The Fishers Arts Council continues its monthly displays in December, featuring artists the organization describes a new to the city and “up and coming.”
Below is a news release from the Arts Council with all the details:
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During the month of December Fishers Arts Council shines a spotlight on 10 Hamilton County artists who are “Up and Coming” and “New to Fishers”. Their artwork will be on display in the Gallery at the Collaboration Hub at Hamilton County Community Foundation (11810 Technology Drive, Fishers) from December 5-30 and can be viewed Monday-Friday from 9am-5pm, with a few exceptions for holiday closures. A special “Meet the Artists” panel will be offered during the Second Friday reception on Friday, December 9, at 6:45pm – and guests are welcome to drop in anytime from 6-8pm for the family friendly event.
Josh Brinson defines himself as a muralist and graphic designer. Josh says, ” In middle school (circa 2005) I discovered graffiti and street art. The idea that these huge pieces were on display in public and for all to see intrigued me. Plus the vibrant colors, dimensional structures and wild characters involved in the pieces gave life to what were once only stark barriers within a cityscape.” At that point, Brinson says he was committed to turning his passion into a full-time career. In the future, he hopes to focus on putting his art on apparel and merchandise, and he also hopes to create original figurines/designer toys.
Artist Larry Evans says he first became interested in art, “When I was a kid and saw my first Van Gogh painting and learned his background. I have always loved art and drawing, but that day art kind of became cool in a super weird way, I guess. Van Gogh is still my favorite artist today.” Larry says his next goal as an artist is to do a large painting and mess around with gold foil somehow within that painting. Larry maintains that one of his greatest disappointments is losing first prize in an art contest in second grade because the school principal said that the drawing was too good to have been done by a second grader. He says that principal’s bad decision cost Larry to lose the $250 prize money.
Jacob Hernandez’ approach to the concept of art and artist is unique. “I am a firm believer that everyone is an artist in his or her own way, and I am a lover of all forms of art, whether that be traditional drawing/painting, photography, sculpture, architecture, design, literature, film, music, theater, and so on. Being an artist is a wonderful thing, and I encourage everyone to make use of their own inner artist!” Visitors to the Emerging Artists exhibit will be able to experience how Jacob has made use of his own “inner artist.”
Julia Holland is a current Art + Design student at Butler University. “I have been passionate about art my entire life,” she says, and has goals to pursue a life and career within the arts. While abstract art isn’t her favorite, her portrait work truly sings.
Painter Barbara Howrey’s story is one that is probably familiar to a lot of people: “I started my art journey by painting watercolors in 1992. I put my son, who was two years old at the time, into a Mom’s Day Out program at a local church, and I signed up for watercolor classes at a framing shop in Brownsburg, IN. I was only able to attend classes for a year because life kind of got in the way. I began painting again in 2019, and in 2021, I discovered fluid art and decided I really liked it and began practicing that medium.” What is “fluid art”? Visitors to the exhibit will have to meet Barbara and see her work to find out.
Artist Deb Lavengood is a woman of many talents. She cooks and enters cooking competitions–and wins–and she paints with acrylics and watercolors. Her current passion is photography, and she plans to put that talent to use this winter. Deb says, ” My husband and I are going on a cruise to a number of different Caribbean islands this winter, and I want to capture the beauty of the aqua Caribbean water and tranquil beaches to bring joy to myself and others during the dark winter months.”
Oil painter Mike Martin early on fell in love with the inherent characteristics of oil paints. Mike says that his greatest success as an artist happened when he learned not to be his own worst critic. He realized that every painting goes through an “ugly duckling” period until it starts to flow, and it is important to focus on what “works” in the painting and improve on those elements.
Photography is Justin Sicking‘s passion. He says that he really enjoys learning new things and researching different techniques as they relate to “all different categories and niches of Photography. I love getting to see how small changes affect the outcome of an image, and I embrace the opportunity to get better and better results with every shoot.”
Riley Sims is currently a student at Ball State University, and says, “My greatest success as an artist has to be actually being an artist. I think that is the hardest part. Changing my major from art education to just studio art is my greatest success as an artist because it was the first step to fulfilling my dream.” After Riley graduates in the spring, she would love to attend an art residency program at one of the national parks and continue to pursue her artistic interests and techniques. Riley served as the first FAC intern this past summer, helping our team on a variety of projects.
Angee Walberry‘s experience in creating art began when she was home on disability leave and “sheer boredom led me to dabble in paint.” She was happy that so many people liked the results of her “dabbling” that she kept on drawing and painting. Angee is working on a new series with her “weird squiggly people.” Her personal goal is to travel everywhere to capture people at play, at rest, and at work. She hopes that an art residency at Fire Island, New York, or in Key West, Florida, is in her future.
Fishers Arts Council hopes that you will join us in attending the Second Friday reception of “Art of the Emerging Artist” on December 9, and meet these wonderful, creative people and hear their stories. Live music will be performed by Emily Ann Thompson, refreshments and a cash bar will be provided as well as a comfortable community space for connecting with artists and other art-lovers. Most artwork will be available for sale – and this is a great opportunity to support a local artist and get something one-of-a-kind for the holidays. All are welcome and we look forward to seeing you in the Gallery.
