Current Exhibition

Our ninth Art competition “Black & White” started in May 2025 and concluded on June 12, 2025. Art Room Gallery received entries from many countries around the world: Czech Republic, South Korea, New Zealand , Ireland, Cyprus, Taiwan, Canada, Australia, France and USA. The Black & White theme in this competition included a diversity in types, styles and mediums (oil on canvas, acrylic, charcoal, pencil, photography, digital art, scratchboard, sculpture, ballpoint pen, charcoal, bronze). The following evaluation criteria has been used for judging the artwork: creativity, interpretation of the theme, originality and quality of art, overall design, demonstration of artistic ability, and usage of medium. Jury decided to select 40 artworks for inclusion in the exhibition. Aside from First, Second, and Third place Jury also presented Merit awards and Honorable Mention awards.

Thank you, and enjoy the exhibition!

First place

Statement:

Eric M Renard (www.ericrenardphotography.com) is a Los Angeles based fine art photographer and one of California's leading contemporary photographers. His passion for photography was ignited at Tufts University in Boston, where he studied photography under Siegfried Halus. After graduating, Eric returned to San Francisco and worked as an architectural real estate photographer before moving to Los Angeles, where he worked as an Art Director for advertising. Eric Renard's recent exhibitions "Slice of Light", "Nobody Walks in L.A.", "Soul of a City" and "Urbanity in Black and White" focused on high contrast, urban cityscapes, creating an eerie feeling of tranquility. The landscape is the hero in these images, with the people subject to the power of their surroundings. The "Nobody Walks in L.A." solo exhibition ran October-December in 2023 at the Sasse Museum of Art in Pomona. In 1982, the song "Walking in L.A." by the new wave band Missing Persons, poked fun at Los Angeles for its dependence on cars with the refrain — "Nobody Walks in L.A.". Forty years later, the world still thinks we don't walk much but we do and we also saunter, stroll, and strut our stuff on bikes and scooters wherever we go. In this series of images we explore the unique architecture of Los Angeles, some of it loved, some of it hated and some of it completely unnoticed. Eric's photography has found its way into art galleries in London, Barcelona, Budapest, Athens, Mexico, Brazil, New York, Texas, Oregon, Minnesota, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Connecticut and across California. His photography has received numerous Best of Show awards and has been published in both books and photography magazines, including the cover of Black & White magazine.

Statement:

I was born in Los Angeles, California, and spent my childhood in the city of Ontario. I attended Chaffey High School and went on to graduate from UCLA with degrees in History and Economics. I then went on to get my MBA from USC. My work experience included Retail, Wholesale Apparel and in the Promotional Products Industry. I spent much of my younger days Sculpting in Wood but always longed to work in Stone. At the tender age of 70, I had the good fortune to study stone sculpture with Michael Tine, Myles Schachter and Al Brown. Which set me on my path. I have found that every stone has its own special character or personality. Even though you might start out with a specific design in mind, the stone often will take you in its own unique direction. The collaboration between sculptor and stone can be an intimate, and even a meditative process. Every piece has its own unique story to tell, if you open yourself up to hearing it.