Landscapes

Our first Art competition “Landscapes” started in December 2019 and concluded on January 22, 2020. Art Room Gallery received entries from many countries around the world: USA, Germany, Canada, Italy, Russia, Australia, South Korea, United Kingdom, Poland and Saudi Arabia. The Landscapes theme in this competition included a diversity in types, styles and mediums (oil on canvas, acrylic, photography, mixed media, collage, graphite, colored pencil, watercolor, concrete, wood, wire, foam and polymer clay). 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 71 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!

Statement:

I was born in Iran in 1991. I started photography at the age of 15. My shoots are consistent, yet unique to each client. I spend a lot of time brainstorming and scouting out new locations, so I’m able to offer each of you a special experience. All my sessions include a pre-shoot consultation, so I can get to know you and your needs. When I’m done editing, I meet with you again and offer suggestions that you get exactly what you're after. Giving someone a beautiful image of themselves is one of the most rewarding feelings that I have ever felt. The experiences I have during the photo shoot become the stories of my images and lifelong memories. As a photographer, I love my career and take it seriously. I am honored to be a part of capturing your memories. Thanks for taking the time to view my work.

Statement:

Inspiration is easy to find yet hard to translate in the American West. Years ago, Lars Gesing left behind his life, his loved ones, his native Germany, for a fresh start in a foreign land that didn’t feel foreign to him. It was his life’s ultimate sacrifice up to that point. For generations, finding a home in the American West has always been a journey of overcoming challenges, of hard work, of living with the elements, of self-invention, grit and determination. That willingness to sacrifice… for the love of the land… is the foundation of each of Lars's artworks. Because it is his story, also. During those initial days, his images lacked direction, just like his life. His existence fit in a suitcase and a sturdy backpack. But the more he felt the warm embrace of the early-morning’s first timid ray of light, the silence of space standing at a canyon’s rim, the sense of comfort in the dark gazing at the Milky Way's arch, the more it clicked. He was home. Lars started to understand that the connection that we feel to the natural world around us reaches far beyond time spent outside. It defines who we really are, what we really do, how we really feel. It gives us a sense of purpose. It’s an expression of our willingness to sacrifice to reveal our better selves, to not be held back, to inspire to overcome. Now, his photographic pilgrimage is a timeless journey through iconic lands to create artworks that tell the story of finding home.

Statement:

My visual sense was developed underwater. I remember hours being spent in my childhood trying to stay below the surface because I was so mesmerized by the light penetrating and transforming ordinary things making them glow and radiate as if they were shimmering diamonds. This experience was life altering as it began my love for light, color and translating life into the visual. It has been my only education for I am a self-taught artist who has learned through my own experimentation. Ultimately, I was looking for a form that reflects the mess and beauty of living. Using wood, photographs, paper and pigment ink I started to create collages. Taking disparate pieces I like to create a dynamic balance between all the different parts-a harmonic dance. The visual form of language and certain figures I love are endlessly used-my cast of character -always made by stamps, handmade or bought, and stencils. For me a flower is not only a flower, but a flower that represents the human figure. I place all of my characters in different visual and existential situations creating a never-ending series of relationships. As and artist living in NYC I am thoroughly influenced by it’s rhythms which seeps into my collages through a motion that is a result of placement, texture and color. Mostly, I want my art to always reflect an awe for beauty, for broadening our cultural definition of beauty, beauty that can take its form in the crooked line, discarded fragments, the torn, the gritty: the fingerprints of living. I’ve had the honor of having my work shown in numerous galleries, I was in London-based Murze art mag, and I have given an artist talk at The Barrett Art Center.