"We are never really ever alone. We are always in the company of our demons or indulged in wonderful memories of a bygone time. Sometimes we fantasize solely to escape reality and other times just to reminisce. Either way, we live primarily in the future or in the past, but seldom in the present."

– David Alvarado

"Constance has become the muse for many of my recent figurative paintings. As a gifted dancer specializing in freestyle, go-go, and African styles, she has the extraordinary ability to express the entire gamut of human emotion through her art. In Constance Reaching, I enjoyed exploring the play of dual light sources on her body by using a variety of textures, edges, and values, all while keeping the colors cool and harmonious."

– Anna Rose Bain

"During winter months at the lowest evening tides, it is razor clam season on the Washington coastline. The clamdiggers arrive by the hundreds with their lanterns to dig at nightfall. As the waves recede, beautiful sunset reflections of earth and sky appear in the wet sand. Within these reflections, warm and cool colors swirl and dance in an endless abstract pattern."

– Mark Boyle

"This work depicts a famous Russian Old School strongman Victor Blud as a part of my series featuring paintings of strongmen and heavy lifting athletes. In the background, I depicted Combat Between Dares and Entellus (175 AD) from the Getty Villa to show a connection between generations of athleticism and aesthetics."

– Nikita Budkov

"Since 2002, I have painted fieldworkers. Originally, I was inspired by great artists of the past such as Francois Millet and Leon Lhermitte, who also painted this subject matter. Growing up in Monterey and reading the novels of John Steinbeck also informed my feelings toward this subject, which I believe represents humanity in a profound way. This painting titled, Drawn Into the Light, depicts farmer workers at break during an artichoke harvest in Castroville, California."

– Warren Chang

"The tender face of this young woman shows her distrust and worry of war. Yet, her strength shows through. War wears its face on the young people and I tried to capture that look with Afghan Girl."

– Nancy S. Crookston

"Being born and raised in South Africa gave me insight into the plight of women and children living in shanty towns and rural villages and their lack of basic facilities. In this painting, these children briefly forget about the hardships of poverty and live in the moment, simply enjoying chasing a ball, being kids, and feeling free. Besides narrative, I also look for rhythm lines and connections between shapes and forms through dynamic symmetry. I find this system helps build a solid composition with a strong underlying structure. It also gives me the ability to loosen my brushwork and the rendering of the figures without losing my design."

– Toni Danchik

"Oftentimes it is difficult to describe your own artwork because of its personal nature, but as people, we share many similar experiences, and that is what makes the visual arts, literature, and music part of such a timeless and universal language. I like my paintings to tell a story, to have a larger, more personal and emotional message. By trying to be honest with yourself in the process of creation, you explore your own psychological complexities. I like my viewers to tap into their own experiences and to search for meaning in pictures, like poetry."

– Kathiucia Dias

"For most adolescent girls and young women, fashion is a means of self-expression and allows for identity experimentation. As a former fashion designer, clothing remains an integral part of my work. The palette for this painting consists of only four colors— white, yellow ochre, cadmium red and ivory black. The range of colors achieved is surprising and unexpected. My Way focuses on body language, gesture, and gaze. The figure is placed in a minimal or non-environment. This serves to minimize distraction, and allows the viewer to carefully consider the young woman."

– Lani Emanuel

"Jordan, the painting’s namesake, derives from the ancient river that Moses led his people to in search of freedom, and as the life-giving water that Palestinians and Jews share today. Depicted as a perfect female form, Jordan exists simultaneously as a life-giving force and as a river of light that flows upward, back and forth, until it reaches the top, falls to the bottom and begins its journey again."

– Adrian Gottlieb

"Lavender Light is a painting that aims to capture the warm summer light that occurs during the fall along the coast of Santa Barbara, California. As the girl stands among the cacti, both catch those last bits of warm light, while behind them the moon rises. For a brief moment, the sky becomes a soothing tone of soft lavender. Moments like these occur quickly but they stay with us forever."

– Derek Harrison

"I wanted to capture the experience of viewing Jackson Pollack’s Autumn Rhythm at MOMA in New York City. Pollack’s work seems to have its own life force, which interacts with its viewers. Specifically, I was drawn to the juxtaposition between the large-scale masculine assertiveness of the painting and the female presence in the room."

– Susan Hoehn

"My grandson’s first visit to the beach was magical. He found the simplest pleasure in a puddle and the beach foam."

– Ray Hunter

"Eating dinner at a local restaurant, I was inspired to paint the chefs in the kitchen. Fire illuminated their faces and I wanted to capture that along with the movement and activity."

– Stacy Kamin

"The common thread that runs through my work is a created sense of peacefulness. Whether the subject is a quiet moment between horse and human, an untouched landscape under a golden sun, or fresh flowers from the garden, the viewer is offered a moment of tranquility in his or her hectic life."

– Laurie Kersey

"Painted from a series of live model studies, Blush of Spring began at an invitational plein air paint out in Tehachapi, California. Completed in my studio, I focused upon the early morning spring light filtering through a small glade of trees. Posed in an early California frontier gown, my model, Sherrinn Mullen Ancona, braved the pollinating bees attracted to the surrounding native floral plantings, to complete the scene. It was a joy to paint such an evocative setting."

– Chuck Kovacic

"The figure will always be my favorite subject. I like a simple story. As I paint larger formats, I hope to maintain a freshness that seems easier to achieve on a smaller scale. Trying to capture a directness is most important. "

– Peggi Kroll-Roberts

"The rhythm of the seas runs with silent serenity. Beneath the still waters of uncharted depths lies breathtaking wonders of untraveled fathoms. There she awaits with ageless patience and ever flowing beauty marking her as none other than the lady."

– Alexandra Manukyan

"On a recent pack trip to the Eastern Sierras as I was painting a serenely beautiful alpine scene with a glass surfaced lake and steep granite mountain shooting straight to heaven, I heard something behind me. I turned around to see this packer, with a string of mules, sitting atop a gorgeous paint horse as he made his way to camp. The only detectable noise was the soft trotting of animals’ hooves through the mountain grass."

– Carol Peek

"Composed in Pink is a tranquil painting featuring subtle value shifts and color relationships. More inspired by light and color than narrative, Composed in Pink invites the viewer to attribute their own context to the painting."

– Dakota Pitts

"The composition was determined during a visit to the National Gallery in Washington, DC. I made a quick sketch of the scene, removing gallery visitors. I also took a number of photos for reference. The painting was completed in my studio more than five years later."

– Robert Porter

"Moments of quiet solitude are rare in today’s fast and complicated world. Nature and the transforming effects of music are forever a healing mystery we humans need. The Prayerful Song combines the sacred with common life. Changing colors in the circle of seasons draw us to find a peace that nurtures our lives. Patterns, motifs, shapes, and designs are abundant to awaken the painting artist. Songs, poems, and narratives of tradition liven our spirits. The remembering, renewing, and reviving of creativity has for centuries been our longest quest, as the creator of our spirit and life is sought."

– R.S. Riddick

"Whether a simple moment in everyday life or someone enthralled by activities they love, the figures in my paintings are fully engaged in thoughtful reverie. In Summer Braids, my model (my daughter) pauses to braid her hair—a quiet relaxed moment, as she concentrates on her task. This piece is part of a small series of paintings inspired by the summer season, celebrating the colors of summer. It was a delight to paint my model bathed in golden light, incorporating rich reds and shades of amber, yellow and gold, creating a warm and vibrant glow and reflecting summer hues."

– Pauline Roche

"A carpet of autumn leaves covers the ground while a gentle breeze carries the coming chill of winter. The cyclical nature of the time that we are given is a reminder to be present in this moment and appreciate the fleeting beauty of the season in which we find ourselves."

– Dan Schultz

"A common bond within the surf culture family is the story, 'Talking Story.' Handed down from the Hawaiian Beach Boys of Waikiki; it lives today in California, on the beaches and in the water."

– Kevin A. Short

"The Pose was painted from life and later refined in studio. Painting from life is important to an artist. It stimulates a spontaneous reaction from the artist toward the colors, shapes, and characters of life."

– Mian Situ

"Velociraptor Visit is part of a twenty-one picture suite of new William Stout dinosaur art reflecting the most up-to-date knowledge regarding these prehistoric beasts. Velociraptors were among the most intelligent— and dangerous—of all dinosaurs. This image portrays the creature hearing something (potential prey?) in the Cretaceous forest."

– William Stout

"I relate to often overlooked moments of life. These moments resonate because they are familiar—we see ourselves in them. They suggest beyond the obvious. In this painting, I place the viewer in the role of spectator voyeur gazing from an upstairs window at a solitary woman, sunbathing in the heat of the day and unaware of being watched. The backyard is nearly empty, a private space away from the usual public beach crowd. With the house and garden walls surrounding her, one senses that the opening in the fence hints at and entices the viewer to come in."

– Sally Strand

"Champion depicts award-winning equestrian Mario Contreras seated on his prizewinning Andalusian stallion."

– James E. Tennison

"She Beguiles in Red began as an experimental painting—pushing my understanding of color and color relationships to see how far I could go and remain aesthetically pleasing. Using the aggressive handling of the paint both on and off the subject of the work provides visual dynamic, allowing for movement and further impending movement. As in most of my art, this woman is in charge and knows how to use her power."

– Charles Young Walls

"Charming depicts an Asian girl, using dreamy artistic language to describe the fantastical artistic conception. Through warm colors, the vitality and beauty of life is expressed!"

– Kun Wang

"Throughout my 40 years painting, I have enjoyed the process in several mediums like oil, watercolor, and pastels. My choice of subject matter also has a wide range. I have always been a plein air painter but now I enjoy studio work, as well. Sweet Time in Dubai is a studio piece in watercolor, developed from the pencil sketches and photos taken on one of my visits to Dubai. The composition seemed very inviting and the large round dessert pans in the foreground guide one to the action."

– Durre Waseem

"This is a California sea otter that I observed while kayaking in the Elkhorn Slough Estuary off Monterey Bay, California. Otters are protected and feel safe there. On a warm sunny day like this was, they can often be seen relaxing and floating on their backs to absorb the warmth of the sun, exemplified by the subject of my painting, Sea Siesta."

– Marilyn Wear

"This oil painting on gessoed paper, In the Pool, was inspired by an excursion to a friend’s swimming pool with my grandson, Isaac. This buoyant and very fluid image is influenced by the watery world of a perfect summer day."

– Ruth Weisberg

"I am continually fascinated by the world around us. So many moving parts and people. The Salty Crew keeps it simple at the seawall where I live in San Diego. Sun, sand, friends and dogs—that’s the life!"

– Jeff Yeomans

"The Flamenco Dancer was painted after seeing a tablao flamenco show in Madrid. I was so mesmerized that I had to paint the intense facial expression, expressive arm movements, and the flying silk shawls. The world of tablao flamenco is an intimate one. All that is needed is a dancer, a couple of musicians, and a sad story,"

– Ni Zhu