THE ART OF PAINTING
Jeff Renner
Myra Damm
Myra has been involved in art most of her life. She attended the Minneapolis College of Art and Design. In the early years she worked primarily in oils, taught classes in the northern suburbs and later opened her own Studio for nine years.
Switching to Acrylics a few years ago she has been doing more exploring with the various types of acrylics and mediums doing more abstract and collages. She began painting on different surfaces, including purses and shoes a few years ago, and has enjoyed that art form, bringing to life gently used purses with color and designs.
Myra has shown her work in the Minneapolis area in various galleries, in the Hackensack area at the Casino show, Artisans Mall in Walker, Wild Hare in Bemidji, Working Artist Gallery, The Pine River Art Show, and Arts Off 84.
Wolffworks Studios – Marsha & Gary Wolff
Tom Soucek
After high school he went to Bemidji State and graduated in 1976 with a degree in art and social studies. He’s done art shows for over 30 years in MN, WI, IA, and the Dakotas. He works only in watercolors – landscapes of the north woods and a number of barn scenes from central MN. Most of what he creates are miniatures, smaller than 8 x 10.
Tom has been influenced by the north woods of Minnesota. He spends a lot of time along the North Shore of Lake Superior, hiking, skiing and enjoying the beauty of the area.
Meadow Hightshoe (Student Artist)
Sue & Ross Cornelison
Sue Cornelison is a children’s book illustrator, illustrating many books for children for over two decades. Along with painting and drawing, recently she has rediscovered her love for clay and uses a whimsical approach to her sculptures as well as utilitarian pieces.
She and her husband, Ross, collaborated on creating pull toys this past ‘covid’ year. She designed and painted and he did all the woodworking. Sue also likes to spin wool and creates felt hats and hand bags. Sue and Ross are new to selling their creations but have enjoyed attending the Art Crawl for many years. They have a seasonal cabin and spend their summers in Hackensack MN.
Gabe & Anne Carlstrom / Forever Favorites – Painting, Woodworking, and Jewelry
Always marveling at the beauty in the landscape of the world, Gabe Carlstrom has been exploring acrylic painting since the age of 16, taking up oil painting just recently. He is self-taught and oddly enough, color blind. Big bright colors of sunsets, sunrises and cloud formations have always been the focal point.
Around the same time, his passion for woodworking was growing as well. The use of reclaimed wood, tree roots, epoxy and found objects is a constant. Gabe also incorporates area lake rocks, driftwood and tree root pieces into his paintings. All frames are handmade on hand stretched canvases.
His wife, Anne Carlstrom, discovered her artistic side during the pandemic. Painting and pour painting at first then moving to jewelry making. She uses reclaimed jewelry pieces, hand-cut reclaimed leather, metal, fabric, rock, gems, wood and flowers from the garden. Always adapting and changing styles, Anne has found her true passion.
Sheree Gatewood – Painting, photography
Sheree Gatewood is new to the art scene this year. She has previously worn the hats of a cosmetologist, mechanical drafter, and an EMT. She has a four-year degree in Marketing Communications that was utilized in the advertising industry many years ago. As an empty nester, Sheree has made a deep dive to develop her art skills and accomplish her dreams of creating. She enjoys long walks outside capturing photos and then uses them to help develop ideas to accomplish her paintings. Currently, Sheree uses acrylic paint, alcohol markers, photos and magazine cutouts to build a variety of different sized collages. The collages each have their own unique story that she will certainly share with you if asked.
Laurie Slanga – LS Creations
A self-taught Minnesota artist, Laurie Slanga has taken her passion for art and infused it with her everyday life. Utilizing mainly acrylics and mixed-media styles, her artwork focuses mostly on wildlife and nature, something she surrounds herself with every day. Much of her work has been inspired by Lake Superior, a staple of her life growing up on the North Shore, whose beauty, power and ever-changing landscape encourages her with every creation.
Laurie discovered her passions later than many, after taking a “paint-and-sip” class while visiting her brother in Alabama. Ever since, she’s been continuously honing her crafts, as she attempts to share the simple beauty of the world through every canvas and jewelry piece she creates.
Some of her canvas pieces include mixed media, standard brush painting and pour-painting (mixing acrylic paint, a flow enhancer, oil and water.)
Her jewelry is created from an extension of pour-painting. Dipping transparent glass Cabochons in a pour-paint mixture of acrylic paint, flow enhancer, oil, and water. Once dry, prepped and sealed the glass is set-in stainless-steel jewelry pieces.
Tracy Miller – Painter
Contemporary wildlife and pop art pet portrait artist Tracy Miller has been a professional artist for over 30 years and owned her own signature gallery in Manitou Springs, Colorado from 2011 to 2018 where she represented and sold the work of 2 dozen Contemporary Western artists. Since closing the gallery, Tracy returned to studio work and moved from Colorado to Minnesota.
Tracy’s prints have been sold throughout the United States in Home Goods stores as well as other retailers. She has been featured in North Light Books; The Best of Acrylic Painting by Nancy Reyner, Dogs That Capture Our Hearts by Kimberlee Maselli along with feature articles in Southwest Art, Cassidy and Cowboys & Indians magazines. Her art has been featured on 4 Discover Fort Collins magazine covers as well as 2 covers for Colorado Springs Lifestyle. Barney Davey interviewed her for the December 2018 Professional Artist magazine in an article titled Embrace the Power of Publicity and Press Releases.
Tracy’s background in teaching art includes The Learning Annex, Bemis Art School, and she was an adjunct professor for Pikes Peak Community College in Colorado Springs.
She received her Bachelor of Arts Degree in Applied Design from Metropolitan State University in Denver and is a member of the International Society of Experimental Artists.
Tracy now resides in the beautiful lake country of Central Minnesota where she and her husband enjoy their classic wood boats and where she is inspired by the natural beauty of the water, trees and wildlife that inhabit the region.
Lara Royer – Painting
Lara began her creative journey in North Dakota, studying painting and drawing at Minot State University, under Walter Piehl. She received her BFA in 1997. Lara’s artwork has changed and grown over the years, as she experiments with various styles and mediums.
She started out exploring drawing and printmaking, expressing her vision through surrealism and symbolism, moving toward more representational styles later on. Lara lived and worked in Denver, Colorado for many years, returning to her home state of Minnesota in 2013. Currently, Lara lives in a tiny house in the woods north of Pine River, and is passionate about the wooded landscape around her. She works primarily in acrylics, painting small landscapes on canvas. Through her work, she is interested in exploring the light, colors, layers and textures of the northern forest. Lara states: “I keep working at capturing something of the striking as well as the more subtle beauty around me. I never feel I’ve quite succeeded, but that’s what keeps me painting!”
Becky Steinhoff – Painting, Jewelry
Becky Steinhoff has been an artist all her life and has been drawing, painting and writing since she was a little girl. Her journey as an artist has taken many twists and turns, going to school for commercial art and specializing in portraiture.
Becky is a mixed media artist. She paints, draws, collages and makes jewelry. Her inspiration comes from nature. She has also illustrated a children’s book.
She switched gears and went back to school for sign lettering and design. She spent many years painting signage and pictorials until computers and vinyl graphics took over the industry. She then started working in advertising and layout design for magazines and newspapers and made jewelry on the side. When Covid hit, she had extra time on her hands, since all of her shows had been canceled or postponed, so she picked up a paintbrush again. Used to painting in oils exclusively, Becky decided to try a new medium and started using watercolor. To her it felt like she had come home. Becky now uses a variety of mediums to create art including collage, acrylics, watercolor and oils while also “brushing” up on her lettering!