The top five artists in each category were given awards in the 5th Annual Cityscapes international online art exhibition. Below are the biographies and/or artist’s statements along with the artist’s websites or emails.
To contact these artists directly for purchase inquiries or to see more of their work, please visit the 5th Annual Cityscapes Exhibition page for contact information.
Congratulations again to all the winners and thank you for sharing your talent with us.
Best in Show (Traditional) – Catherine M. Boyer – “Cable Car” – Oil
Stalking moments is a phrase I use to describe my search for beauty of a fleeting nature. Stemming from a childhood interest in the natural world, I was always looking, sensing and recording what I saw in drawings, snapshots of the beauty around me. Drawers and cabinets spilled over with drawings, a testament to this curiosity.
Originally, my process was to capture landscape en plein air. This practice posed many obstacles. The work was necessarily small, completed quickly due to the circumstances of the changing light. I learned to commit to a composition and make a painting quickly.
Later, I began to paint urban scenes plein air. Continuing with this subject matter and working from reference, I developed these images in scale, concept and detail. I asked myself more questions. What was important about this scene? Was it purely aesthetic? Was it a social observation?
While mastering technique is important, and requires ongoing commitment, delving further into inquiry of this nature has taken precedence. Recording beauty of the landscape is my joy and brings me close to the essence of living things. Further style definition comes with inward probing. I’m delighted to be having this conversation within myself and with you.
To see more of Catherine’s work, please visit her website.
Best in Show (Photography & Digital) – Lynne Deutch – “New York 6066” – photography
The works of Lynne Deutch are studies in spontaneity and spirit. Lynne would consider herself an artist and travel photographer. Her photography focuses on capturing life as it might appear every day – rugged, demanding, and joyful. Her travels have taken her to Kenya, Burma, the Galapagos Islands, and even Antarctica, each trip cementing her love of exploration and fascination with humanity.
The adventurous travel that Lynne enjoys leads to images that are often unusual but always fascinating. Her subjects range from personal studies of villagers, vast penguin colonies, and chaotic city life to the abstract compositions of remote sea ice.
When photographing people, she captures her subjects in their most natural state; sometimes working, other times playing. When her subjects are not human, Lynne accentuates the most interesting aspects, focusing on texture and composition. Lynne creates images that are unique by portraying her subjects in ways that people might not imagine.
To see more of Lynne’s work, please visit her website.
Best in Show (3 Dimensional) – Tony Gangitano – “Urban Identity Transformation” – black and white marble, steel, wood
Tony received a Bachelor’s of Landscape Architecture from the University of Georgia and returned to work in New York City. He moved to San Diego CA to study art. Fine Art was his first language.
Independent study/travel in many countries led Tony to Italy, where he lived and worked as a sculptor for two years. He was employed as an intern in ceramic and bronze with sculptor Alberto Ricci in Rome, and then did internships and independent study of stone carving at Studio Sem and bronze casting at Tommasi Foundry, both in Pietra Santa, Italy.
Upon returning to California, he pursued a Masters of Art at San Diego State University. There he continued his love of carving stone and casting bronze and explored more conceptual sculptures and site-specific installations. Tony’s work has been exhibited in group shows and featured artist shows in Europe and the United States.
Tony is a creative, high energy, conceptually oriented sculptor. His current work is fresh and exciting, incorporating thoughtful concepts. His work is about the integration of aesthetic form and emotional and intellectual content. The evolution of his art has progressed on confluent paths. Traditional figurative merged with abstract style. He employs archetypal images that communicate the essential commonalities of our human condition and experience. These images, combined with the juxtaposition and dialog created between figures, shapes, and materials, provoke visual, visceral, and intellectual interaction with the viewer.
To see more of Tony’s work, please visit his website.
2nd Place (Traditional) – Robert Padovano – “7 Train, Twilight” – acrylic on canvas
Artist‘s Bio: Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, self-taught artist Robert Padovano is best known for his vibrant Impressionistic cityscapes of New York and its’ surrounding environment. His painting method incorporates both Impressionist and Pointillist techniques, often juxtaposing dabs of pure thick color side by side. When viewed at a distance, the eye mixes these colors to give a luminescent quality to light and shadows.
Robert’s paintings are part of many private and international collections. He has exhibited at The Staten Island Museum, The John A. Noble Maritime Museum, The Newhouse Gallery of Contemporary Art, The E. Mayan Studio in New York City, Union Gallery in Lambertville, New Jersey, National Lighthouse Museum, and many others. His work has been included in juried shows at The Salmagundi Club in New York and the American Artists Professional League.
He has also done public murals for PS 41 in New Dorp, Staten Island, and for the SI Arts Culture Lounge at the SI Ferry Terminal, and has been part of the “Sing for Hope” Pop-up Piano project for the last 9 years. Robert attended Brooklyn College and studied design at The School of Visual Arts in New York City.
Robert is also an award-winning graphic artist, and has received numerous national and international design awards from Print Magazine, Graphis, Creativity Annual, and American Corporate Identity, among many others.
Artist Statement: I have always loved Impressionism. Even as a child, I could recall stumbling onto a painting by Monet or Sisely in a book and noticing something about it that was very different from anything I’d seen before. The colors and images were very bold and beautiful, but somehow the fascination went beyond that. It would remind me of a moment or a time that I could recall feeling myself. This was magical to me. It would become a defining moment in my life, affecting the way I looked at art from then on. I knew I wanted to do this myself.
When I paint, my goal is to capture the atmosphere around a subject, not just the subject itself. Whether it is the color of the morning air, the look of the city after a heavy rain, or how the late afternoon sun can completely change the mood of a day, it is this that is most meaningful to me. I find it thrilling to be able to recreate that feeling in my own paintings. If I can make the viewer feel the same thing, then I feel I’ve accomplished what I set out to do. This is what I want others to see in my work.
To see more of Robert’s work, please visit his website.
2nd Place (Photography & Digital) – John Moses – “Grand Ave., LA” – digital photography
Bio: Born in West Reading, Pennsylvania, John Moses grew up with the rolling farmlands of Berks County and the low mountains east of Reading for landscapes. Thirty years ago, when he moved west to Fresno, California, he traded those tamer views for the vast stretches of San Joaquin agriculture and the distant peaks of the Sierra Nevada range. Moses has taught writing, literature, and film studies for forty years, first in Ohio and New York and then in California.
Artist Statement: From an early age, I began looking at the world through a viewfinder. In my teens, I traded my Kodak Instamatic for a Minolta SR-T 101, built a darkroom in my parents’ basement, and later took photography and film classes in college. As a professor of film studies, much of my professional life has focused on image studies—teaching students to “read” the mise-en-scène and cinematography of motion pictures. I draw inspiration from visual and literary arts, but what I most enjoy is rambling through natural and urban settings with camera in hand. The chief intent behind my images is to present some new perspective to the viewer, to compose the ordinary in such a way as to make it seem extraordinary.
To see more of John’s work, please visit his website.
2nd Place (3 Dimensional) – David Beker – “The Ark” – wood
Bio: David Beker is a contemporary designer, craftsperson, and artist. Drawing from his experience as an architect and digital artist, his three-dimensional projects exist in a space between the functional furniture and abstract sculpture. David maintains a true, one-person studio, and each piece is designed and executed by him using traditional hand and power tools.
Artist Statement: I begin each project by examining objects with a deep cultural meaning. Forms such as ‘home, ‘church’, or ‘furniture’ contain a wealth and depth of meaning due to their association with the complex subjects they represent. I take these ideas and reduce them to their simplest iconic, yet still instantly recognizable three-dimensional forms. These objects, which are symmetrical, orthogonal, and simple, are arranged and arrayed in chaotic compositions; tumbling and seemingly in motion. The contrast between the simple regular forms and their chaotic composition challenges the viewer’s understanding of the form’s original meaning. This questioning brings to the forefront an experience that is in conflict with the ideas in the forms.
This body of work builds on my earlier training as an architect and 3d digital artist. From my architecture training, I am able to understand how to shape volumes that symbolize cultural experiences. This training in the study of spaces allows me to create three-dimensional compositions of objects to create harmony or tension in a final composition. My computer-art training gave me a set of skills to create very accurate studies of complex, intersecting, and overlapping objects in a way that would be nearly impossible by hand. The computer models allow me to quickly iterate the sculpture’s form dozens of times to fine-tune the final composition.
To see more of David’s work, please visit his website.
3rd Place (Traditional) – David Neace – “Seems like Yesterday” – colored pencil
It is not so much that we improve; it is just that the image in our mind becomes more focused. I find inspiration from the past, present and future. Buildings, machines, cars, trains and mechanical items fascinate me. I see rust as beauty, old scenes as an anchor to our past. I often use reflections as a visual memory. I am always discovering something new about the object I am drawing creating a mental bridge to the past. I want my work to create the same bridge for the viewer.
To see more of David’s work, please visit his website.
3rd Place (Photography & Digital) – Heng Qi – “Morning of Shanghai No.1” – digital art
Hen Qi is a Chinese artist. He is a senior engineer and architect with a MBA in construction engineering.
To see more of Heng Qi’s work, please email him directly.
3rd Place (3 Dimensional) – Kip Pasta – “Cityscape” – wood
Bio: Kip has been creating art for over 25 years. He was nominated as a “Chicago Artist to Watch” by the Chicago Artists’ Coalition. His main discipline is in abstract sculptures. He appreciates abstract because he believes it allows the viewer to go on a treasure hunt of their imaginations. He tries to emulate the passion and energy of Jackson Pollock in 3-dimensional form (His work has been described as Virtual Pollock). He also enjoys doing abstract paintings, and has combined the paintings with 3-dimensional objects to what he calls wall sculptures. Due to the nature of his art, many of the skills were honed as each new piece was created.
Artist Statement: I like to work with paint and wood. I have had creative ideas using other media, but wood has become the most useful expression. I was inspired by Jackson Pollock. I like to think of my work as “Virtual Pollock”. I’ve tried to emulate his energy and passion that I perceived in his paintings.
Abstract sculptures allow an endless source of imagination and interpretation. Imagining one of my pieces in a particular environment is the genesis for a new idea. Keeping that environment in mind as I build, helps to keep me focused on the work.
When I created “Cityscape”, I envisioned this piece in an entryway, concourse, or foyer of a municipal building. The large size of the work, and the softness of the wood, would produce an interesting relief from the hardness of marbled walls or the coldness of concrete. Enhancing a space, and eliciting some response from the viewer is always on my radar. I hope to stimulate the viewers’ imagination. The pieces have an almost kinetic value that can change (for the better) the whole environment that they are in. It’s very rewarding when you are sure handed with your tools, and you know exactly what you want to accomplish.
I do not do sketches of my work prior to constructing. If I did, I believe that I would be limited to a blueprint. I take a mental snapshot of each phase of a project. When I complete that step, the linear movement of what has been completed dictates the next portion. When the piece is done, it is done. I don’t need to add anything else, it’s just right.
To see more of Kip’s work, please visit his website.
4th Place (Traditional) – Michael Bignell – “Fifth Avenue” – acrylic on arches artboard
Michael is a native of England and a retired architect, educated at Yale University. His paintings have received awards from Allied Artists of America, American Artists Professional League in New York City, and from the Philadelphia Water Color Society and Baltimore Watercolor Society. Influences have been Andrew Wyeth and Richard Estes. The Fifth Avenue painting typifies Michael’s attention to detail and appreciation of the dynamics of this iconic city.
To see more of Michael’s work, please visit his website.
4th Place (Photography & Digital) – Kerry Alaric Cheeseboro – “Flatiron Building and Fifth Avenue Clock” – digital mixed media
Kerry Alaric Cheeseboro is a born and bred New Yorker who, only recently, decided to try his hand at digital painting, using his own photos for contextual inspiration. The images he created in this short less-than-half year time are a result of this “marriage” of two media. In addition, even though the output is digital, Kerry makes “brushes” (by hand black paint on white paper), specifically for each image, and then are scanned and converted into digital brush files. He calls this series of images “IMAGIO”.
Sharing his art, Kerry quickly got the attention of many admirers, who have now started ordering commissions requesting the incorporation of their own submitted photos. His present collection contains images using his own images or those offered by others for artistic “interpretation”. All works here use his own photographic images.
To see more of Kerry’s work, please visit his website.
5th Place (Traditional) – Benji Alexander Palus – “City’s Child” – oil on canvas
Benji Alexander Palus was born in 1972 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He is the middle of five siblings, having two older brothers and two younger sisters. Noticing early his interest in drawing and colors, his parents had him tested for artistic ability when he was just two years old. Testing at very high levels, Palus was encouraged from this young age to explore and develop his artistic nature.
In 1995, Palus received an associate’s degree in commercial art, but was disillusioned by the world of paste-ups and copy art. He decided that he wanted something more, so he dedicated himself to the study and practice of fine art, specifically in the style of realism. Palus is mostly a self-taught artist, having no formal training in traditional fine art or in his preferred medium of oils.
In 1999, Palus moved to New Orleans, Louisiana, where he currently resides. For over twenty years, Palus has studied and honed his style, inspired by representational artists from every era. Palus’ own body of work focuses on figurative compositions of individual women, exploring the beauty of feminine nature in its unlimited palette of complex moods and emotions. Palus keeps his artwork very personal, working exclusively with a small group of close friends that model for his paintings, and whose inner light provide the inspiration for his work.
Palus began his professional career in 2010 at Studio 831, as part of the annual art event Dirty Linen Night, a collaborative effort between several New Orleans art galleries. He has since taken part in group shows around New Orleans, and was juried into the Seventh Annual International Guild of Realism Exhibition at Jones and Terwilliger Gallery in Carmel, California in 2012. In 2015, he made his solo debut at Creason’s Fine Art Gallery in New Orleans with the show, Belle Femme: Exploring the Strength and Beauty of Womanhood. He is a member of the International Guild of Realism, Oil Painters of America, the Art Renewal Center, and the National Oil and Acrylic Painters’ Society.
After suffering a deep personal tragedy, Palus has found renewed passion in his art, yet the loss is deeply reflected in his work. Scenes of innocence, calm, and playfulness are depicted in colorful yet dark tones, as if he is desperately seeking to reconcile the wonder of childhood with its inevitable loss. He is currently working on his first large series of work crafted around a single theme, for which he has adopted the straightforward title, Mood Lights. The series will explore the emotional associations, effects, and nuances of color on both the subject and the viewer through a variety of colored light, with the hope of tapping into the deep, subconscious realms of dreams and of childhood memory.
To see more of Benji’s work, please visit his website.
5th Place (Photography & Digital) – Ilona Surrey – “Directions” – computer enhanced photography
After many years as a photojournalist, in 2009 I started looking for visual expressions beyond the “objective” reality. The camera should continue to be my tool, but I wanted a combination of photography and digital technology. The 21st century offers artists many new opportunities for artistic development. This cornucopia of possibilities, e.g. I want to include digital development in my work. I love the creative freedom that photography and image processing open up to me. I am fascinated by structures, colors and light as well as the play with reality and imagination. I work with digital painting and digital forms of traditional art techniques. My work is characterized by abstractions, dissolving, merging shapes and soft structures. These sometimes remind one of the view through a kaleidoscope. Surfaces and structures with soft, delicate transitions, reproduced and opulent. My pictures are reminiscent of a watercolor or oil painting and the elaboration on canvas or cotton paper contributes to this intended perception. With my pictures, I want to be an energy boost for in between, a break from everyday life with which the batteries can be recharged. After a first stay in Chicago in 2018, which was followed in the same year, I also work with urban cityscapes. Another topic, a changed approach with a focus on more dynamism and more abstraction.
To see more of Ilona’s work, please visit her website.
