Renowned Artist & Illustrator Marianella Arocha 'La Tarula' Creates Charming Artwork, Merchandise and Books

Welcome to the charming world of Marianella Arocha, the beloved artist & illustrator is known as ‘La Tarula‘. Her artwork is collected by adults and children worldwide – loved for her original, colorful characters and delightful scenes. 

She is the proud mother of twins who are her source of inspiration and give her an abundance of creativity to develop her work and designs. La Tarula has achieved remarkable success during her 15 year artistic career, creating countless illustrations and artworks exhibited during Miami Art Week, gallery shows and events. 

The famous Venezuelan artist and illustrator is based in Miami, she recently launched her first children’s book “We 1, 2, 3” at Miami Children’s Museum and Altamira Libros in Coral Gables. Families, caregivers and children gathered to enjoy an exciting book reading of “We 1, 2, 3” and received goody bags and surprises.

La Tarula is known for her adorable characters and colorful visuals that transform and brighten any space. Most recently she added her artwork to the bar & lounge area of the Aloft Hotel in Coral Gables.

The artist creates charming artwork, art merchandise and children’s books that are playful and fun, with her own unique, recognizable style. Marianella discovered her drawing skills by chance. She was self-taught in the beginning, but has completed many art programs over the years and it has been an exciting challenge for her to grow.

In 2005, Marianella studied Drawing and Illustration at the Escuela de Historietas López y Allaco in Caracas, Venezuela. Later in 2016, she completed a Digital Drawing and Illustration program at Factory Arte School in Bilbao, Spain. She also had the opportunity to participate in a Pattern Design workshop at Bilbao Arte. 

In 2008, motivated by her entrepreneurial spirit, Marianella decided to embark on an ambitious and creative project launching her first line of calendars and agendas under the name of La Turula. She began creating religious figures, traditional folk images, and celebrity characters, bringing out their childlike features in a multi-colored stage. Shortly after that she added notebooks and other merchandise into her repertoire, which are still actively being sold in Venezuela along with chocolate labels for a company called Chocolates El Rey, a Venezuelan chocolate manufacturer. 

Marianella has collaborated in many private projects – decorating children’s rooms with her illustrations and designs, personalizing private parties and highlighting several public spaces such as the Pediatric Department of the Perez de Leon Hospital in Caracas, Venezuela’s Metropolitan District; and the Sana Sonrisa Pediatric Dental Clinic in Caracas, as well as other private projects.

During Miami Art Week in December of 2016, Marianella participated in the collaborative exhibition called ‘Stripes and Icons’, exhibiting her series of works “Playing with the Big Ones”, which were made with acrylic and printed on wood for the show. In March 2017, three of her artworks were included in the Wynwood Juried Art Show, Winter Edition 2017 and she was recognized with an award, winning 3rd Place in the Digital Art format.

You can learn more about this multi-talented artist and pick up one of your very own La Tarula pieces today at www.laturula.com

The Remarkable Artist & Designer Sol Gersh

Miami Beach artist and designer Sol Gersh has lived a remarkable and exciting life as an artist, designer and businessman, attending the Rhode Island School of Design and Providence College; Summa Cum Laude. 

The 91-year-old artist was born on September 28, 1926. He is retired and currently resides in Bal Harbour, Florida and continues to create and unveil new and old works at various shows and exhibitions throughout South Florida. 

Gersh was the apprentice to N.E. muralist , Harold Ashodian for 4 years, and Gersh studied 2 years with Jackson Pollack’s friend and teacher Thomas Hart Benton. He was also the President of Allied Artists for many years.

He also won first place “3 City Competition” in Surfside, Florida three years in a row for original oil or acrylic painting and won a painting prize from the Providence Art Society. Gersh most recently exhibited at Cafeina Wynwood‘s Exhibition Center in his show ‘Then & Now, 65 Years of Nurealism‘. 

Gersh coined “nurrealism” to describe the painting of daydreams; the subconscious and delusions of grandeur individuals “see” when eyes are closed, sitting in the sun, or meditating and the artist’s hand is guided by the master force suggested by Salvador Dali. One step removed from surrealism, “nurealism” is both a pun and a Portmanteau.

The artist was one of the founding co-op artists and members of The Art Place Wynwood, which was located at 2722 NW 2nd Avenue in Miami, Florida 33127. 

His works are an abstract expressionist style that the artist refers to as ‘Nurealism’. Stay tuned for more info on Gersh’s upcoming show at the Surfside Community Center this September. This solo exhibition will unveil Gersh’s new series of nautical and landscape, nature-inspired paintings.

Vero Beach Abstract Artist Chitra Ramanthan Creates Elegant & Peaceful Paintings Ideal For Any Space

Painter and arts educator Chitra Ramanathan's unique body of acrylic and mixed media paintings portray happiness as a visual entity through a curious blend of intense colors and a myriad of textural materials that glow in any light and provide a feast for the eyes. Hence they have been considered ideal for display in any luxury venue or interior by collectors and designers alike. 

'Manifestation", Mixed Media Collage on Canvas, 58 x 38 inches

Chitra was invited to interview with Art Link in Boston, Massachusetts to participate in Conversations with Artists and Art Professionals hosted by Joyce Creiger, founder of Art Specifier, who invited and interviewed the renowned painter and arts educator for the popular series.

'Symphony' (2015), Acrylic on Canvas, 67 x 71 inches

Growing up as an award-winning child artist in India, the artist continued her education and pursued a career as an established painter in the United States. Chitra attended the University of Illinois and received her Bachelors of Fine Arts degree in Painting with honors in 1993, and her M.B.A degree with concentrations in Art Museum Administration and Human Resources in 1997 from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

'Joyful Musings', Mixed Media on Canvas, 36 x 60 inches

Chitra's distinguished body of work, many of them large-scale, have been acquired in the United States and abroad, and commissioned as site-specific public artworks by educational institutions and organizations such as MGM Resorts, Las Vegas. 

Untitled, commissioned piece for a private collector in Boston, Mass.
Acrylic, Gold Leaf, Mixed Media on Canvas, 36 x 60 inches

A pair of the artist's signed paintings are displayed permanently in the Bellagio Conservatory at the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas since 2004. 

Chitra Ramanathan's Paintings Hang in the Bellagio Hotel Las Vegas' Permanent Collection

As an arts educator who has taught courses and workshops in the painting medium for more than a decade, Chitra has been invited to participate in numerous visual presentations of her body of thematic work by institutions within the United States and abroad, such as the Royal Academy of Arts, Piccadilly, London, United Kingdom at the Royal Academy Schools in 2005, with invitations for professional artist residencies completed in Paris, France 2010, and in Venice, Italy 2012. 

'Ocean Melodies', Acylic on Canvas, 67 x 48 inches

Chitra is a faculty member of the Vero Beach Museum of Art. She is a full-time artist and painter who is widely collected throughout the US and abroad. To learn more about this fascinating artist, for sales and inquiries, or view images of available and acquired original artworks please visit www.chitrafineart.com

#CallToArtists via SaveArtSpace, have your art on billboards curated by world renowned photographer Stephen Shore.

Call To Artists via SaveArtSpace to have your art on billboards curated by world renowned photographer Stephen Shore. 

About Stephen Shore:
Stephen Shore's work has been widely published and exhibited for the past forty-five years. He was the first living photographer to have a one-man show at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York since Alfred Stieglitz, forty years earlier. He has also had one-man shows at George Eastman House, Rochester; Kunsthalle, Dusseldorf; Hammer Museum, Los Angeles; Jeu de Paume, Paris; and Art Institute of Chicago. In 2017, the Museum of Modern Art opened a major retrospective spanning Stephen Shore's entire career. He has received fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts. His series of exhibitions at Light Gallery in New York in the early 1970s sparked new interest in color photography and in the use of the view camera for documentary work. Open Call Ends October 3, 2018
www.saveartspace.org/stephenshore

South Florida visual artist Skip Hartzell is not your typical Dog Artist, his work is anything but ordinary

Contemporary artist Skip Hartzell creates paintings, sculptures and works on paper of man's best friend. Skip Hartzell's dogs are anything but ordinary. Donning a shirt that reads, “I support putting dog abusers to sleep,” with dog patterned suspenders – it’s clear from the first introduction that Hartzell’s affinity for canines transcends the average. But the story of Hartzell’s career is more convoluted than one might assume.

The recipient of a BFA in Sculpture and an MFA in Painting, young Hartzell taught high school students for two years while continuing his creative studies at the University of Iowa. Soon after, he relocated to Chicago, Illinois with the intent to pursue art full-time. After struggling to make end’s meet as an artist, Hartzell began taking up freelance illustration work which eventually evolved into a full fledged 35-year career in advertising and marketing. It wasn’t until Hartzell retired from his illustrious career that he fell back into art making full time. The most noteworthy of his inspirations? You guessed it. A longstanding, and deeply embedded love of dogs! 

The biggest disservice a viewer could do to Hartzell’s work is liken it to mere dog-art. Hartzell is not a dog-painter, but instead an artist who is keen on exploring the movement, form, and energy embodied by man’s best friend. Hartzell will be exhibiting at Aqua Art Miami during Miami Art Week this coming December 5-9, 2018.

Aqua’s unique environment in a classic South Beach hotel with spacious exhibition rooms that open onto a breezy, intimate courtyard has become a favorite gathering spot for collectors, curators and art lovers to discover fresh talent and acquire new works while exchanging cultural ideas and forming meaningful connections. Stay tuned for more information as we lead into Miami Art Week.

Skip Hartzell Collector, Curator Dr. Milagros Bello of Curator Voice Art projects (CVAP)

For sales, commissions or more information about the work, email or call: skipperhartzell@yahoo.com / 561-389-2148.
www.skiphartzell.com

City of Boca Raton Issues a 'Call to Artists' for First Ever Public Mural Project

The City of Boca Raton’s newly established Art in Public Places (AIPP) Advisory Board has created its first public art program and is accepting applications for a mural project near the Gumbo Limbo Nature Center. 

A 6-foot high maintenance wall at the west entrance of Gumbo Limbo Nature Center, at 1801 N Ocean Blvd, Boca Raton, will be the site of the city's first public mural. (Lulu Ramadan/Palm Beach Post)

Established in January 2018, Boca Raton's Art in Public Places Advisory Board was created to enrich and enhance the City’s public environment and landscapes through creative collaborations with local artists. The goal is to provide a cultural experience for residents and visitors. The seven-member Board is made up of residents in the Boca Raton community who have knowledge or interest in public arts. 

Irvin Lippman, Executive Director of the Boca Raton Museum of Art who serves as the Chairman of the AIPP Board, is encouraged by the community’s interest in this new initiative. “Our goal as the newly formed Art in Public Places Board is to promote the inclusion of art into the civic landscape all while incorporating culture and education with the purpose of bringing people together.” The first project by AIPP is the Red Reef Park West Wall Mural located at the entrance of the Gumbo Limbo Nature Center boardwalk. “As the liaison for the Art in Public Places Board, it is my privilege to oversee the first public mural installation within the City of Boca Raton,” commented Ruby Childers, Downtown Manager for the City. “This visual arts initiative not only beautifies our City but showcases artistic talent from our community and beyond. I invite all qualified artists to participate by answering our Call to Artists.” 

The City is currently accepting applications from artists skilled in visual arts (murals). The preferred artist(s) will have an extensive background in street art with proven results in public spaces and civic and community engagement to create innovative temporary public art. Amounts to cover artists’ expenses, including paint, supplies, site preparation, installation and clean-up may be granted subject to authorization by the Board and in accordance with any Project rules established by the Board. Deadline to apply is Friday, August 31, 2018 at 5:00pm EST. For more information on what proposed art should include, to apply or additional information on the project, visit the Arts in Public Places Advisory Board webpage at www.myBoca.us/AIPP.

Contemporary Glass Artist Abby Modell

Abby Modell creates exquisite, hand blown, contemporary art glass, striving to create a harmonious interaction and reaction between color and glass. 

Modell’s style is recognized around the world with works in private homes and corporate collections throughout the United States, including the world headquarters of Morgan Stanley in New York, New York and in the permanent collection at the Fontainebleau Hotel on Miami Beach. And most recently the Royal Caribbean, Symphony of the Seas, Sculpture collection. She has also been exhibiting in several tradeshows and galleries.

You can experience Modell's current exhibit in Philadelphia at the National Liberty Museum's 'SpaceLab: An Interstellar Exhibit of Glass Art' - the exhibition opened July 6th and on view through September 7th, 2018.

The exhibition features Abby Modell's 'Galaxy Collection' showcasing her three dimensional wall art and large sculptural objects. Focusing on transparencies and refracted light, Modell creates work that is inspired by the natural swirling formations of the stars, planets and the infinite dimension of the night sky.GALLERY 

EDUCATION:

2006 Michael Davis Glass Studio, New York, NY (current)

1976 Syracuse University and Parsons School of Design, BFA