Celebrating the Heritage and Practices of Traditional Fine Arts Worldwide
Simon Lok
Exhibitions
Our World Reimagined, A Northern California Chapter Exhibition
July 1 - August 14, 2020 CAC Virtual Gallery
Keeping in mind the global pandemic currently affecting us all, the talented members of our San Francisco Bay Area, Greater Sacramento/Sierra, and Monterey Chapters were invited to interpret the theme of Our World Reimagined however seemed fit. As you peruse the gallery, we encourage you to reflect on your past, meditate on the present, and ponder your interpretation of the future.
A special congratulations to our Artists’ Award Winners: Deladier Almeida (First place for “Meta Rembrandt”), David Casterson (Second place for “Fort”), Richard Lindenberg (Third place for “Carmet Cliffs”), and Ni Zhu (Honorable Mention for “Caltrain 3:37”)!
All artwork is framed and available for acquisition. See Terms of Sale.
This program was made possible, in part, by a grant from the Cultural Affairs Division of the City of Pasadena.
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Exhibiting Artists
Chris Adessa
Chris Adessa
Deladier Almeida
Deladier Almeida
Karen Anable-Nichols
Nanette Biers
Nanette Biers
Maria Boisvert
Jorge M. Calderon
Ruth Carroll
Ruth Carroll
David Casterson
MaryLou Correia
Laura Culver
Laura Culver
John Deckert
John Deckert
Rhonda Egan
Mark Farina
Mark Farina
Tatyana Fogarty
Tatyana Fogarty
Jerarde Gutierrez
Vanessa Hadady
Annie Haines
Scott Hamill
Scott Hamill
Cynthia Hamilton
Cynthia Hamilton
Maggie Renner Hellmann
Daryl Hosick
Ellen Howard
Ellen Howard
David Jenks
David Jenks
Lucinda Johnson
Lucinda Johnson
Deepali Kapatkar
Mary Therese Kobashigawa
Paul Kratter
Paul Kratter
Lawrence Kushner
Lawrence Kushner
Leslie Landers
Dean Larson
Dean Larson
Amy D. Leung
Diane Liguori
Diane Liguori
Richard Lindenberg
Richard Lindenberg
Carolyn Lord
Carolyn Lord
Rolf Lygren
Kate Martin
Kate Martin
Marie Massey
Steven McDonald
Steven McDonald
Joseph McFadden
Robin Mize
R. Mike Nichols
R. Mike Nichols
Don Nicholson
Erica Norelius
Erica Norelius
Patricia Oji
Erika Perloff
Robert Porter
Robert Porter
Susan Powers
Susan Powers
Nancy Roberts
S. E. Routledge
Teresa Ruzzo
Iris Sabre
Gil Sambrano
Gil Sambrano
Susan Sarback
Susan Sarback
David Savellano
David Savellano
Bonnie Joy Sedlak
Julia Munger Seelos
Julia Munger Seelos
Sarah Skinner
Sarah Skinner
Nancy Takaichi
Nancy Takaichi
Barbara Tapp
Gerald Thompson
Cathryne Trachok
Cathryne Trachok
Cleo Vilett
Marti Walker
Kathrine Lemke Waste
LaRhee Webster
Mary Kay West
Mary Kay West
Marianne Woosley
Marianne Woosley
Paul Youngman
Paul Youngman
Xiaolong Zhou
Ni Zhu
Ni Zhu
Chris Adessa
Manifestly Marin
Oil, 60" x 72", $7,900
“In the summer of 2019 I began a series of paintings called ‘Shadow.’ In each piece a veil of trees in dark shadow stands forward with an expansive view opening beyond in the light…and the light at first feels unreachable.Then your eye settles into the distant light to explore the expanse. The views beyond the veil are of iconic California landscapes and represent our collective dreams of hope and peace. Now, living in the era of the coronavirus, we are staying in the shadows in our homes and looking out longingly. And so art becomes life. These pieces are robust in person for their stark portrayal of the time in which we are living, and their point of view.They foretell a future once we find our way out of the darkness.”
“In the summer of 2019 I began a series of paintings called ‘Shadow.’ In each piece a veil of trees in dark shadow stands forward with an expansive view opening beyond in the light…and the light at first feels unreachable.Then your eye settles into the distant light to explore the expanse. The views beyond the veil are of iconic California landscapes and represent our collective dreams of hope and peace. Now, living in the era of the coronavirus, we are staying in the shadows in our homes and looking out longingly. And so art becomes life. These pieces are robust in person for their stark portrayal of the time in which we are living, and their point of view.They foretell a future once we find our way out of the darkness.”
"In a world of tremendous uncertainty where we have been catapulted 40 years into the digital age, life as a painter continues to be a necessity for mind and soul! As I examined one of my favorite areas along the coast to paint, I noticed a lone horseback rider slowly traversing the dunes at Spanish Bay. I have seen riders in this area before. The sun was just beginning to peer through the coastal fog and I was comforted to know somethings will never change. How blessed I was to witness the magic of another day, the sun rising, and my ability to see and paint in a world of much uncertainty!"
"Recent research estimates the health pandemic could increase global poverty by as much as half a billion people (8% of the world’s population). This would be in addition to the approximately 700 million people currently living in extreme poverty. To envision and then create a better future for all, we need to understand and empathize with their struggle. Alongside Poverty is the first artwork developed as part of Cali’s (Jorge M. Calderon's) social impact series that focuses on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The first UN SDG is 'No Poverty.' This painting is an opportunity for viewers to reflect on the long and difficult road for those who live on less than $2 a day."
"Beauty exists no matter what the circumstance. For me, the process of painting leads to wholeness in this time of sheltering in place. This painting was completed in March, as the poppies returned to a very special Briones Valley full of Promise."
"Plein air painting of Rush Creek in Novato, California. Painted with a few friends, and we all stayed about 10 feet apart to maintain social distancing."
"It is absolutely mesmerizing to watch the ocean waves come crashing at the base of the cliffs. The Garrapata coast fascinates and inspires me with the mystery of the purplish-blue distant mountains, and the interplay of cliffs reflections breaking on the waves."
"I enjoyed this scene with the adirondack chairs, positioned so you can sit and enjoy the view of ever-changing ocean, on multiple occasions while visiting the Mendocino coast. I was inspired by the beautiful reflections, as well as, the calm and peacefulness of the area."
“My work painting en plein air is oftentimes a dialogue with the natural world and our environment. Painting outdoors is as much a meditative experience with nature as it is a feat of technical skill. Through this contemplative process, I am reminded of the balance that all living beings have with the earth and our role and place in maintaining a balanced ecosystem. For me, a world reimagined, is a future where the state of humanity and the natural world is in harmony. This painting is about seeking that balance even if only for a small moment in time.”
“This was painted as the pandemic reached our shores and uncertainty about the future created lots of fear and anxiety in my community. I escaped to this isolated location along a central California river to spend the day exploring nature's beauty and to, hopefully, leave the worry behind. As soon as I looked into the water and saw all the earth tones and dancing reflections, I easily fell into the place where all painters want to be. The place where all that matters is what's in front of the easel and how that feeling is transported to the canvas. In the end, water has flowed over these rocks for millions of years and that will continue for millions more no matter our human circumstance.”
“This scene of golden poplar trees growing along a river bed in the south island of New Zealand reminds me of nature's ability to regenerate and thrive. The autumn color reminds us that seasons change and life is cyclical. Beauty persists in isolated and pure places where man is scarce.”
“I reimagine our future with all of us experiencing and embracing wildness as sanctuary. Wildness is a necessity, a fountain of life; a sanctuary. Painting is my way to cherish and share Nature at her wildest. John Muir said it best and I think we are rediscovering these necessities as we struggle through our current times. ‘Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul.’ - John Muir
‘In God's wildness lies the hope of the world - the great fresh unblighted, unredeemed wilderness.’ - John Muir
‘Thousands of tired, nerve-shaken, over-civilized people are beginning to find out that going to the mountains is going home; that wildness is a necessity; and that mountain parks and reservations are useful not only as fountains of timber and irrigating rivers, but as fountains of life.’ - John Muir”
“Mysterious Evening is a scene I witnessed driving along the Mendocino coast just before sundown. The perennial summer fog bank which lays on the horizon was rolling in toward the shore. It almost entirely blocked the setting sun, which barely peeked over the top of it. My favorite part is the subtle values and shadows in the fog just above the water. I did a quick, small oil sketch on the spot for color and used a 35mm transparency to develop the painting. It seems a fitting metaphor for our time of uncertainty about what the future holds.”
“Streetlights Before Dawn is an image from the 10th story of a high rise overlooking a flat, coastal, urban landscape—almost, but not quite, like the sea. As is most often the case with me, the sky was my inspiration for this almost abstract painting. While most of the city was still sleeping, the only signs of life were the streetlights, which give the view a ghostly quality. The dark land sets off the flat, glowing, wispy sky. As we stay close to home, the world seems less populated and quieter, but there is still the promise of a new day in which we will awaken and enjoy the future.”
“This pastel painting of a street in the city of Toledo, Spain, on sanded UArt paper. I painted this from a photograph that I had taken during our family trip. The photo was taken from a viewpoint that allowed us to take in the panoramic view of the beautiful city. Even from the distance what stood out amongst other things was the crooked street with its beautiful bright terracotta roofs and the awnings on the windows to shade from the bright sun. I immediately fell in love with the architecture of the beautiful buildings and the graphic quality of the layout of the street. Leaving the people out of the painting was a conscious design decision made at that time to let the focus be on the structures. Unfortunately, now it aptly reflects the reality of the current times that these streets are empty of people. The current pandemic has reduced most of the once busy towns and villages to ghost towns.”
“During this season of COVID-19 shelter-in-place, this has been a time for me to review what is important in my daily life. I have come to the conclusion that my relationships with family, friends and community from childhood are the most essential. Into the future, we begin a season of a new normal together.”
“Once again, I am humbled by the stark, ‘Hopperesque’ clarity and brilliance of the late day light along the Pacific coast. I cannot help wondering how the lighthouse keeper could have endured it on bright evenings like this.“
“Since sheltering-in-place, like everyone else, we have sadly watched most of our horizons shrink—but not all. The tourists are gone! On our morning walks, we can see places hitherto inaccessible—like this view from the top of the 'Crooked Street.’ Until now Mount Diablo off in the distance has been 'shrouded in tourists.’ Indeed, we have not so much ‘reimagined' our world but, instead, we find ourselves able to see parts of it for the first time!"
“There is something about summer slopes that conjures deep gulps of fresh air. Always valuable. It is more valued now as we reimagine our lives against the backdrop of a pandemic. In this piece, I savor the fresh mountain air while pondering the spaces between the mountains and each of us.”
"This is San Francisco's famous Powell Street in the rain as a cable car makes its way down the hill. Union square is just off to the left. The sun was about to set as dusk fell over the city. This particular viewpoint is looking out from the St. Francis Hotel."
“On a sunny day, a foursome can easily spread out playing golf. You can congratulate or even argue wearing a mask. Distancing does not diminish your chance for a hole in one. I protect you, you protect me. Fun in safety.”
"We’ve had a while now to be grateful for window displays and the bevy of gorgeous art that Mother Nature curates. This beautiful jewel of a tree was born from one of many new walks in the wake of COVID-19, and is my way of bringing the outside in. Part sculpting, part color play, part chasing the dance of light, part push and pull on values, it’s a full immersion in leaves… and a reminder that transitions, however difficult, can lead to surprisingly lovely transformations."
"A festival of color and light…an accidental discovery in the late afternoon of a bitter, stormy winter day. Urban twilight and city lights, the magical part of the day where night and day overlap, windows beckon the last of the stragglers with warmth and light, and colors transform the ordinary to the extraordinary. Imagine a world where all have a place to shelter, a place to be themselves, a place of love and security no matter what the world brings, a place to call home."
“I painted Abandoned Gas Station in Livermore, CA, as if it was made of white marble, bathed in ethereal light. The columns are not Doric, Ionic, or Corinthian; there is neither entablature nor pediment; it’s mid-20th century Googie!”
– Carolyn Lord
Carolyn Lord
Artifacts Along the Lincoln Highway
Oil, 30" x 40", $4,000
“The current global pandemic is an acute crisis. The devastation of our environment is a chronic crisis, and the causes and its effects can be seen behind every issue: social, health, economic, political. I reimagine our world where the use of fossil fuels is considered archaic, the environment is restored, and the infrastructure left behind become artifacts of the Anthropocene epoch. Artifacts Along the Lincoln Highway utilizes elements of ‘Capriccio’ paintings of the Romantic era which depict aesthetes and poets dwarfed by the ruins of monumental temples and baths. Instead of the classic orders of Greek and Roman architecture, I’ve painted the demolition site of a mid-20th century overpass on Highway 50, in Tracy, CA. Historically, Highway 50 is known as the Lincoln Highway, the first transcontinental road for cars completed in 1913.”
"Early on in the lockdown for the pandemic, the air quality in the Bay Area became incredible and a magnificent storm head blew over East Bay. This painting was my impression of that incredible weather."
“In this idyllic scene of the Salinas Valley I have placed my partner, Michael, myself, and our French Bulldog, Quorra. We are floating, in limbo, sheltering in place, dancing without touching. Colors are bright and pure, our masks are whimsical and celebratory. We are in a field of poppies with little johns and various birds in the foreground. The migrant workers continue to supply our food while risking infection. Life is far from ideal but we count our blessings.”
“Here we celebrate our flora, our fauna, and our interests. Our masks are a reality. Once again, we float while we await the new normal. Our floating is euphoric because we are at peace with our lives. Our French Bulldog, Quorra, is grounded and displays her position of royalty within our family. The animals go about life in their usual manner as they don’t know of the virus that is ravaging the lives of so many people. At the center is the POTUS, the man who has refused to take this pandemic seriously. He is the man who puts himself before his country. The squirrel knows he has found the nut he was looking for.”
"The CA Oak trees have been here longer than people and, based on their ability to survive, will be here even with people and the environment destruction they have brought to the CA land."
“Quiet Streets of the Pandemic is part of my cityscapes series. These works offer a fresh point of view as we look down from far away to see the rhythms and patterns of the city. I use a very limited palette (three secondary colors, plus white) to convey my own interpretation of a familiar scene. The challenge presented by Our World Reimagined led me to picture the city without traffic congestion, pollution, noise or even people on the streets. What is left is a city distilled down to a grid of abstract lines and shapes. We see a San Francisco that is beautiful in its serenity, yet missing its usual lively chaos.”
“Imagine a world where people have time to sit still and reflect on the beauty around them. Before the vision fades to a memory, we will make wise decisions to value and protect the land and all its inhabitants.”
"During the COVID-19 pandemic, the earth is having a chance to renew itself. As we humans start to re-enter, I hope we appreciate the sacredness of nature and continue in the right direction."
"Lifeguard station number 5 at Santa Cruz beach. On cool windy days, beaches can be quite deserted with very few people...what I expect to be a more common scene these days."
– Gil Sambrano
Susan Sarback
The Boaters, 2020
Oil on linen panel, 9" x 12", $1,200
"On the American River in Fair Oaks, CA, boaters are common in the early hours. The contrast and shimmering light always inspires me. But, social distancing isn't possible in a small boat...these men wear their masks so they can still be together."
"Fishermen on the American River in Fair Oaks, CA are always active in the early morning. The light and the movement is mesmerizing. An old sport with a new addition.... a mask. At least they can still be together..."
“Every May I visit Yosemite to enjoy waterfalls and dogwood blooms and then again in October for fall color. In autumn I occasionally drive over Tioga Pass to the June Lake Loop and see the first snow covering the Eastern Sierra. COVID-19 closed Yosemite in May. Now I look forward - with hope - to October when I can return to Yosemite. A return to my normal.”
"I found this quiet valley in my rambles in northeastern California. This is private timber land, slated for clear cut logging. I wanted to paint this special spot as it should be: wild, unfenced, and untamed."
"This painting was therapy during quarantine. If I could not travel to my favorite spot to get away from it all, I could at least travel there in my mind."
"This past year took our 'normal' away. So many things we had no idea we were taking for granted! I painted this a month before restaurants went dark. Oh, to have a simple Taco Tuesday with friends and family again."
"This year has been such an upheaval to all we know. But this much I know: the tide comes in, the waves rise and fall, the ocean measures time despite our woes in pandemic and political upheaval."
“In January, I began organizing my work for entry in spring shows. I picked artwork for the Alameda County Fair Fine Arts Competition. Then, the Coronavirus hit. Should I enter the show? Was there going to be a Fair? I decided to go ahead and register. Eventually, the Fair was cancelled, but fortunately, the Fine Arts staff committed to having an online show and selected the top award winners. Stanford won Fine Arts Best of Show award!”
“Both paintings that I have in the show depict a moment in time that is waiting for someone to come back. It is the in-between time, where a moment of quiet is noticed without a thought, just a notion. I feel like the world is in a pause like that. Although there is chaos, and strange things happening, there is also a sense of holding our breaths. In the background is history, the ocean, that is also taking a breath. In the moment before it lets go, I see these images. There is comfort in knowing that life and nature will always be there, and we will catch up.”
“Both paintings that I have in the show depict a moment in time that is waiting for someone to come back. It is the in-between time, where a moment of quiet is noticed without a thought, just a notion. I feel like the world is in a pause like that. Although there is chaos, and strange things happening, there is also a sense of holding our breaths. In the background is history, the ocean, that is also taking a breath. In the moment before it lets go, I see these images. There is comfort in knowing that life and nature will always be there, and we will catch up.”
– Cathryne Trachok
Cleo Vilett
Return of the Kelp Forests
Oil on canvas on board, 16" x 20", $950
"Calico bass in kelp forest. The presence of healthy kelp forests tells us our local ocean is thriving. In warmer seasons and years, forests often disappear. Here's hoping the kelp returns soon and provides habitat for thousands of residents!" This is how I imagine this part of our world."
“After SIP, I longed to be outside — to feel the sun, to have my hair rustled by the wind, and to smell the earth. I headed west for the charming agricultural town of Winters, CA, just 40 minutes away. There, alongside an artist friend, we met up on consecutive Mondays to explore the delightful scenes. New to this area, I showed her the delights I have discovered over 15 years of plein air painting in the area. These twin barns are, to me, an icon of Winters. Continuously in use for all the years since they were constructed, they represent the steadfastness of farming, it matters not what is going on in the world neither war nor pandemic. It matters only that the pursuit of producing crops to feed ourselves continues without interruption. Painting these barns as the locals waved at us when they passed by brought me joy and a sense of connection that I desperately had missed!“