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June 8 – June 23
Closing Party, Friday, June 23
Open Studios Saturday and Sunday,
June 24 & 25
Noon to 4pm

ASTRID FOX
Hong Kong born, Vancouver raised, Astrid Fox, discovered art at a young age through a love of drawing. Astrid continued to pursue her studies in Fine Arts, Interior Design, and Graphic Design and illustrations.

Floral subjects and vibrant colours, are signature to Astrid's work. Interest in graphic design surfaces in Astrid's dynamic compositions. Astrid's recent body of work has been inspired by viewing the world through the fresh eyes of her toddler son.

Flowers are a common subject often used in art. What is uncommon about my approach is to take this beautiful and familiar subject and superimpose them onto various unfamiliar backgrounds. My main purpose in this process is to create a special tension between the foreground and the background. I plan to continue exploring the relationships between flowers and their settings by observing certain effects different combinations produce.

KAREN LORENA PARKER
I have been painting all my life, and graduated with my degree in fine arts 1996 from the Alberta College of Art. I am currently being represented by international companies, Canadian Art Prints, Casa Publishing and Hambleton Gallery and work with local design firms to create commissioned pieces and murals. I have been organizing my own shows since 1989 and selling my work independently for so long, it has been a real privilege to be represented and marketed by three firms!
I am excited about my new prairie landscapes that combine dramatic coastal cloudscapes with graphic landscapes. I continue to have 2-3 shows a year, and have recently begun an annual Open House studio visit. I am looking forward to being part of Artists Among Us and will enjoy meeting the Locals Among Us that has appreciation for the arts.

Known for her graphic impact, subtle details, large expressive brushwork and luminescent tones in a contemporary color palette, Parker's work attracts patrons around the world.

Karen Lorena Parker works with interior design firms to create the perfect piece for today's design-savvy viewer. Her current Cloudscape Series combine stormy coastal drama with the peaceful windswept prairies of her childhood.

A member of Night of Artists, represented by Casa Publishing Canadian Art Prints and Hambleton Gallery. Parker is a fine art graduate from the Alberta College of Art and Design (1994). Commissions available. Studio visits by appointment.

AUDREY LOWE
Born in the Highlands of Scotland, Audrey immigrated to Canada in 1956. Most of her life has been spent on the West Coast. Audrey has always had an interest in Art but didn't begin to display her works until 1999. Her paintings reflect the rugged beauty of the coast and the delicate flowers and wildlife to be found there. Audrey's work has won awards with the Western Art Circle and has been accepted and sold through juried shows with the Surrey Arts Council. At present Audrey sells her art through shows with Riverside Arts Circle, Richmond Artists' Guild and South Delta Artist's Guild. Her works are also displayed in the Courtyard Galleria, Suite 150, 3500 Moncton St., Steveston. Anyone interested in her art can contact her at 604-241-4443 or visit MyArtClub.com to view her paintings.

The coast of British Columbia has innumerable vistas just begging to be painted. Audrey has a variety of Art Cards for sale. These are prints from original paintings and include floral, local scenes in pen and wash, doors of Italy, and a number of other subjects.

Nothing is ever Black and White. In this method of painting, no black or white paint is used. Instead Audrey has mixed the primary colours, red, yellow and blue, to acquire the dark colour. This gives the paintings an atmospheric quality.


SANDI WILSON
Sandi Wilson has been a professional photographer for over 18 years. Four years ago she sold her successful Yaletown studio in Vancouver to move to France with her husband.
Returning from France they relocated to Steveston, purchasing a heritage home originally designed/owned by founder Ida Steves. It is here that she runs her photography business, specializing in, weddings, children and family portraits, fashion, commercial and travel art photography.

Sandi has been blessed to have been able to travel the world over, both personally and through commissioned works. Her portfolio of images include places such as France, Italy, Spain, South Africa, Tunisia, Canary Islands, Greece, Mexico, South Western U.S.A., United Kingdom, Poland and Canada's Maritime Provinces. While in France she was invited to show her stone tile images at Paris' 2004 Parc Floral Exposition. She has been a part of numerous groups and personal one woman exhibits over the past 11 years.

Sandi continues to show her work in local art galleries and various retail stores.

ANNIE TSAI
Annie grew up in Taiwan where she completed her art education at the National Taiwan Academy of Art. In 1993 her family immigrated to Canada. She shared her art experience and knowledge by teaching her friends and students at Ferris Elementary. She also expands her knowledge to the surrounding community by teaching local orchestra members' parents during her child's rehearsal. Now she would like to broaden her horizon by joining Artists Among Us.

ELINOR SANDERS
Elinor Sanders has been painting for over 20 years. She continues to take lessons so as to keep abreast of new methods and paints. She works in oils, acrylics, watercolours with oils being her favourite. Her paintings are hanging in various countries, including France, Japan, United States and Canada. She has been successful in selling her work at many local shows and continues to do so. Art is one of her favourite and exciting hobbies, blending colours with design to bring magic to her world.

WILLIAM PHILLIP WATT
William was born in Banff, Alberta, grew up in Surrey, B.C. and completed high school on Vancouver Island.

William graduated from Notre Dame University of Nelson with a BFA in 1976 (U. of Vic) and previously attended the Kootenay School of Art completing graphic and fine art courses.

Residing in Richmond, B.C., since 1982, Bill continues to pursue his artistic interests while working in the imaging industry.

Painting landscapes in acrylic and watercolour as well as art finishing (matting, framing, digital art photography and art prints) take up most of his spare time.

As current president of the Richmond Artists Guild and member of the South Delta Artists Guild, William continues to show his work at local venues.

RANISLAV TRAPARA
Ranislav Trapara was born in Yugoslavia and in 1993 immigrated to Canada. He became a Canadian citizen in 1998 and presently lives and works in Richmond, B.C. He holds a Mechanical Engineering Bachelor Degree from the Sarajevo University and has worked as an engineer for the company who built the ski and chair lift systems for the Winter Olympic Games in 1984 in Sarajevo. In Canada he has been working as a design engineer and consultant for overhead cranes.

Ranislav is a self-taught artist. After working with oil pastels for several years, in last two years Ranislav's work has been focused on mastering oils and acrylics. Recently his work has been influenced by a well-known Canadian impressionist and senior member of FCA Mike Svob, with whom Ranislav has several workshops.

To date has work has been represented in 3 exhibitions: June 2004 Group of Arts in Vancouver
June 2004 and 2005 in Richmond Art Gallery. His paintings are held in many private collections.

GINA PAGE
Gina Page currently divides her time between Powell River, B.C. a small isolated community on the Sunshine Coast, and Richmond, B.C., an island municipality adjacent to Vancouver; she has taught in Richmond for the last 14 years. Gina has spent most of her life living on the B.C. coast. Much of her poetry and art reflect the influence o time spent by the sea and salt-water marshes.

Gina has a Bachelor of Education degree (in art and English literature) from the University of B.C. and a Master of Education degree from the University of Victoria. At UBC she studied with well-known Vancouver artists Gordon Smith, as well as Sam Black, and graphic teacher Bob Steele.

Gina first had some of her poetry published in 1971 in a journal called Hyperion, published in Berkeley, California. In 1986, she published her first chapbook Along a Road of Pattering Shade; the book design and typesetting for the chapbook were done by Wil Hudson, master typographer. ("Night Blossoming", one of the poems in this book was mentioned in a review by George Woodcock in the poetry Column in B.C. Bookworld, Issue 1, 1989). Two years later Gina was very fortunate to have Will Hudson as her teacher in some of the basics of letterpress typesetting. She has since published three other chapbooks: The Story of the Last Elephant (a poem by Rudy Penner), Watching You Sleep, Dreams of the Sea and Gifts.

Gina went on to attend the Emily Carr Institute of Art and Design in Vancouver, B.C. and began courses with various instructors in typesetting, papermaking, bookbinding, printmaking, painting and drawing at ECIAD: Doug Biden-monoprints; Lisa McLean-etching; Rich Williams-anatomical drawing and as an instructor in a drawing-the-human-figure class in Florence, Italy; Sharon Yuen-papermaking; Denise Carson-Wilde-typesetting; Celia King-bookbinding, Monique Fouquet-drawing; Lucy Hogg-painting; John Graham-artists books.

Since 1991, Gina has been a member of Malaspina Printmaking Cooperative on Granville Island in Vancovuer, B.C. where she has worked almost entirely with various etching processes. There she has taken courses with a number of instructors such as Vincent Sheridan-etching; Denise Wilson-etching using photosensitive films; Glenn Madsen-lithography; Julie McIntyre-woodcuts; Milos Jones-advanced lithography.

LORAINE WELLMAN
Loraine Wellman builds her colourful acrylic paintings layer by layer in order to create rich and vibrant canvasses. She paints impressions, not photo-realism, working to capture the West Coast special quality of light. Loraine holds a diploma from Vancouver School of Art and exhibited "Local Landscapes" in Richmond Art Gallery, July-August 2005. Her paintings are widely collected.

 

MARGRETH FRY
Margreth was born and educated in the Swiss Alps and first came to Canada working as a Nanny 1963-64 in Montreal. Following a period back home working as a secretary, she immigrated to Canada in 1966 making Richmond her home since 1970.

From early childhood her artistic interests were influenced by the local crafts of woodwork, weaving and sculpture. Through schoolgirl drawings and home quilting, Margreth developed a passion for bright colours. The folklore of village life in Switzerland has played an important role in her choice of subject matter.

Margreth's recent artistic, development commenced 2001 and has been influenced by local instructors such as Hele Kowallek and Adrienne Moore. She continues to explore the boundaries of her artistic skills by regularly attending workshop classes, most recently with Rick McDiarmid and Mike Svob.
Margreth wishes to develop her own unique artistic style expressing her love of life and people through her paintings.

JEANETTE JARVILLE
Since a very early age, I have had a natural tendency for drawing and painting and a strong interest in art. I began oil painting at the age of 11 and have continued studying and experimenting with my work ever since. I graduated from Emily Carr in 1996 with a Bachelors degree in Fine Art and studied Sculpture and Art History for 8 months in Berlin, Germany. My work has developed extensively and ranges from oils in the Old Masters methods, to bold contemporary figures and still lives. I believe having a strong foundation and artistic ability enables me to freely explore the spirit and rhythm of my subjects, using form and colour to express the emotion, desire or sense of reality I wish to convey. I also believe in being diverse-adapting new ideas and changes are important in discovering new methods, I use found objects and incorporate 3/D objects within my work which stems from my need to continually build and create.

SUE KAVANAGH
Born and raised in Vancouver, Sue is a graduate of the art education program at the University of British Columbia. She has taught art to primary aged children, and enjoys her own explorations with a variety of media. Her imaginative and often whimsical ceramics and paintings have been exhibited and collected locally through both retailers and juried shows including: The Vancouver Arts Council, B.C. Festival of the Arts, The Gulf of Georgia Cannery, Richmond Artists Among Us, The Steveston Village Gallery and The Courtyard Galleria.

GERT YOUNG
Gert Young was born in Medicine Hat, AB., spending summers in Ontario and the High Rockies and, later, living in England for 5 years. These places were imprinted in her memory and formed a basis for sharing the beauty seen.

After her 3 sons grew up, she needed to know how to express it, so, after 2 years of private lessons, she joined a group, which later became Riverside Art Circle. She was president from 1983-1997 and still an enthusiastic member.

When Western Art Circle sent out a call for members in 1978, she and several Richmond members joined the Vancouver Group. She has served on the executive and board ever since, and is a life member.

Then, in the 90's came Richmond Arts Guild to broaden the circle; with all these groups, workshops and shows were the driving force and source of much fun.
Gert's painting has gone to the U.S.A., Britain, Scotland, Germany, South Africa, Hong Kong, Japan and Australia, but mostly Canada.

Awards include a quality award from VanDusen Gardens and 5 top prizes form Western Art Circle picture of the year. Her paintings have appeared in shows of Richmond Art Galley Association Community Arts Council, Riverside Art Circle, Western Art Circle and Richmond Artists Guild as well as the Annual Artists Among Us.

 

ALICE SAUNDERS
Born in Alberta, Alice became interested in art at an early age. After moving to Richmond 35 years ago, Alice found a real interest in watercolours and today enjoys depicting children and animals in her work. An active member of Western Art in Vancouver and Riverside Art Club in Richmond, Alice has been active in home showings in the community. Member of the "Artists Among Us" open house shows.

RITA McARTHUR
When I retired in 2001, I finally had the time to study painting and drawing. What a wonderful feeling when I sold my first painting! Most of my inspiration at the moment comes from around my home in Steveston, though my travels in France, Scotland and New Zealand also feature in my paintings.

I try in my paintings to concentrate on the colours and light of the subject and I always strive to get sunshine down on paper.

This is my fourth Artists Among Us show, and I have also exhibited at the Burnaby Rhododendron Festival, the Annual Finn Slough Art Show and the Fraser River Festival of the Arts.

GINA LAZO JORDAN
Gina Lazo Jordan was born in Manila, Philippines. She earned her degree in Architecture from the University of Sto. Tomas in Manila and currently works in the design industry. She pursued and learned the traditional metalcraft of chasing and repousse. Her highly textured abstract works in hammered aluminum explores the fusion of the traditional techniques of chasing and repousse with contemporary compositon to create metal canvasses finished with rich patinas.

CHRISTINE GUENARD
I live and paint in my old house in Richmond, B.C. I grew up in Lac St-Jean region of Quebec where nature was all around us. Inspired by my grandmother I painted and drew for hours, as far back as I can remember. Painting is a time for learning and challenging myself. It is a time to be free and have fun. Painting and drawing reflect my lifestyle. Each piece is full of bright colours. Strong or soft, all show a sentiment of a mood, a moment. I love to work with different media, watercolors, gouache, acrylic, pencils and crayons. I work with them separately or all together.
I am teaching watercolour class for beginners at Phoenix in Steveston and one at a senior’s community centre in Richmond. This is a wonderful experience and a lot of fun.
I have a College Diploma in "Art appliques interior design". I moved to B.C. in 1982 to learn English, and I continued to study creative illustration, illustration for graphic design, effective communication, and front office management, etc. I love to garden and travel and both are a soure of inspiration for my painting.

BEHNAZ BEHZADI
Behnaz was born in Tehran, Iran in 1966. Her informative years coincided with the 1979 revolution in Iran, which toppled the monarchy. The early days of the revolution exposed her to the so-called committed arts in the forms of socio-political paintings and political posters.

Upon high school graduation, she studied pencil sketching, watercolour and oil painting with Mohammad Reza Tamjidi. During these seven years, she developed her style of fusing “the ordinary” of the still life, and other mundane subjects of everyday life with “the extraordinary” motifs borrowed from ancient ruins of Iran . From 1994 until her immigration to Canada in 2000, she participated in exhibitions, worked as Art Gallery curator, and taught watercolour at various art studios.

Behnaz took up residence in Vancouver in 2001, and pursued her career in arts in various fields: she designed and painted a puppet show stage for the Richmond museum, produced oil and watercolour paintings for exhibitions and coached students at R.M. Grauer Elementary School in watercolour techniques.