About the Cover Artist
Tim Rees

This month’s cover artist, Tim Rees, is an emerging Novorealist painter, using his technical drawing skills to glorify the human figure. The beautiful piece on our cover entitled Vivification is the second in a series of three paintings describing the life cycle: The first symbolizes birth. The second (Vivification) symbolizes life, and Rees is currently working on the third, which symbolizes death.

Tim Rees grew up in Arizona with a love for drawing. He began studying animation at Collins College in Phoenix, but was disappointed by the heavy reliance on computers in contemporary animation. He preferred traditional drawing methods instead and moved on. Although he made strides to pursue a medical degree, his desire to create art was too overwhelming and kept calling him “home.” Rees painted with a small group of artists in downtown Scottsdale by day, and worked at the hospital by night. It was there someone told him about the Palette and Chisel Academy of Fine Art in Chicago.

About the Cover Artist
Neva Campbell
 
Myrtle Beach, South Carolina native Neva Campbell is this month’s cover artist. It was Neva’s father who first taught her to draw a monkey using circles and ovals. Before long she graduated to unicorns and horses, her mediums expanding from pencils to chalk and paint. Neva knew one thing about herself from a young age: She was different.
Always busy creating or painting, she never quite fit in with everyone else. Only when she was in the process of creating something did she feel completely at home, eventually coming to accept that’s who she is—an artist.

About the Cover Artist
Jennifer Rocco Stone
 
Jennifer Rocco Stone, this month’s cover artist, was born in New York. After 29 years, her life’s journey took her to New Jersey for a time, then Massachusetts and most recently, landed her in Bluffton, S.C.

Jennifer’s career in art began with her Bachelor of Arts Degree and Teacher Certification from William Paterson University in Wayne, N.J.  For more than 20 years, Jennifer followed her lifelong passion—teaching art to children in kindergarten through fifth grade. Her favorite quote by Picasso says, “All children are artists. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up.” Her teaching was deeply founded, as she helped give students the same inspiration that launched her love for art in fourth grade as a student herself, when she won an art contest with a piece her teacher titled “Jennifer’s Jungle.” While following her dream of teaching, she continued taking night classes at Montclair University in Montclair, N.J. to pursue a Masters of Art Degree.

About the Cover Artist
Scout Cuomo
 
This month’s cover artist is Scout Cuomo. Her light-infused work explores the intersection of the human and natural world. As an impressionistic and abstract impressionistic full-time artist, Scout works predominately in the mediums of painting and drawing. She is best known for her Swimmers series, which portrays people floating in and exploring life under water. By embedding pigment in thick coats of epoxy, she infuses her pieces with light to create a glass-like gloss. The end result is a surprisingly delicate, three-dimensional painting. Subjects range from underwater views to landscapes to animals painted on glass using the same process. An artist industriously producing new work, she’s sold more than 300 original paintings nationally and internationally. Scout is dedicated to supporting her local economy by collaborating with other community artists and makers, from blacksmiths to graphic designers.

Charleston, South Carolina native, Leroy Campbell’s art speaks of the contributions to humanity through the African American perspective. More than just art, each piece serves as Campbell’s tithe, as he uses his gifts and talents to teach others about the richness of the Gullah/ Geechee heritage and the beauty of his people.

This month’s cover artist is Marta MacCallum, who grew up in the rugged mountains of Welch, West Virginia. Some of her most vivid memories are of her mother dressed in velvet capri pants, dancing to Johnny Mathis, or in a chiffon cocktail dress on her way to a dinner dance. Losing her mother at the age of 10 shook her world. It meant several moves to new towns, a loss of identity, as well as an overwhelming pervasive sadness. Luckily, six years after her mother died, she went to live with her fabulous grandmother. She was miraculously thrown a lifeline, returning to a loving environment. Marta finished growing up surrounded by strong women with wonderful pieces of furniture and fine china. They taught her to mind her manners and set a proper table, but to do so with an extra dose of sass.

Our cover artist this month is Carey Warburton, formerly known as Carey Selby (maiden name), a.k.a. C.C. Horror (Roller Derby name), a.k.a. Celery Jones (social media name), but her friends and family all call her C.C.

Like pieces of a story, it is intended to involve the viewers as they fill in the details of the narrative. Why is she sitting on the piano? Is she waiting for someone?

Erisha Rubingh considers herself a “fashion and lifestyle illustrator” and is most inspired by style in every form—fashion, food, décor, etc.  Her illustrations reflect the naturally bubbly personality Erisha exudes in all things. If she had to describe her illustrations in one word, it would be “Exuberant! Or Vivacious! It’s hard to pick just one!”

Karen Tarlton began her career as an artist 23 years ago when her husband started his work as an F-16 pilot and test pilot for the United States Air Force. Characteristic of her creativity, Karen’s first works were painted murals on walls and furniture until she began to shift toward painting fine art on canvas about 15 years ago. Since then, Karen has sold her paintings all around the globe, shipping to a different country practically every day. “I paint because I love it. I’m so fortunate to do what I am passionate about for a living.”

Diane Britton Dunham was born an artist, doodling on furniture and walls since she was old enough to hold a crayon. Like most notable folk artists, Diane didn’t rely on formal training. Rather, she nurtured her God given talent as she created over 1000 pieces in the last 30 years.

“The universal spirit of women transcends background, and I believe we are all created in God’s image, so race, size, religion, etc. are not important, as we are all loved in our present form. Women are a diverse potpourri, a bit edgy, fun loving and the sum of many parts. I want to capture that spirit, to empower, celebrate joyfully, the whole woman.” —Jill Neal

Sara Japanwalla is a fashion illustration artist who lives in Dubai. Originally born and raised in Scotland, Sara attended Leith School of Art, taking a foundation course in textiles, fine arts and sculpture. She also has a degree in fashion design and technology.

Our artist this month for the cover painting titled “Enthusiasm” is Scarlett Chou. This piece is part of a series she has been working on for an upcoming exhibit in Japan.

Scarlett got her artistic talent from her mother, who worked as a fashion design illustrator for newspapers and magazines. She finds her inspiration from her life experiences, travels and her Christian beliefs. Often compared to Art Deco artist, Erte, Scarlett’s computer-generated works are influenced by her Chinese heritage, which she often infuses with Western designs.

For Mary Lester, painting is a cosmic journey driven by the longing for a place that feels like home, a place she can’t quite remember and can’t exactly forget, but when she finds just the right composition, the exact color, or the precise shape, she just knows. She can feel it, like the piece of a puzzle that you twist and turn until you finally find where it belongs in the big picture.