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Fantastical
Annual Juried exhibition juried by Aubrey Jewel Rodgers
August 17 through September 21
Fantastical is a playful and imaginative juried exhibition celebrating the power of narrative storytelling in various visual forms. The inspiration for this show is from Neil Gaiman's commencement speech in 2012. It is a call to action to "make good art" and to "make your own art"
Mother Me Mushroom
Jacqueline Baerwald
Benton Harbor, Michigan
Mixed Media
The Sky Is Not So Far Away
We Are The Masters of Our Fate
All Things Bright and Beautiful
Emotions at High Tide
Body of Knowledge
The Rising of the Moon
You Can Become The Person You Want to Be
Mother Nature
The Good Earth
The Pool of Knowledge
Tell Me, Tell Me
Benton Harbor, Michigan
Mixed Media
The Sky Is Not So Far Away
We Are The Masters of Our Fate
All Things Bright and Beautiful
Emotions at High Tide
Body of Knowledge
The Rising of the Moon
You Can Become The Person You Want to Be
Mother Nature
The Good Earth
The Pool of Knowledge
Tell Me, Tell Me
Pinata 2
Lisa Marie Barber
Kenosha, Wisconsin
Ceramic
My works encompass imagined conceptions of peacefulness, playfulness, and celebration. Although the majority of my studio practice consists of creating large ceramic sculptures and installations, I also make mixed-media quilts, vessels, and clothing. For this exhibition, I'm submitting smaller, somewhat "single" sculptures that radiate the playfulness of an imagined world, something foundational to all my creations. These fanciful creatures are part of the play of my studio practice which also strives to make my work accessible to a broad, diverse public.
Kenosha, Wisconsin
Ceramic
My works encompass imagined conceptions of peacefulness, playfulness, and celebration. Although the majority of my studio practice consists of creating large ceramic sculptures and installations, I also make mixed-media quilts, vessels, and clothing. For this exhibition, I'm submitting smaller, somewhat "single" sculptures that radiate the playfulness of an imagined world, something foundational to all my creations. These fanciful creatures are part of the play of my studio practice which also strives to make my work accessible to a broad, diverse public.
Lisa Marie Barber
Kenosha, Wisconsin
Ceramic
My aesthetic is rooted in the Mexican Folk Art and Catholic shrines of my heritage and upbringing. This was the artwork I knew and I practiced making creations in similar ways. Materials weren’t required to be “fine” and tools were expected to be simple. Evidence of “the hand” (the maker) was never something to be self-conscience of or craftily removed. My works are personal meditations on the happiness that outlines every day.
Kenosha, Wisconsin
Ceramic
My aesthetic is rooted in the Mexican Folk Art and Catholic shrines of my heritage and upbringing. This was the artwork I knew and I practiced making creations in similar ways. Materials weren’t required to be “fine” and tools were expected to be simple. Evidence of “the hand” (the maker) was never something to be self-conscience of or craftily removed. My works are personal meditations on the happiness that outlines every day.
Chewing the Fat
Justin Barfield
Niles, Michigan
Silkscreen
I am interested in our relationship with ‘place’ and address this relationship by highlighting physical changes brought about by both humans and nature. When the old is removed, renovated, or neglected an instance is created when progress and decay become intertwined leaving layers of memory. These physical changes become the narrative to how I view my surroundings, everything suspended in a complicated growth somewhere between being rebuilt and demolished. I articulate this narrative in my art by representing moments of tension embedded in somewhat insignificant decaying material and scenes addressing large environmental impacts and human neglect.
Niles, Michigan
Silkscreen
I am interested in our relationship with ‘place’ and address this relationship by highlighting physical changes brought about by both humans and nature. When the old is removed, renovated, or neglected an instance is created when progress and decay become intertwined leaving layers of memory. These physical changes become the narrative to how I view my surroundings, everything suspended in a complicated growth somewhere between being rebuilt and demolished. I articulate this narrative in my art by representing moments of tension embedded in somewhat insignificant decaying material and scenes addressing large environmental impacts and human neglect.
Nammu, Goddess of the Primeval Seas
Roberta Bell
Nashville, Tennessee
Textile-focused Mixed Media
Fantasy is the essence of creativity. That is, to marvel at what exists in nature and fantasize what is unknown to oneself or to humanity, is to think creatively. As a landscape artist, my work is frequently grounded in this fantastical mindscape, especially my ocean-themed triptych presented here, “Nammu, Goddess of the Primeval Seas”. The oceans are the last unknown frontier and are filled with a plethora of fantastical creatures - those we have discovered and, most excitingly, those yet to be discovered. For example, over 2000 different species of nudibranches are known and they are all incredibly distinct, beautiful, and other-worldly; almost everyday new species of nudibranches are discovered. It makes me ponder that if it can be imagined, maybe it exists. So, I created a few nudibranches from fabric and beads, but several other creatures in this piece are purely from fantasizing about what else might exist in the vast unexplored ocean depths. Antique white lace and crystal beads.
Nashville, Tennessee
Textile-focused Mixed Media
Fantasy is the essence of creativity. That is, to marvel at what exists in nature and fantasize what is unknown to oneself or to humanity, is to think creatively. As a landscape artist, my work is frequently grounded in this fantastical mindscape, especially my ocean-themed triptych presented here, “Nammu, Goddess of the Primeval Seas”. The oceans are the last unknown frontier and are filled with a plethora of fantastical creatures - those we have discovered and, most excitingly, those yet to be discovered. For example, over 2000 different species of nudibranches are known and they are all incredibly distinct, beautiful, and other-worldly; almost everyday new species of nudibranches are discovered. It makes me ponder that if it can be imagined, maybe it exists. So, I created a few nudibranches from fabric and beads, but several other creatures in this piece are purely from fantasizing about what else might exist in the vast unexplored ocean depths. Antique white lace and crystal beads.
Uncommon Magic
Sharon Berkan-Dent
Midland, Michigan
Graphite mechanical pencil on illustration board
When I spend time in nature, I often feel awed by its splendor: the wide vistas, the vegetation, the change of seasons, and especially the creatures that inhabit it, both wild and domestic. Through my graphite pencil drawings, I explore the connection between myself and the natural world, especially the ethereal bond between humans and animals. “Animalia” is a series of drawings that depicts the mystical bond, and long-held beliefs about the symbolism of animals, their importance, and how we might apply these traits to our lives. The idea of animal influences is ancient. It kindles images of shamans, rituals, and vision quests, all falling into the realm of the fantastical.
Midland, Michigan
Graphite mechanical pencil on illustration board
When I spend time in nature, I often feel awed by its splendor: the wide vistas, the vegetation, the change of seasons, and especially the creatures that inhabit it, both wild and domestic. Through my graphite pencil drawings, I explore the connection between myself and the natural world, especially the ethereal bond between humans and animals. “Animalia” is a series of drawings that depicts the mystical bond, and long-held beliefs about the symbolism of animals, their importance, and how we might apply these traits to our lives. The idea of animal influences is ancient. It kindles images of shamans, rituals, and vision quests, all falling into the realm of the fantastical.
Siblings: Sister & Brother
Heather Briggs
Kalamazoo, Michigan
Cyanotype, Origami, Copper Accents, Found Frame
Nature has always been a key inspiration for me as I've developed as an artist. From a young age I've loved exploring forests, and walking on the beaches of Lake Michigan. My collection of pressed botanicals, fossils, beach glass, drift wood and so on has become more and more prevalent in my art. The details of the natural world hold a sense of wonder and a deep appreciation for design for me. I want to highlight the fantastic textures and patterns of nature in my art. My goal is to encourage the viewer to take a closer look at the magnificent world around them.
Kalamazoo, Michigan
Cyanotype, Origami, Copper Accents, Found Frame
Nature has always been a key inspiration for me as I've developed as an artist. From a young age I've loved exploring forests, and walking on the beaches of Lake Michigan. My collection of pressed botanicals, fossils, beach glass, drift wood and so on has become more and more prevalent in my art. The details of the natural world hold a sense of wonder and a deep appreciation for design for me. I want to highlight the fantastic textures and patterns of nature in my art. My goal is to encourage the viewer to take a closer look at the magnificent world around them.
Lake Breeze
Heather Briggs
Kalamazoo, Michigan
Mixed Media: Ceramic, Found Object, Copper Accents
Kalamazoo, Michigan
Mixed Media: Ceramic, Found Object, Copper Accents
The Chagall Window
Vanessa Rae Brocato
Sawyer, Michigan
Watercolor and ink
"The sound of rain" is a graphic poem drawn in sharpie marker. It is a silent story evoking our connection to the earth. I believe tuning in to our connection to the earth, ecosystems, and natural processes will help us create a future we can live in. This gives me hope. And quiet gives me peace. I hope to offer that to others in this piece. "The Chagall window" is a graphic poem created in watercolor and ink. It illustrates my relationship over time with the Chagall stained glass window at the Art Institute of Chicago.
Sawyer, Michigan
Watercolor and ink
"The sound of rain" is a graphic poem drawn in sharpie marker. It is a silent story evoking our connection to the earth. I believe tuning in to our connection to the earth, ecosystems, and natural processes will help us create a future we can live in. This gives me hope. And quiet gives me peace. I hope to offer that to others in this piece. "The Chagall window" is a graphic poem created in watercolor and ink. It illustrates my relationship over time with the Chagall stained glass window at the Art Institute of Chicago.
The Elderly Hold A March Past Their Bedtime
Jonah Buehner
Auburn, Indiana
Intaglio Etching
My interest in storytelling and art stems from a need to continue to find new ways to surprise myself and momentarily break out of my internal apathy. I specifically have a fascination with high-fantasy, as the only genre that can and should rewrite all of the laws in a given creators world. My only problem is its insistence on having human, everyman, fish out of water, self-insert protagonists to make its audience feel comfortable. I want the weird. I want to follow inhuman abominations as a cast, that only follow the internal logic of their given world and not ours.
I thought it could be interesting to construct a fantasy world centered around human time pieces, how we feel and quantify time represented by immortal-anthropomorphic-clocks locked in a “War with Time.”
Auburn, Indiana
Intaglio Etching
My interest in storytelling and art stems from a need to continue to find new ways to surprise myself and momentarily break out of my internal apathy. I specifically have a fascination with high-fantasy, as the only genre that can and should rewrite all of the laws in a given creators world. My only problem is its insistence on having human, everyman, fish out of water, self-insert protagonists to make its audience feel comfortable. I want the weird. I want to follow inhuman abominations as a cast, that only follow the internal logic of their given world and not ours.
I thought it could be interesting to construct a fantasy world centered around human time pieces, how we feel and quantify time represented by immortal-anthropomorphic-clocks locked in a “War with Time.”
Tariffing The Elderly at Every Hour
Jonah Buehner
Auburn, Indiana
Intaglio Etching/Aquatint
Auburn, Indiana
Intaglio Etching/Aquatint
Right Side Up
Alisa Clark
South Lyon, Michigan
Collage, Monoprint, Acrylic, Ink, on Paper
These two art pieces relate to the theme of "Fantastical" by immersing viewers in whimsical and mystical realms. In the first piece, I conjure a magical world where the unexpected happens. This place, both curious and strange, is where the laws of nature are bent, and gravity is defied. The distant valley holds a curious landscape that ignites the viewer's imagination and provokes wonder. Similarly, in the second piece, I create enchanting places with a tear, a drip, a brushstroke, and a pencil line, crafting an unexpected world where bees dance, the sun shines, and a peculiar city awaits in the distant valley. Both pieces invite viewers to step over a threshold into liminal spaces where the ordinary transforms into the extraordinary. Through these creations, I aim to transport my audience into a fantastical realm that sparks a sense of wonder and curiosity.
South Lyon, Michigan
Collage, Monoprint, Acrylic, Ink, on Paper
These two art pieces relate to the theme of "Fantastical" by immersing viewers in whimsical and mystical realms. In the first piece, I conjure a magical world where the unexpected happens. This place, both curious and strange, is where the laws of nature are bent, and gravity is defied. The distant valley holds a curious landscape that ignites the viewer's imagination and provokes wonder. Similarly, in the second piece, I create enchanting places with a tear, a drip, a brushstroke, and a pencil line, crafting an unexpected world where bees dance, the sun shines, and a peculiar city awaits in the distant valley. Both pieces invite viewers to step over a threshold into liminal spaces where the ordinary transforms into the extraordinary. Through these creations, I aim to transport my audience into a fantastical realm that sparks a sense of wonder and curiosity.
Projections
Kathryn D’Elia
Saint Paul, Minnesota
Oil on Canvas
I use artifacts of the everyday and pop culture icons to explore the real (and imagined) pressures of contemporary American life. These subjects are selected for their position as nostalgia staples and their evolving cult significance. I arrange these subjects to create humorous and cinematic compositions, often with subjects behaving outside of the realm of possibility, or intentionally leaving all grasp of their original function behind.
Saint Paul, Minnesota
Oil on Canvas
I use artifacts of the everyday and pop culture icons to explore the real (and imagined) pressures of contemporary American life. These subjects are selected for their position as nostalgia staples and their evolving cult significance. I arrange these subjects to create humorous and cinematic compositions, often with subjects behaving outside of the realm of possibility, or intentionally leaving all grasp of their original function behind.
The Forgotten
Leah Diekhoff
Jasper, Indiana
Polymer Clay, Acrylic Paint, Fabric, and Other Mixed Media
My artwork, inspired by my vivid dreams, creates miniature worlds encased in boxes that tell a story. Creatures and potions, science and exploration, gears and clocks, and whimsical and multidimensional realms fuel my imagination and are prominent subjects in my work. I capture a specific moment in time for the scenes I create. Often I explore what world I would like to be a part of and how I can configure a narrative that gives me a chance to become a part of that world. I make my figures, props, and accessories from polymer clay and found objects, which are painted, sewn and configured into active environments. I enhance these environments with painted canvases in the background. With my work, I wish to show others a glimpse of the creative world I live in. My work allows for fear and curiosity, for exploration and creativity of the mind to place oneself into a world and finish the narrative, each entirely different from the next.
Jasper, Indiana
Polymer Clay, Acrylic Paint, Fabric, and Other Mixed Media
My artwork, inspired by my vivid dreams, creates miniature worlds encased in boxes that tell a story. Creatures and potions, science and exploration, gears and clocks, and whimsical and multidimensional realms fuel my imagination and are prominent subjects in my work. I capture a specific moment in time for the scenes I create. Often I explore what world I would like to be a part of and how I can configure a narrative that gives me a chance to become a part of that world. I make my figures, props, and accessories from polymer clay and found objects, which are painted, sewn and configured into active environments. I enhance these environments with painted canvases in the background. With my work, I wish to show others a glimpse of the creative world I live in. My work allows for fear and curiosity, for exploration and creativity of the mind to place oneself into a world and finish the narrative, each entirely different from the next.
Born of Water
Mercedes Ebbers
Caledonia, Michigan
Acrylic on Canvas, paper, burlap, and netting
This is a dream scene in which fish are swimming in space around planets. They have left their habitat and are venturing into new territory or is it only a reflection of planets in the water?
Caledonia, Michigan
Acrylic on Canvas, paper, burlap, and netting
This is a dream scene in which fish are swimming in space around planets. They have left their habitat and are venturing into new territory or is it only a reflection of planets in the water?
Whale Bubble Net
Lori Eslick
N Muskegon, Michigan
Oil
My work as an illustrator is wide ranging. This work about whales bubble fishing is a fantastical event, I haven't witnessed in person, but I was able to research this when I was tapped to illustrate for the cover of a book, and find the cooperative fishing of whales fascinating. I find that the idea of being in the midst of this real situation even more mind boggling. My art is also in the collections of: University of Michigan’s Frankel Cardiovascular center, the Sprint Corporation, The California department of Education, the Mazza Museum of Children’s Book Art, the Toledo Lucus Library, and many libraries and public places.
My goal: to paint well for children, and it seems the same paintings receive an adult nod too.
N Muskegon, Michigan
Oil
My work as an illustrator is wide ranging. This work about whales bubble fishing is a fantastical event, I haven't witnessed in person, but I was able to research this when I was tapped to illustrate for the cover of a book, and find the cooperative fishing of whales fascinating. I find that the idea of being in the midst of this real situation even more mind boggling. My art is also in the collections of: University of Michigan’s Frankel Cardiovascular center, the Sprint Corporation, The California department of Education, the Mazza Museum of Children’s Book Art, the Toledo Lucus Library, and many libraries and public places.
My goal: to paint well for children, and it seems the same paintings receive an adult nod too.
Inheritance
Joshua Field
Gainesboro, Tennessee
Oil, Acrylic, Gouache on Canvas
Central to my work is a fascination with the interstitial; spaces charged with the energy of possibility like the tiny spark of static electricity that jumps from finger to a doorknob. In these overlooked gaps are dream-like worlds populated by our ghosts and their many shadows, made solid for an instant only to fade back into the diaphanous ether from which they emerged. Not just the resurrection of our collective memories, these ghosts are also reflected fragments of our present and harbingers of a furtively glimpsed at future. The incongruent images that intersect here are strange bedfellows bumping elbows in the gloom, sometimes entering into a comfortable dance, sometimes engaging in bristling conflict and sometimes the dance and the conflict are one in the same. These echoes weave their own intricate histories in their own languages; mirrors that reflect our own familiar stories.
Gainesboro, Tennessee
Oil, Acrylic, Gouache on Canvas
Central to my work is a fascination with the interstitial; spaces charged with the energy of possibility like the tiny spark of static electricity that jumps from finger to a doorknob. In these overlooked gaps are dream-like worlds populated by our ghosts and their many shadows, made solid for an instant only to fade back into the diaphanous ether from which they emerged. Not just the resurrection of our collective memories, these ghosts are also reflected fragments of our present and harbingers of a furtively glimpsed at future. The incongruent images that intersect here are strange bedfellows bumping elbows in the gloom, sometimes entering into a comfortable dance, sometimes engaging in bristling conflict and sometimes the dance and the conflict are one in the same. These echoes weave their own intricate histories in their own languages; mirrors that reflect our own familiar stories.
Driftbird
Michaele Goers
South Haven, Michigan
Reclaimed material
A tree lives a lifetime, longer than we ever will. Eventually, it falls into the water. There, it tumbles aimlessly for years, even decades. That’s where I come in. I’ve been creating things from my endless imagination for decades too. It IS my passion.
South Haven, Michigan
Reclaimed material
A tree lives a lifetime, longer than we ever will. Eventually, it falls into the water. There, it tumbles aimlessly for years, even decades. That’s where I come in. I’ve been creating things from my endless imagination for decades too. It IS my passion.
Eye of Newt
Jacqueline Hancock
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Watercolor, Mica, Color pencil
The focus of my work is to explore how nature shapes the human experience through visual storytelling, (influenced by writings of folklore, fairytales, and mythology) in the creation of fantasy illustrative art.My work is an invitation to the viewer to connect with their imagination, create their own narratives and evoke a sense of nostalgia. Nature acts as the central foundation for each piece, and is an integral part of molding these narratives. My artistic “style”, or voice, is heavily inspired by Golden Age illustration, during the late nineteenth to mid-twentieth centuries. My work is entirely self-taught through independent study. My art work relates to the theme "fantastical" by definition: my work is strange, unusual, imaginary, and a creative illustration from my own mind. It is a fanciful visual narrative that acts as a window into a world of my own creation: appealing to the inner child, story teller, and dreamer.
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Watercolor, Mica, Color pencil
The focus of my work is to explore how nature shapes the human experience through visual storytelling, (influenced by writings of folklore, fairytales, and mythology) in the creation of fantasy illustrative art.My work is an invitation to the viewer to connect with their imagination, create their own narratives and evoke a sense of nostalgia. Nature acts as the central foundation for each piece, and is an integral part of molding these narratives. My artistic “style”, or voice, is heavily inspired by Golden Age illustration, during the late nineteenth to mid-twentieth centuries. My work is entirely self-taught through independent study. My art work relates to the theme "fantastical" by definition: my work is strange, unusual, imaginary, and a creative illustration from my own mind. It is a fanciful visual narrative that acts as a window into a world of my own creation: appealing to the inner child, story teller, and dreamer.
Unicorn & Troll Witch
Jacqueline Hancock
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Watercolor, Ink, Charcoal
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Watercolor, Ink, Charcoal
Reimagining a Path Forward
Fredricka Joyner
Indianapolis, Indiana
Mixed Media
How do we dismantle what is not working, take the components and build something new that we haven’t yet imagined? The work in this series explores this question by using the fundamental components of fast fashion images – color, pattern, texture – as the building blocks for reimagined fantastical worlds. Worlds in which beauty and peril co-exist. Through imaginative processes such as this, we can perhaps find/build new narratives by which to move forward in a broken world.
Indianapolis, Indiana
Mixed Media
How do we dismantle what is not working, take the components and build something new that we haven’t yet imagined? The work in this series explores this question by using the fundamental components of fast fashion images – color, pattern, texture – as the building blocks for reimagined fantastical worlds. Worlds in which beauty and peril co-exist. Through imaginative processes such as this, we can perhaps find/build new narratives by which to move forward in a broken world.
Oh The Places We'll Go
Kathy Kreager
South Haven, Michigan
Steel
I love creating metal pieces that are familiar to the viewer's eye, yet quirky and whimsical. This piece is a girl walking her dog. Or is the dog taking her on a wonderful journey? As an avid dog lover, this piece is meant to invoke feelings of the magical, wondrous relationship we humans share with our canine companions.
South Haven, Michigan
Steel
I love creating metal pieces that are familiar to the viewer's eye, yet quirky and whimsical. This piece is a girl walking her dog. Or is the dog taking her on a wonderful journey? As an avid dog lover, this piece is meant to invoke feelings of the magical, wondrous relationship we humans share with our canine companions.
Drop down
Tom LaPann
Maryville, Missouri
Digital print
My work explores materials and their physical properties and how it relates to my experiences and feeling about the world around me. Lately I have been exploring capturing and converting the physical world into a digitial medium an considering how to best recreate the materials I am investigating with form and composition.
Maryville, Missouri
Digital print
My work explores materials and their physical properties and how it relates to my experiences and feeling about the world around me. Lately I have been exploring capturing and converting the physical world into a digitial medium an considering how to best recreate the materials I am investigating with form and composition.
Tunnel Vision
Ben Lawson
Bangor, Michigan
Oil on canvas
Walking through a wooded path that ends up being a tunnel of fantasy colors.
Bangor, Michigan
Oil on canvas
Walking through a wooded path that ends up being a tunnel of fantasy colors.
Escape of the Winged Tortoise
John Leben
Saugatuck, Michigan
Limited Edition Print of a Digital Painting on Canvas
I like to imagine what the world will look like in 50-100 years. In these digital paintings I imagine that animals are evolving and changing into something else because of the effects of global warming and climate change. In my demented mind I imagine tortoises growing wings and elephants being born out of banyon trees. Its all about keeping it wild and letting nature take its course without interference from mankind.
Saugatuck, Michigan
Limited Edition Print of a Digital Painting on Canvas
I like to imagine what the world will look like in 50-100 years. In these digital paintings I imagine that animals are evolving and changing into something else because of the effects of global warming and climate change. In my demented mind I imagine tortoises growing wings and elephants being born out of banyon trees. Its all about keeping it wild and letting nature take its course without interference from mankind.
About the Juror:
Aubrey Jewel Rodgers
Aubrey Jewel Rodgers is a multi-media artist, teacher and mentor in Kalamazoo, Michigan. She enjoys sharing her creative curiosity with people of all ages and background. her art style is playful, whimsical, as well mischievous when needed. Her work mixes traditional art mediums with technology and innovation to tell its own story.
Aubrey has been teaching at Kalamazoo Valley Community College for 14 years now as an instructor and is currently Chair of Applies Arts and Media Technologies. She did her undergraduate studies at Columbus College of Art and Design, where she received a Bachelor's Degree in Time Based Media Design. Her specialties are video, animation, illustration, and photography. Aubrey also went to Boston University where she received her Masters in Art Education.
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