Arts Society King Artist Members
(Listed alphabetically)
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Oksana Baczynsky has lived in three provinces and has travelled, with sketchbook, paints and camera in hand, extensively across Canada and into the Yukon. She is a long-time resident of Aurora, but summers at her cottage in Haliburton. Her love of the Canadian landscape has inspired her to capture its majesty and beauty in both acrylic and watercolour. Being an avid gardener, Oksana is always inspired to render the many flowers in her gardens.
Although Oksana holds a BSc, BEd and a PhD in cell biology, she has also studied art at Seneca College, Fleming College’s Haliburton School of Art and Design, and attended many painting workshops.
In October 2024, Oksana will be the featured artist at the Skylight Gallery at the Aurora Town Hall. Her work may be found at the Royal Rose in Aurora and the Burlington Art Gallery. Oksana is an instructor of acrylic painting at Newmakeit in Newmarket.
Cathy Ball was born and raised in Orillia, Ontario, and was drawn to art from a young age. Her mother enrolled her in an adult painting class at the age of 10 and her passion for creativity in the arts blossomed from there. Her work reflects the inspiration she finds in the beauty of nature. Forest groves, waterfalls, fall colours, lakeshores, woodland trails, sunsets and sunrises, Northern Lights and many other natural landscape themes dominate her work. Working primarily in watercolour, often with a variety of supportive media, Cathy channels the splendour of the natural world through her brush. As owner of a busy janitorial business, Cathy paints at every opportunity her schedule allows and strives to refine her creative expression with every stroke of the brush.
Kevin Ball has been a freelance graphic designer since the mid-1980s. In those early days, he also dabbled as an airbrush illustrator and even had a piece published. Nowadays, in his retirement, he is revisiting his artistic side and beginning to paint and draw again. Recently he has taken to using colored pencils and is also making a move into digital illustration using a drawing tablet and computer.
Kevin has a penchant for drawing people in interesting or amusing situations stemming from his deep admiration for the works of Norman Rockwell and the great illustrators of the 20th century. He also is interested in the art of caricature and hopes to paint more in that style in the future.
George Burt, an artist specializing in wood turning, uses natural found items such as cedar rail and local fallen trees to provide a variety of styles and unique colours to his bowls, vases, pens and figurines. George started turning wood in the late 1980s. His first dried flower vases were turned from cedar rail farm fencing. George allows the wood grain to influence the shape and size of every piece, so no two pieces are ever alike.
Joe Cashin has worked with many mediums, such as woodcarving, soap carving, pyrography, oil, acrylic, and some watercolour painting. He has also experimented with the art of air brushing. Joe found his passion in working with coloured pencils on vellum surface paper and finds they give him the softness and effect that enriches his art.
Susie Cattedra is a self-taught artist who exhibited a natural talent at a young age and enjoys finding connections with others through her artwork. Her transition from graphite to acrylics allowed her to immerse herself in the world of colour and gave her a new appreciation of the variations that are presented to us daily. The subject matter, either simple or complex, provide the opportunity for her to grow as an artist. Susie is an award-winning artist. Her painting “Rocks & Ripples” received the People’s Choice Award at the Everything Beaux Art Exhibition present by Beaux Arts Brampton, in May 2021. “Rocks & Ripples” and “Inner Beauty” were also chosen from this exhibit to be part of a larger art installation in Downtown Brampton. Selected artworks were enlarged and placed in store front windows to beautify the area and raise the spirits of the local community during Covid. Susie’s current collection of acrylic paintings consists of florals, landscapes and seascape.
Winnie Chen is an accomplished full-time artist, based in Toronto, and creator of MoonMoon Artwork Studio. Her artistic style is a seamless blend of abstract shapes and realistic forms, infused with vibrant colors that are sure to captivate the senses.
Winnie’s preferred medium is watercolor, owing to its transparent quality and unpredictable water flow, which add a unique touch to every painting she creates. For Winnie, art is a form of therapy that transports her into a dream-like world. Her ultimate goal is to invite her viewers to immerse themselves in her creations, find solace, and experience a moment of peace.
Wendy Cho
“. . . in a far far land of CHO, there lived an illustrator who drew cats and dogs and frogs and more.
there were dark skies filled with the sun, stars and moon.
every day told a story of good and bad. stories of memories had.
the beginning”
Wendy Cho is an oil pastel illustrator. She studied at OCAD in design and is a member of the artists’ network (a Canadian, member-led, organization dedicated to supporting visual artists in their business practice), Arts Society King, Richmond Hill group of artist as well as the York Regional Arts Council. Her artwork is regarded as clever, whimsical and storybook-like. Wendy’s artwork brings joy and smiles to everyone!
Giovannina (Joanne) Colalillo is a Toronto-born artist and Ontario College of Art and Design University (OCADU) graduate. She developed a unique painting style with water-soluble wax pastels to produce truly remarkable results with vivid colours, energetic fluid styles and dynamic concepts. Giovannina relishes each project as a journey into an intriguing new adventure to create vivid, dynamic, expressive art. Her illustrations and artwork have ventured worldwide appearing in various magazines, publications, books, corporate promotions, exhibits and private collections.
Alexandra K. Conrad, a graduate with honours from the Ontario College of Art and Design, is a professional fine art artist with more than three decades of art creation experience. Alexandra paints various subjects including portraits, landscapes, cityscapes, nature and abstracts. Although she enjoys other media, her main mediums are oil and acrylic in vibrant colours and thick paint applied with brush or palette knife. Limited Edition Fine Art Reproductions of some of Alexandra’s paintings are available.
Ida Masi DeMaria likes to explore the figurative image in different contexts applying layers of colour or keeping them monochromatic and simplistic. Her education and arts background consists of studies in Art History as well as learning and understanding the Fundamentals of Art, creating this armour strengthens me as an artist. In Ida’s own words, “My only weakness is wanting to learn more.”
Pamela Dey loves to capture nature and movement of color into her paintings. In her landscape paintings, the focus is to create an emotional picture depicting the luminosity and awesomeness of nature. As an artist, she wants to transform the ordinary and not-so-ordinary into something that is extraordinary.She gets inspiration from taking frequent hiking trips and bike rides to various local and provincial parks in and around Ontario. Pamela strives to bring on full magic using her artistic license and aesthetic sense combined with what she sees and feels when she is out in nature.
Sherry Dubé is a self-taught traditional artist who creates acrylic works with a highly-detailed and realistic style. She loves learning how to express nature’s subtle nuances of light and shadow and its enormous array of colors onto canvas. Her specialty is landscapes but she also enjoys painting florals, birds and various animals. She spends a lot of time outdoors photographing the Ontario landscape, flora and fauna to use as reference material. One of her works, “A Glance Into the Past,” was recently chosen for the Ontario Society of Artists Emerging Artist Exhibition.
Her wish is for viewers of her work to gain a new appreciation for the beautiful world we live in and to experience a sense of peace at the end of a long day. In her words, “the beauty I find in nature around me is what inspires my work, and my desire to preserve this vision is what motivates me to create.”
Her work is found in many private collections across Canada.
Patricia L. Earl paints to convey the light, colour, and mood of what she sees and feels around her as Mother Nature so generously provides. She doesn’t have to travel far to find subjects that inspire her. The gentle rolling hills, farmlands, forests, and wild flowers that she loves to paint are found in abundance in Ontario’s countryside, on the hiking trails, and in her own backyard. Some of her inspiration comes from her view from the pillion/backseat of their motorcycle as she and husband Jim travel the Ontario countryside or American southwest.
Pat enjoys painting with both acrylics and watercolours in her studio and on site / plein air. Watercolour is her preferred medium as she enjoys the freshness and spontaneity of the medium. Whether her painting begins by applying paint with brush or pouring colours directly on the paper, the painting process is fun and magical! Pat enjoys the constant challenge of keeping the white of the paper and uses the transparency of watercolours to make the subject matter glow.
Michelle Eissler, BFA, OSA, SOVA, ASK
Michelle Eissler received an Art & Art History degree from the University of Toronto and a diploma from Sheridan College’s Illustration program. Her studio practice has focused on the exploration of semi-abstracted reality and surrealistic compositions through the fragmenting and interweaving of imagery. She has exhibited with McMichael Art Gallery, Visual Arts Mississauga, Peel Art Gallery, Quest Gallery, and at the Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibition, among others. In 2023, she set up her new studio space at the Alton Mill Arts Centre, Studio #210 in Alton, Ontario, and has recently become a member of the Ontario Society of Artists, Canada’s oldest working arts society.
Jacqueline England resides in the Mississauga, Ontario, area. She was born in Nottingham, England, and immigrated to Canada as a young child. She returned to the U.K. to further her education and while there, she became introduced to the world of horses and, as a young teen, spent many a day “mucking out”, grooming, riding and showing horses. She has worked in various mediums, such as pastel, watercolour, gouache, acrylic, graphite and oils but favours oils as she loves the intense colour that is achieved by using them. When she paints, it is imperative that she strive to create photo-realism, especially for her horses. As long as she can picture in her mind her hand moving over the body of a horse, she is able to achieve the height of realism she demands. Jacqueline’s greatest wish is that upon viewing her paintings, the viewer will be able to feel and see what she saw while painting all these gorgeous creatures of nature and to have a greater insight of the animal it portrays.
Angela Flesariu took a hiatus to focus on her family and build her career after graduating from the local experiential arts program in Romania. During the quarantine, her love for creating rekindled. Now, she works with different mediums and incorporates vibrant colours into her craft. Each piece tells a unique story, made with love, that she hopes speaks to and captivates her audience.
Eva Folks was born and raised in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. She has always had an affinity for art, learning her skills through experimentation and a great deal of practice. In 2011, Eva turned her full attention to her art. Since then, she has won awards for her work, participated in numerous juried shows and exhibitions, volunteered on art show and studio tour committees as well as jurying shows for various art groups in the Greater Toronto Area and York Region. She has clients in Canada, the United States, South America, Great Britain, Australia and Hungary.
Artist Statement
I strive to create bodies of work that are original, narrative and imaginative in nature. Creating fantasy worlds allows my mind to wander free of everyday life, exploring new ideas and processes.
Sonja Golchin is a lifelong visual artist and creative spirit who enjoys all art forms, but watercolour is her favourite! She founded Art Spot, located in Nobleton, Ontario in August 2023. With a passion for fostering creativity and connection, Sonja transitioned from her corporate career to establish Art Spot as a vibrant community hub where creativity flourishes. The studio has a diverse range of offerings, including classes, birthday parties, and seasonal camps and workshops for all ages. Her approach to teaching emphasizes the belief that everyone has an inner artist waiting to be discovered, making Art Spot a beloved local destination for artistic expression and cultural enrichment.
Patricia Gray grew up in a remote region of Northern Canada where she developed a close kinship with the natural world as a young child. That kinship remains the basis for her art today in which the patterns and textures of nature are turned into graphically striking images depicting the Canadian wilderness. Through her artwork, Patricia continuously explores the intimate relationship between art, nature, and the Self. Working with a wide array of acrylic paints, gels, pastes, and grounds, she creates enchanting relief, designs, and highly textured surfaces that engage the viewer.
Donna Greenstein is a realistic artist focusing mainly on farm animal and bird images. Her oil paintings harken back to an earlier time when everyone knew how to ride a horse, milk a cow and name all the species of birds flying around them. She hopes that the viewer is touched by the emotion in her paintings. Donna constantly looks at the world through an artist’s eyes and thinks about her next painting.
Helen Hermanns paints naturally and with intent, strict ideals and a thirst for constantly keeping depth and feel through the use of light in her paintings. She enjoys capturing the feel and beauty of horses in their natural surroundings or in work. Helen’s medium is oil on canvas or board.
Leslie Hobson is an award-winning photographer and author and has been a resident of King for more than 30 years. Leslie created and produced ‘Songs of Love and Loss,’ an anthology and visual exploration of grief in our modern world, with all proceeds going to support our local Community Hospice. Her most recent endeavour was poems for a collaborative children’s book, Animal Friends from A to Z, a successful fundraiser for Holland Bloorview Children’s Hospital. Leslie enjoys performing her poems live and, in addition to her creative efforts, she has volunteered for Hope House Community Hospice for more than 20 years, serving in various capacities including visiting volunteer and Chair of the Board. As founder of the King City Angels, she has organized choir visits to long-term care homes in York Region for more than 20 years.
Ashley Hug owns Fuchsia & Fae where she creates handmade faery furniture out of nature. Each piece is unique and carefully crafted. Her creations blend elements from the earth, like twigs, leaves, flowers, moss, and crystals—ethically sourced and made with love. These pieces can be used as high-vibration home accents, to charge your crystals, hold your jewelry, or as portals to invite spirits and faeries. Her work aims to bring magic into your home, creating harmony with nature and igniting creativity in everyone who encounters it.
Karen Hunter attended the Ontario College of Art in 1981 and received her diploma in Design/General Design in 1985. Karen has been designing and making jewellery since 1983. In 1990, she took a workshop, working with Niobium and Titanium, where she found the metal for her! All of her jewellery is handmade at her home studio and workshop, and each piece is hand-cut and formed.
Maryam Khani was born in Tehran, Iran in 1979. She graduated from university with bachelor degree of engineering in 2002. She immigrated to Canada in late 2005 and continued with her education in Canada until she became a mother. Her husband introduced her to the world of art and became her biggest supporter and encourager. Maryam loves to spend more time with her children and provide them with a safe, loving and learning environment. She changed her career and became an artist. She believes world of art would give her confidence to portray her feelings and her thoughts, where she is able to provide safe and loving place for her boys to grow. In January 2014, Maryam became a member of Kingcrafts in King City, Ontario where she started pottery and since then she’s been in several different pottery workshops. She continued her artistic work by learning watercolor in October 2016. So far, she has been at several art exhibitions to show her pottery works and watercolor paintings in Canada.
Ileen Kohn has a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Art from York University, but her most serious training was taken at the Michael John Angel Studios, later to become the Academy of Realist Art where she learned the skills of Florentine artists of the 15th century, and Old Masters methods (16th-18th century.) She also sought various courses in watercolour, abstract art and animation at George Brown College. As a life-long artist, Ileen is a life-long learner and takes advantage of some current on-line classes, as well as in-person workshops, for interest and further development.
Ileen believes that the best way to learn painting is to DO painting, and one of the best teaching methods is “en plein air”, painting right on the spot in parks, beaches and neighbourhoods. This automatically makes the artist an “impressionist” painter as one has to work with time, sunlight, wind and people. These studio and outdoor experiences are reflected in her art and themes: still life, portraits, animals, cityscapes, landscapes and floral arrangements. It is hard to say which is her favourite since there is so much beauty in nature and in her love of Toronto. Her mission is to capture old city scenes before they disappear. Ileen has exhibited at the Rosedale Art Fair, and Schomberg Street Gallery.
Melina Lisi is an abstract Resin artist, born and raised in Toronto. She moved to King Township in 1981 and is an active member of the Arts Society King. Melina has participated in various juried shows, including the Schomberg Street Gallery event. Melina had a long-time interest in the arts. It was not until 2002 when she became afflicted with a chronic condition known as Trigeminal Neuralgia, a disorder which affects the facial nerves, that her passion for the arts was reignited. One of the outlets she turned to was her love of contemporary art. Melina began to experiment with acrylic paint and then moved on to other various mediums including ink and Resin. She describes her artistry as, “Creating my inner peace and becoming totally immersed with my creation. My concentration takes me away and my pain subs ides. Art is my therapy. Art fulfills me”. She recalls a very spiritual mentor once told her, “You’ve been given a wonderful gift, one that must be shared”. Melina is self-taught and creates her paintings with various ediums, acrylics, inks and pigments, just to name a few, but it was Resin that captured her attention with its lustrous glasslike finish and 3-D effect. She was captivated.
Ann Murray Livingstone
A Nova Scotian by birth, through my formative years I lived Coast to Coast. The land-scapes and the animals therein are part of my psyche and cross-Canada heritage.
Horses have played a huge part in my life, from my first ride at six until now, when I still ride my boy, Rory.
Drawing since childhood, I have continued Drawing and Painting as part of my life.
In 2000, at 55 I graduated with an Honours B.A. in Art/Art History from U. of T. at Mississauga and Sheridan College.
My process….? I like to paint series dealing with similar subjects. I become enamoured of a subject whether it be trains, the game of croquet, animals, women in diaphanous dresses…and of course, doing it my way. Mixing my own colours for the most part, I paint in oils with a limited palette.
I also am a quilter. I use quilting to create vibrant, excitingly coloured saddle pads trimmed with braid. I also do smaller pieces… lap robes, table top pieces, as well as wall hangings. My biggest quilt was the “Star Quilt” for my cousin, Anne Murray. That quilt had 5,220 one inch squares. I sometimes make a garment for fun from fabric scraps and leftover pieces.
All in all I am always moving forward to create alluring and different projects.
Hans Martin retired after a career in Atmospheric Physics in 1998 and in 2003 took up painting. He enrolled in Donnah Cameron’s watercolor classes in Newmarket until a few years ago when she moved. In time he became familiar with various art organizations including SOYRA and ASK. He has participated in several shows and other special events. He has won several watercolour awards including three first prizes and two honourable mentions.
Yi Mei focuses on landscape painting and still life, inspired by her natural surroundings. She works primarily in oil and acrylic and uses mixed media and texture techniques on her canvas. She loves integrating natural materials, such as dry plants or moss, mixed with modeling paste onto large-size canvases to create a sense of intimacy. Yi achieved the Certificate of Art and Design Studio Skills from OCAD University and she holds a master’s degree in art and design from Donghua University in Shanghai, China. Her art pieces have been selected and sold in many art exhibitions.
Veronica Melocheis an artist working in painting and pottery. She received her Honours BFA from York University in 1995 where she studied drawing and painting. In 2001 she received her Masters of Teaching, Visual Arts from Griffith University in Australia. She began dabbling in pottery in 2010 and has become more and more intrigued by the medium. Her functional ceramic forms and mixed media paintings are inspired by her love of the outdoors, her garden and her family. She currently teaches secondary school art and ceramics in York Region.
Mary Morganelli immigrated from Italy where her love for art developed at an early age. Her artwork was put aside to start a family, but recently she revived her passion by taking private lessons. She adores painting whatever inspires her, including portraits, landscapes, flowers, animals, automobiles, and more. Using an array of mediums, her therapeutic creations tell stories, express emotions, and some are just for fun. For Mary, variety is the spice of life.
Valeria Mravyan is a fine artist who turns canvases into vibrant expressions of emotion. With a Master’s Degree in Applied Arts, she explores creative frontiers in oils, acrylics, watercolors, batiks, and various other mediums. Nestled in Kleinburg, ON, Valeria draws inspiration to bring her passion for painting to life. Her global gallery presence includes the Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Arts and the Los Gatos Museum of Art. Beyond visuals, her art is a sensory journey—capturing misty days, vibrant sunsets, golden autumns, and frosty winter mornings. Recognized in ‘Who’s Who in America’ 2021, Valeria’s unique perspective solidifies her as an impactful artist, painting not just the world’s looks but its profound feelings.
Olga Muhortyh is a Ukrainian-Canadian artist and designer living in York Region. Growing up in Ukraine, she has always had a deep connection with art. Not being able to follow the education she aspired to as a child, she ended up following a different career path. She became a digital graphic and web designer after moving to Canada two decades ago. After battling depression, she decided to use her earlier passion as part of her game plan to keep herself healthy and happy. She slowly started painting, improving, and looking for her own artistic voice. Then COVID 19 came along and she promised herself to do at least one new painting every month. She also took some courses to learn new techniques and mediums. In 2020, she created a few pieces themed “My Happy Place.” She is currently experimenting with oil and acrylic paints, modelling paste, epoxy resin, and mixed media.
Michele Nash
MichelesMagic Art
“art inspired beauty”
Creativity is in my soul whether it be with paint, photography or words. It is the perfection in the imperfection that I take to completion. Exploring our environment (rural and urban) allows me to see different textures, movement and light/dark components which open up unlimited possibilities that I incorporate into my art.
Colour is a key component to my artistry. Colour seeps into my minds’ eye whether I am awake or dreaming, allowing my vision to come alive in clips. As a self-taught artist and spiritual being, I fill each art piece with healing and joy. Delving into many art forms over the years, I have build a solid foundation which I continue to expand on my artistic journey.
Presently, I am focussing on several mediums including Abstract Art, Alcohol Ink, Cold Wax and Oil, Mixed Media, Photography, and Textured Art.
I am an Artist, a Certified Crystal Healer, Crystal Reiki Master, Level 1 Reiki teacher and a Crystal Grid Master. I am an avid cook and baker. I live with my husband and our 2 dogs. I reside in King City, Ontario, Canada.
My name is Jenny Nicholson and my passion for art started when I retired and 2 years ago joined a drawing class at the local Aurora Seniors Centre. This was quickly followed by a watercolour paint class. To my surprise, I had ignited a curiosity and passion I didn’t even know I had and during the lockdown period of the pandemic, this new passion kept me excited and sane.
I have attended in person classes and workshops from wonderful local artists like Nancy Newman, Karen Levert, Bonnie Steinberg and Judy Sherman. With so few in person opportunities during the pandemic, I have praised the wonder of technology and enjoyed the many online tutorials available on YouTube and the brave and adventurous instructors who have embraced it.
My goal is to continue to learn and grow in this wonderful medium of watercolour and to connect with like minded people in the vibrant world of art.
Rubina Panjwani is a passionate jewelry designer whose love for the arts evolved into handcrafting wearable art. She views art as a mirror reflecting the beauty of nature and life itself. Specializing in the techniques of wire wrapping and beading, she creates stunning jewelry using colourful gems, silver, and copper wire of various shapes and sizes. Arriving in Canada 23 years ago with a Masters in Economics and many years of teaching experience, Rubina unexpectedly reconnected with the love for art that she held so closely in her youth. She found herself taking various art workshops and becoming inspired by the idea of designing and creating her own jewelry. She enrolled in courses at George Brown and mastered techniques such as wire wrapping and metal smithing, rediscovering herself along the way.
Rubina’s passion has only deepened over the years, leading her to become an active member of her artistic community and showcasing her beautiful jewelry across the GTA at various art shows and cultural events. Drawing on her teaching experience, Rubina also conducts jewelry-making workshops for children and adults, empowering them to create wearable art and learn a few new skills along the way. With 16 years of experience, Rubina is a dedicated jewelry designer who creates high-quality pieces, imbued with her warmth and passion. To her, hand-crafted jewelry is more than an accessory; it is wearable art, with each piece telling a unique story, created with the intention to spark joy in its wearer.
Former professional equestrian Dorita Peer is a writer and poet and will soon release several new publications. In her spare time, Dorita paints, sculpts, plays the flute, reads a lot and gardens. As a long time member of ASK, editor of the Timeless Tales anthology, WriteNow!@King, Writers Community of York Region, frequent contributor to MOSAiC and the King Weekly Sentinel, it has been her mission to promote creative novelty through several events in York Region since 1979.
Ivanka Pipinikova mainly paints with oils. Figures of people have always been a source of inspiration for her. She hopes that through her work, she can convey the feeling and mood of a moment in a way that the viewer can become a part of it. Constantly growing and evolving as an artist, Ivanka aims to create beautiful, impactful art. She has exhibited her paintings at various Juried Art Shows and Art exhibitions.
Mahtab Rezvani was born in Iran and is a self-taught visual artist based in King City, Ontario. She works with different mediums but her main mediums are oil and acrylic in vibrant colours. She has always been interested in painting but never had the courage to consider it as her main career. During the quarantine, when gray was the dominant colour, her love for creating a new vivid world was reignited. She started with illustration and, later on, tried portraits but now enjoys a mixture of both. If she could define her emotions with words, she would be a poet! “Si je pouvais définir mes émotions avec des mots, je serais poète!”
Lorraine Roberts is an award-winning artist that creates landscape and botanically inspired soft pastel, impressionistic paintings. Her art hangs in private and corporate collections and has been juried into exhibitions across Canada and the USA. Lorraine is a juried Member of the Federation of Canadian Artists, a juried Member of The Pastel Society of America and a Signature Member of the Pastel Artists of Canada.
Life comes full circle as Lorraine pursues her passion for art to express the beauty of nature. Her mission is to create art that evokes an emotional connection to nature and inspires a profound spiritual awareness of the present moment.
Douglas Robinson’s artistic journey began in the creative embrace of a family steeped in the artistic tradition, where he was born in Vancouver, BC, Canada, and grew up in Toronto and now calls home in Nobleton Ontario. This rich environment instilled in him a profound appreciation for art’s transformative power. Even from a young age, Douglas was attracted to the world of painting, diving into the vivid spectrum of colours and spirited forms that would later dominate his work. , Douglas pursued formal education at the Ontario College of Art & Design University, where he graduated with honours. During his time there, he received a working scholarship, which launched him into a successful career in advertising as an art director, then rising through the ranks to become a Creative Director/Chief Creative Officer, and even establishing his own award-winning agency. While Douglas thrived in this world, creatively directing advertising campaigns, he never lost sight of his true passion: painting. Eventually, the call of the canvas was simply too strong, and he returned full-time to pursue this lifelong love.
After exploring traditional quilt blocks for 25+ years, Kathleen Rodgers became interested in creating fibre art designs based on colour and shape for Art Quilts, table runners and lap quilts using her own hand dyed and hand painted fabrics and batiks. She has participated in group fibre art exhibits for several years, including the International Women’s Day Show (OMAH) and the Fibre Content traveling exhibit. She had her first solo show at Burr House Gallery and Tearoom in November 2019. She is part of a fibre arts group that is creating travelling thematic exhibitions.
Melissa Sherman is an Artist, Teacher, and Yoga Instructor living in Maple, Ontario. Formerly from New York, Melissa began her career working in the ceramic and glass industry as a model and mold maker. Since then she has turned towards paint, clay and mixed media to create. Her current body of work explores the universal qualities of emotions be they human or animal.
Steve Silverman. A native of Toronto, Canada, Steve Silverman is a Canadian award-winning, fine art photographer with a keen and unique artistic vision. His love and passion for black and white photography are reflected in his dramatic landscapes and engaging cityscapes from across Canada and abroad.
Steve’s photos are visual metaphors. An intimate, interpretive view of the world around him. An implied comparison creating a link between the mundane and the sublime. He uses strong tonal contrast, texture and mood to express his artistic vision. His photos are easily recognizable by his use of strong leading lines combined with the interplay of light and shadows to create depth, giving a two-dimensional image the illusion of three dimensions. Simple put, he can transform a simple, mundane scene into a compelling black & white fine art photograph. Steve’s photos have been published in many international books and magazines. He is also a guest speaker at local camera clubs. Steve works with several Canadian art galleries and publishers on a variety of corporate and home decor fine art projects.
Catharine Somerville was born in Canada and lives both in the UK and Canada. Her work has won major awards and is in public and private collections throughout the world.
Primarily a colourist, it is Catharine’s aim to touch the emotional chords in the viewer with her unique colour pallet.
She works in all media and subject matter.
Sylva Sroujian, an Armenian from Lebanon, lives in Richmond Hill, Ontario. Despite her background in business, she pursued her dream of becoming an artist. She has showcased her art in group and solo exhibitions. She paints with cold wax and oil, and acrylic. Her works have been accepted in many juried shows and she has won several awards. The boundless beauty of nature is the inspiration for her landscape paintings. Her outdoor experiences, such as camping and hiking in locations like Algonquin Park and Lake Superior, provide the motivation for her artwork.
Ernestine Tahedl was born in Austria and received a Master’s Degree from the Vienna University of Applied Arts. She immigrated to Edmonton Alberta in 1963. Participating in group and traveling shows, she also won acclaim with solo exhibitions in Austria, France, Japan, the USA and Canada.
She was elected a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts. She was the recipient of the Queen’s Golden and Diamond Jubilee Medal and was awarded the Golden Decoration of Honour for services to the Republic of Austria. 2016, 9 Mosaic panels by Ernestine Tahedl commissioned 1965 are now part of the new Royal Alberta Museum, Edmonton Alberta. Her studio is in King City, Ontario.
Joe Trimmeliti graduated from George Brown College in 1974 in Graphic Design. He was a Senior Staff Artist in the Toronto Public Library art department for 15 years. Currently he is self employed in sign making and graphic design. Joe has recently rekindled his love of painting and has been successful in several fine art shows and sales.
Joe’s oil and acrylic paintings are original impressions inspired by his natural surroundings and rich imagination. His landscapes and abstracts are varied and continuously evolving. They have been positively embraced by the art enthusiasts and collectors who have attended his shows.
Cheryl Uhrig is an accomplished artist and like her cartoons and children’s book illustrations, Cheryl’s vibrant oil and acrylic paintings each tell a story. Her paintings invite you in for another look. Each slice is designed to invoke an emotion, a memory -or just make you smile. Life is full of slice.
Phyllis Vernon paints in a variety of media and styles – her art is an exciting and constantly changing event as she explores and experiments with her love of colour, texture, light, form, media, and a wide variety of subjects. Originally a watercolour artist, she has broadened her scope to include acrylics, inks, graphite, collage and hand-pulled prints, blending realism and abstraction. Phyllis travels extensively and often paints from her photographs and sketches. She has participated in workshops with professional artists in Canada, United States, France and Spain, as well as extensive reading and research on her own. She accepts commissions and delights clients by capturing in paint a favourite location, often an ancestral home in Europe.
Nina Vicol is a visual artist who has always been captivated by the beauty of nature. As a self-taught artist, she found herself gravitating towards realism and impressionism. She wanted to create paintings that captured the beauty and depth of the natural world, from the smallest blade of grass to the grandest mountain peak. With every brushstroke, she aims to convey the feeling of awe and wonder that nature inspires in her.For her, art is not just a means of expression, but a way of connecting with the soul of the world. When she paints, she feels a deep sense of peace and joy, as if she is communing with the spirit of nature itself. It is a meditative process that allows her to tap into the beauty and wonder of the world around her. Through her art, Nina hopes to convey the message that nature is not just a physical phenomenon, but a source of deep spiritual nourishment for the soul.
Susan Walker-Ing has painted since a young child. Enjoying art in mediums such as printmaking, watercolour, drawing, and painting in pastels, acrylics, and oils. She graduated from York University with a degree in Art History. Finishing her degree in Florence, Italy, the inspiration has stuck with her throughout her career. She is a versatile artist with a track record of success across various mediums. Her recent accomplishments include receiving an Honorable Mention in the Saugeen Plein Air Competition in July 2020, and in 2021, she earned the esteemed title of “Best in Show” for her oil painting at the ASK Autumn Reflections En Plein Air competition. In 2023, she won her second “Best in Show” with the ASK Autumn Reflections En Plein Air competition with her oil, “Celery Harvest, King”. Her dedication to plein air painting, which presents both challenges and joys, is evident in her outstanding work. Her art has garnered international recognition and is collected by art enthusiasts worldwide.
Susan, who is the founder and president of Aurora’s Creative Connection: A Centre for the Arts, earned the Town of Aurora’s recognition and respect for her significant contributions to the local art community. In honor of her outstanding achievements, she was awarded the prestigious Johnsons Culture Achievement Award. You can find Susan Walker-Ing on a show produced by Rogers by simply searching for her name on YouTube. The show features her painting plein air, includes an interview, and showcases numerous examples of her artwork.
Lynn Wilson lives and paints in her home studio in King City. Lynn usually starts by very quickly laying down some collage, acrylic paint or distressed oxides and inks. Other than choosing a colour palette to work with to start, she doesn’t give much thought to what’s going to happen. She watches for what images start to appear, intuitively, in the piece and then she adds details to help bring those images forward. She goes with the flow from there … to where the piece leads her. In Fall 2017, Lynn started Altered Book Journaling and Intuitive painting, incorporating many mediums including acrylics, metallics, iridescents, inks, graphite, calligraphy and collage. Lynn also takes ideas from her intuitive pieces from her Altered Book Journal and transfers those images over to large canvas. Having shown her work in many juried art shows, live art events and Studio Tours since 2002, Lynn now teaches both live and online art classes and is an active participating member of Arts Society King and SOYRA -Society of York Region Artists.
Michelle Zikovitz has been weaving functional baskets for over 20 years and teaching for the past 15 years, throughout southern Ontario. Her early weaving years were spent at her 2 floor looms focusing on woven tapestries, rugs, placemats and runners. A basketry workshop taught by a fellow guild member, a love of baskets and the ability to weave baskets almost anywhere all led to a new found passion of basket weaving. Reed is her personal material of choice for teaching, incorporating her own hand dyed reed whenever possible. Michelle enjoys experimenting with random dyed or “space dyed” skeins of reed, creating many unique colour combinations and resulting in truly one of a kind baskets. When not basket weaving or working, Michelle dabbles in photography, sewing, fibre arts and various painting mediums. She loves to explore and find local basket weavers, artists, shops and galleries on her travels.