wood timber and rebar sculptures, tree branches, and treated bark pieces, all with the Japanese Shou Sugi Ban wood charring technique. The exhibit was successful, well attended and received in the community.

Eastman’s “The interruption of Negative Space,” forthcoming exhibit in March of 2024 at Spinning Plate Gallery in East Liberty, will bring focus on negative space, the focus object within it, minimalism, and entanglement theory, a significant new direction in his artist practice. www.johneastmanstudios.com

Artist Statement 2023

My studio practice is focused on working in various series in multiple mediums of canvas, wood, paper, and metal, and now entire building structures. As I continue to work, I am even more enamored with minimalism, abstract concepts, and space, whereas the negative space on the canvas is as important as the abstract focus object, and the bare minimum room is an element of the whole viewing experience. In essence, my abstract work is as much about the space as the work in it. I am in constant pursuit of what I call true abstract (ism), whereas providing a visual object (painting, drawing, sculpture) that attempts to prompt the viewer into thoughts and impressions of their own, regardless of what those objects mean to me as an artist. If there is an end goal, it is perhaps to spur thinking, a focus, and communication between observers of the work.

Exhibits

Exhibits include Double Dog Studios Carnegie 2022, Spinning Plate Group A exhibit, 2023, Three RiversArts Festival 2018 (Casey Droege Gallery www.gospelrooms.com) Group A 75th Anniversary exhibit at Pittsburgh Center for the Arts (2018), PCA’s Furniture Gallery 2018, Small works Exhibit at Jask Gallery, BoxHeart Gallery, https://www.artsy.net/show/boxheart-almost-17-and-number-werestillhere, Entity at Art Smiths of Pittsburgh with Associated Artists of Pittsburgh, FrameHouse & Jask Gallery with Associated Artists of Pittsburgh, Group A “Now at Boxheart Gallery (http://www.boxheartgallery.com/group- a–now.html) Percolate Gallery (https://www.facebook.com/PercolateArt/) Joel Hersh Private art collector Boca Raton Florida (http://johneastmanstudios.com/info/) Panza Gallery Pittsburgh http://www.panzagallery.com, Gallery Chiz (http://galleriechiz.com) Pittsburgh Center for the Arts https://center.pfpca.org, Austerity and Self-Sustainability at FE Gallery https://www.facebook.com/FeGallery/ , WOOD exhibit at the Elan Fine Art Gallery Sewickley PA, Associated Artists of Pittsburgh Annual at The Carnegie Museum of Art (http://cmoa.org/) and The Andy Warhol Museum (http://www.warhol.org/). Eastman has also presented at Pechakucha in Pittsburgh, a slide exhibit and discussion about building Art Centric Communities. http://aiapgh.org/aia-programs-events/pechakucha-night-pittsburgh/ Artistic influences include musical artists Massive Attack, Bjork, Sigur Ross, Dead Can Dance, Moby, and Michael Nyman. Architects Rem Koolhaas and Le Courbusier, and movie director Stanley Kubrick. Traditional artistic influences include Gerhard Richter, Kandinsky, Willem de Kooning, Donald Judd, Anselm Kiefer, Mark Rothko, and Banksy. Assistant Curator of Heather Pesanti of The Carnegie Museum of Art commented that my paintings resemble those of painter Phillip Guston, and The former director of The Andy Warhol Museum Eric Shiner, selected my work “India” for an AAP exhibition in 2007 at The Warhol Museum.

Joan Green, Whimsical Watercolor Artist | THIRD PLACE

I started painting 20 years ago after the encouragement of a friend. Watercolor has always been my favorite medium. I love watching the colors move and blend on the paper. I also enjoy the flexibility of painting in pastels and intense colors. Painting is a beautiful way to relax.

More recently, my paintings have taken on a unique style due to my tremor caused by Parkinson’s disease. People call my paintings playful and whimsical, regardless of how I paint.

Pamela Bice | HONORABLE MENTION

Pam is a current member of Studio Art Quilt Associates, the Fiber Arts Guild, and the Pittsburgh Modern Quilt Guild. She is Vice-President of Three Rivers Quilters. Pam has been sewing and creating since 7th grade and majored in photography/multi-media and journalism in college. Her artistic pursuits were placed on hold while raising a family and working. Taking early retirement in 2015, she created Zero Street Arts and began pursuing her fiber arts passion full-time. Pam teaches quilting privately and has a weekly group class. She has won awards for her original pieces and has created private commission works. Her works have been shown at Hera Gallery in Rhode Island, Three Rivers Quilt shows, Quilt Company East, Mancuso Hershey Show, Pittsburgh Fiber Arts member show, North Pittsburgh Quilt Show, and at Beaver Valley Piecemakers Show. @zerostreetarts IG and FB

Pam lives in Scott Township, PA, with her partner, musician Dave Molter, and her dogs Isabel and Riley.

Leah Shuck

Leah earned her undergraduate degree in art education in 2012 from Seton Hill University and her graduate degree in art education in 2017 from Carlow University. She has been teaching art in the public school system for 11 years. The constant rotation of materials in her classroom is reflected in her art practice, resulting in quite the gamut of work but mostly always including mixed media. She cares deeply about the environment and feels that we all have a personal responsibility for each object we bring into our lives. This combination of mixed media and responsibility for what we buy, discard and consume emerge as a through-line in her work. She enjoys trying new things, upcycling past projects, sketches, and experiments, and repurposing found materials.

Shuck is the co-representative of Region 1 of the Pennsylvania Art Education Association (PAEA), serving art educators in Allegheny, Westmoreland, Washington, Fayette, and Greene counties. She also serves on the board of the West Hills Art League as the secretary. Belonging to these creative professional groups invigorates her practice, both as an artist and arts educator. Her work can be found online at https://sustainablestitches.earth and on Instagram @leahshuck.maker.

Justin Scott

Justin (b. 1997) was raised in Bridgeville, PA, a quiet town outside of Pittsburgh, PA. He has an associate degree in Welding from the Community College of Allegheny County, where he attended multiple art history and art fundamentals classes, and an associate degree in Electronic Engineering Technology from Pittsburgh Technical College. He has been involved in his art study side-by-side with his study of music since the age of 10, allowing him to be both a self-taught artist and multi-instrumentalist. He has been a Studio Artist at Redfish Bowl (Lawrenceville, PA) and worked in his at-home studio (Carnegie, PA). His works have been showcased in Assemble’s “6x6” Art Show, Redfishbowl’s “Primaries” Show, and he was commissioned to create a piece for the short film “Red” directed by Axel Torres. Scott’s piece “Me, Myself, and I” was recently awarded 3 rd place through Upward Galleries “Artist of the Spring” juried art exhibition. Outside of his daily job and creating artwork, Justin loves to skateboard and hang out with his family, friends, and partner, including their two cats, Flo and Carrot. @comp1ledmess IG

Joseph Smith

Artist Statement

Joseph Smith is a photographer who loves to take photos of anything that inspires him.  He currently lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.  Joseph creates artwork based on dreams and real-world inspiration.  His process includes free writing and making a photo-related mindmap.  He likes to do photo concepts that he has written in advance.  He uses Photoshop Elements and so forth.

His work can be found online or by request. https://jedijoe8160.wixsite.com/benevolentphotos https://www.instagram.com/jedijoe8160/

Dawn Evanchock

I began painting at a very early age.  Painting has always been a way to express my feelings, thoughts, and passions.  When someone tells me their story, I take every word in and let my creative side take over to express their feelings, thoughts, and passions.  The best feeling in the world is to read or hear a customer's kind words about how I've created a very meaningful piece for them or their loved ones.  

Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is celebrated on November's first and second days. Mexicans and others who celebrate the holiday believe that the borders between the worlds of the spirits and the living dissolve on Día de los Muertos. Family members of the deceased make their loved ones’ favorite foods and leave them at altars and at gravesides, which are decorated with flowers and candles. Alacas and calaveras (skeletons and skulls) appear on candied sweets, masks, and decorations. Music festivals, parades, and dances are held throughout Mexico. 

There is probably no more iconic symbol for the Day of the Dead than the skull or “Calavera”. The calavera is usually an ornately decorated representation of a skull, often featuring flowers, animals, and other decorations that represent and honor peoples' loved ones. 

There is so much meaning behind the sugar skull.  These pieces represent everything a person stands for and honors them in such an amazing way.  This is why I try to add as much detail as possible to represent people and their loved ones.  I treat all of my customers as if they were my family. CalaveraByDawn.com

Christopher Panza | SECOND PLACE

Christopher “Chris” Panza is an award-winning art director and fine artist in the Oakwood neighborhood of Pittsburgh, PA. He majored in graphic design at LaRoche College with a concentration in fine art; spending a semester in Florence, Italy, in an intensive art and art history program. Painting has always been a life-long passion and he continued to study the traditional working methods of the old masters under the apprenticeship of Robert Daley, a prominent Pittsburgh portrait artist.

ARTIST STATEMENT: Creating Visual and Emotional Beauty 

I strive to capture life’s joyous and meaningful moments: a wedding day, a child’s first ride on a carousel, or a young girl picking wild flowers. Even with my portraits and conceptual work, the goal is for the viewer to have an impassioned response by connecting with the subject or subject matter on a deeper emotional level. The message is always positive… pride, patriotism, spirituality, hope. See more at panzastudios.com.   

Janet Meub

Janet resides in Mt. Lebanon resident and is an amateur printmaker and full-time attorney. Her pieces in this show are inked stencil monoprints. She discovered printmaking in 2021 while taking Pittsburgh Center for the Arts classes. Painting, drawing, and printmaking have been essential to "destressing" from an intense daily job.

Suganya Schmura

ARTIST STATEMENT

After immigrating from Tamil Nadu, India to the US, I turned to painting to explore and express my evolving hyphenated identity as a Tamil American. Drawing inspiration from my personal experiences with language loss, I experiment with color and movement to find connections between the grounding traditions of my Tamil heritage and the waves of change brought on by migration.

Using a variety of tools and media, I incorporate techniques such as scratching into wet acrylics with charcoal and pastels, pushing through paint with handmade wedges, and pouring and mixing paint directly on the canvas in attempts to capture the nuance and immensity of a hyphenated identity. The starkness of the nesting lines and clustered dots atop the fluidity of colors emphasize the ways in which the immigrant experience encompasses and connects a multitude of personas.

With a mix of intentional and intuitive motions, I try to find the balance between what was and what is - between my ancestors and myself. @studiosuganya IG

Daniel Tournay

Daniel is a Photographer/Videographer who graduated from CVHS and Pittsburgh Technical Institute. His passion for editing videos began when he was hired to edit a montage for Helen Hunt to open a speech she gave. Daniel also loves storm chasing and is a licensed, active Storm Spotter. Every year because of Daniel’s love for storms and the movie “Twister,” he partakes in an event in Wakita, Oklahoma, where the movie was filmed. He hopes to one-day capture video/image of a tornado during his visit to Oklahoma. On the lighter side, Daniel enjoys Kelly Clarkson. NYC is a favorite place to photograph, and one image he took was nominated as a finalist in an Empire State Building Photo Contest. It was displayed in the Empire State Building’s lobby. In 2014 he began to love taking pictures as much as videography. He created a business named StormChaserD to honor his love for storms and to honor his Grandfather’s memory, with whom he would spend hours listening to stories about WWII and how he would see waterspouts. Dan credits his love of storms to his grandfather. www.DanielTournay.com

Michelle Traficano

Michelle was born in Mesa, AZ in 1991. She grew up homeschooled most of her life with a strong focus in art and mathematics and started painting at 3 years old. Later in life, she created Dark.Daze.Art as a cathartic and therapeutic way to manage her diagnosis and symptoms of PTSD and CPTSD. She found that painting and drawing often allowed for emotional processing, which allowed her to be a better mother and a better partner. She works full time as an AutoCAD Technician and enjoys painting in her limited free time. She continues to accept commission requests as well as vending opportunities when possible. https://www.instagram.com/dark_daze_art/

Jennifer L. Dinovitz | HONORABLE MENTION

Employed as a full-time art teacher in the West Mifflin Area School District since 1997. 

Creates/exhibits/sells paper collages using discarded or thrifted vintage educational textbooks and children’s storybooks, although she has also created and exhibited mixed media sculptures. Exhibits mainly in group show in the Pittsburgh region as a member of the Associated Artists of Pittsburgh, Group A, Pittsburgh Society of Artists, and Whitehall Art League. 

Resides in Greentree, Pittsburgh, PA, with her husband and two children. 

ARTIST STATEMENT 

My art incorporates hand-drawn or cut and manipulated imagery from old books, which I use to create new worlds. Color relationships catalyze my chosen images, especially in my most recent works, which portray geometric floral arrangements upon a spray-painted background. It is my interaction with books – from collecting them to holding them and feeling the thick paper pages, to seeing the imagery and characters, that transports me to a place in time unknown to this current technological realm. I strive to balance colors first and create a unique environment using recognizable objects and unexpected elements or arrangements. Nature is a main theme in my work, and through the creation of my own natural environments, I can find control in a world that sometimes feels unsettling.  

 Alison Stein

Alison J. Stein is an interdisciplinary artist and writer. She finds compelling stories to tell in materials that have had a previous life. Her varied practice includes paintings on collaged substrates, textile art, book art, and written personal essays. Her visual art work has been exhibited around the United States, and held in private collections worldwide; her writing has been widely published in top magazines, newspapers and anthologies. She was born and raised in New York City and is now based in Pittsburgh. www.verycuriousmind.com

Anne Beatrice Angeles

Bea Angeles was born and grew up in the Philippines. She eventually moved to Pittsburgh in 2017. She attained her Associate in Science in Arts degree in the Community College of Allegheny County before attending Slippery Rock University, where she is currently taking her Bachelor in Fine Arts in Art Education and in Art Therapy. She is an artist who usually focuses on creating acrylic paintings and watercolors, and ink illustrations in which their content consists of the fantasy and science fiction stories and characters that she made when she was still in elementary school. Additionally, Bea is exploring other concentrations and the three-dimensional world of art through taking classes such as fiber arts and sculpture, in which she also incorporates her original stories and characters and explores the use of numerous subgenres of both fantasy and science fiction. Her artwork usually consists of subgenres such as cyberpunk and urban fantasy. Bea is delving deeper into cosmic fantasy and mythologies from other countries. A huge amount of her artwork was heavily inspired by her love for the fantasy and science fiction genres, which stemmed from her childhood growing up reading fairytale storybooks and watching movies and tv shows with the mentioned genres. Aside from pursuing art education and art therapy, Bea plans to publish her graphic novels and study as a librarian. https://www.instagram.com/foxchroma12/?hl=en

Charles Larkin

Charles creates a narrative with his images by portraying many common features of everyday life through an acute lens, which sheds light on the subtle interaction that humans have with their environments. The themes found in his casein paintings are primarily that of people in the workplace, providing the viewer with a still shot of the subject's daily routine. His neo-realistic style, bold use of color and shapes incorporate an almost graphic illustration aspect to his work, which he is also fond of. This aesthetic is more pronounced in his printmaking and digital-based artwork, such as logo design. His work invites you to contemplate the dynamic between the individual within society deliberately. 

Kayla JoLynn Jackson 

Kayla, 35, is from Steubenville Ohio, and now resides in Pittsburgh, PA., with husband Johnathan. While attending the University of Pittsburgh, she took elective art courses to complement her Bachelors of Arts degree in Sociology. She spent 14 years using her artistic ability in the field of dentistry, helping to enhance smiles through the use of waxes, resins, and acrylics. So, it's no coincidence that she was immediately drawn to the use of wax in her artistic expression.

At God's direction, she pivoted from dentistry to the visual arts to shine her light in a new way. She began to submerge herself in art. She leaned into familiar mediums, as well as learning new mediums that intrigued her. In her art, Kayla uses hot wax and resin, also known as encaustic, to encapsulate her photos. She loves the dreamy, almost timeless feel it gives her work.

Kayla has been an artist for as long as she can remember. As a self-taught artist, she now uses her talent to display God's immaculate clouds. Kayla is represented by Firebox Art Studios in Carnegie, PA, where you can see and purchase her work in person. www.artbykaylajolynn.com

Artist Statement

"I am created to create. It's in my DNA. The process of creating is more about collaborating with the Creator and less about what I create. Through my encaustic art I explore the interconnection between faith and nature. I begin capturing photos of beautiful cloud formations and encapsulating them with a mixture of beeswax and damar resin. Oil paint and pan pastels bring dimension back into the hazy waxed photo. I hope to display the awe and wonder I feel when I look up. Layer after layer I build texture and depth. I find joy in the marks and imperfect lines created with the stroke of my brush as the wax dries and dashes across my photo, leaving the most interesting patterns. Mimicking the imperfect yet interesting paths we are led to take in life. My art is directly inspired by the masterpiece that is God's canvas. Every time I look up, I'm amazed by the work of His hands. My art is how I connect what I see with what I can't see. It's symbolic of the stretching that's required to reach for something greater than ourselves."

Pamela Meighan | FIRST PLACE

MFA from the Ohio State University, Retired teacher at Pittsburgh Public Schools, and a Resident of Crafton, PA, where I live with my husband. pamelameighan.com

Artist Statment

Abstract paintings that use geometry as their structure, planar shapes as their subject matter, lines or negative space at their surface, and color value have held my attention over time. I layer the paintings to establish absolute rationalism that expresses tranquility and grace.

When I began to make art, my focus was formal: elements and design principles that communicated the language of visual art. Influenced by the Abstract Art of the '60s and ‘70s, studying the work of contemporary artists and making non-objective art, I shifted from formal to conceptual concerns. The paintings evolve and change through production.

Currently, my paintings demonstrate the use of systems, rules, and motifs that extend from one idea to the next. I generate geometric connections and problem-solve ideas of complex layers, symmetry, variety, and combinations. I paint to provide evidence that the art of the mind is relevant. My approach to geometric abstraction upholds its systemic influence on what we see, use, and think in our environment. "Geometry is a kind of abstraction, but in itself is not enough. It is a means of getting content in ourselves: a plane of attention and awareness, a plane of self­vunderstanding􀀆􀀇 Agnes Martin. The non-objective as the subject gives the viewer the space to add their self to the work.

Deborah Reese

After graduating from the Parsons School of Design in NYC, Deborah finds new ways to explore her passion for art, design, and color theory. She continues to refine her artistic talents, which include oil painting, jewelry making, and collage.

She considers art her "therapy" and uses color and whimsy to express her thoughts and feelings. She often finds hidden emotions long after the work is finished.

Deborah's art and jewelry are sold and exhibited at local boutiques, pop-ups, and galleries. Her collages and jewelry are displayed at The Manos Gallery in Tarentum, PA. Double Dog Studios chose three collages for the upcoming Arts Walk in Carnegie.

She is the founder and owner of Isabel and Reese, a collection of recent works for sale. @isabelandreese IG

Maryanne DellaSalla

Gem Designer, Gem Cutter & Custom Jewelry Artist 

About the Artist:

Carnegie, Pennsylvania-based artist Maryanne DellaSalla has always been passionate about the exquisite beauty hidden within precious gemstones. Maryanne has studied the art of gem cutting under local master cutters and focused on creating inspiring custom designs that elevate the brilliance and uniqueness of each stone. Their journey in the world of jewelry began as a gem cutter, but the limitations of conventional commercial jewelry settings left them unsatisfied, urging them to explore the world of custom jewelry.

Realizing that commercially available jewelry settings failed to complement the exceptional gem cuts they had crafted, they embarked on a new artistic journey—designing and crafting custom silver jewelry. Silver, known for its versatility and timeless appeal, proved to be the perfect canvas for the artist's innovative vision, with their past experience in clay sculpture, precious metal clay allowed the artist to bring a wider range of ideas to life and express forms and movement beyond typical settings.

Nature plays a pivotal role in Maryanne's designs. From the structure of a honeycomb to the wild coil of vines, each piece expresses nature's warmth, vibrancy, and liveliness through the use of cold hard elements of stone and metal. Every setting is made carefully to ensure light has ample play with the gemstone.