Awakened by Midnight

July 11 - August 8, 2020

Exhibition Statement Dark Art offers a prophetic viewpoint of ourselves and the world around us by depicting alluring attributes with an unsettling orientation. This movement transmits the mystery of macabre and uncanny surrealism with a vitality that far exceeds seasonal cliche's of Halloween. Through these compelling works we can readily tap into primitive and enigmatic aspects of the subconscious.

Dianne Hoffman, Curator

Catalog design: Michael Yochum Logo design: Dianne Hoffman Arc Gallery Š 2020

Participating Artists Heather Allison

John Nieto

Flora Cruells Benzal

Carlos Paz

Nora Bruhn

Norm Quiros

Joshua Coffy

Ransom & Mitchell

Tanya Herrera

Doug Rhodes

Dianne Hoffman

Lee Harvey Roswell

Shane Izykowski

Kristen Sard

Linda Larson

Andy Sciazko

Caitlin McCarthy

Mary Syring

Natalie McKean

Marya Taylor

Catherine Moore

Paulette Traverso

Monique Motil

Sandra Yagi

ONLINE OPENING RECEPTION: Saturday, July 11th, 7-9pm

Heather Allison We live in an era that allows us a separation from the natural world and its cycles. It is this distance that also permits us to ignore the fleeting nature of our time here and although death is the one thing no one can escape, we turn away from it until it touches us personally. Through photographic still life, I explore concepts of impermanence, rebirth, and our corporal existence. The subject of each tableau determines the objects in the compositions, tapping into iconography and color symbolism to call attention to what makes us human. Pulling from the vanitas style of the seventeenth century Dutch masters, my work combines contemporary mediums with Renaissance styling to speak to modern viewers of mortality, connection, and encourage inner contemplation.

website: http://heatherallisonphotography.com email: heather@heatherallisonphotography.com

Essentia photography, printed on archival paper, antique frame, convex glass 24" x 16" x 2.5" $627

Heather Allison

Florere photography, printed on high gloss archival paper, antique frame 37" x 24" x 2" $921

Flora Cruells Benzal

There is no exquisite beauty‌ without some strangeness in the proportion.

Edgar Allan Poe Being born and raised in Barcelona, I was always surrounded by art. The works of Picasso, MirĂł, or DalĂ­, which are prominently displayed around the city, provided me with endless sources of inspiration, so I guess you could say that I was predisposed to have art in my life.

I attended the University of Hawaii and pursued a BFA in ceramics.

Clay was the medium that allowed me to express myself, evolving from abstract forms and very basic shapes to the figurative work that I am making these days.

My sculpture tends to be a little bit darker in content. I am drawn to artwork that either you love or hate (no gray area.) I believe that art should spark some kind of emotional response from the viewer, regardless of what that may be. Most of my pieces are personal in nature, and the majority have some kind of story behind their creation. I hand build my work using earthenware. Color and texture play a very important part on my pieces. I proudly joke that I suffer from horror vacui (a fear or dislike of leaving empty spaces, especially in an artistic composition.) I believe that is due to the many art influences I had growing up in a city such as Barcelona, where color and pattern can be found everywhere. I will use a variety of different techniques in order to obtain the desired finished look to my work, which usually tends to be aged, distressed, and imperfect.

website: http://www.florabarcelona.com/ email: flora@florabarcelona.com

Banana Dreams earthenware with found objects 13" x 7" x 7" $595

Hamlet Complex earthenware with found objects 13" x 7" x 7" $595

Hurt Target Practice earthenware with found objects 13" x 7" x 7" $595

Nora Bruhn

Konorebi is derived from the Japanese verb komorebi. Komorebi describes a very specific type of lighting and translates to, when light shines through leaves on trees in a forest. I chose to base my name from komorebi for a few reasons. First, I love traditional Japanese culture, especially the way it honors nature and simplicity. I also find it humbling and fascinating that there are words in cultures other than my own that do not directly translate to English. Finally, my art is visual. We would not be able to use our vision to see art without light. To me lighting is everything. When I am in a forest and see komorebi, those angel-like rays create a magical feeling inside of me. This feeling is what I strive to recreate for people viewing my art. This is why I chose the name Konorebi.

website: https://www.konorebi.com/ email: ntothebruhn@gmail.com

May Life Prevail acrylic on canvas 30" x 24" $1750

Joshua Coffy

My paintings deal with animals and the natural world with a sense of whimsy. So painting the darkness is a little bit of the opposite from what I do. But therein lies my excitement about these paintings. Getting to explore the dark side of things has taught me a new appreciation for the lighter side of things. When darkness exists the light is even brighter. I know going forward that more darkness will be included in some of my work.

website: https://undersong.com/ email: josh@undersong.com

The Nightwatchers acrylic on wood panel 36" x 24" $2300

Joshua Coffy

Ascend Beyond The Realms acrylic on wood panel 24" x 20" $1100

Tanya Herrera

I am a 36 yr old first generation Costa Rican American, born and raised in the Bay Area. I have made art for as long as I can remember. It was the only thing I wanted to do as a kid. I experimented with traditional mediums through middle school, high school and into college, challenging myself to ask, "what else is there?" I continued testing a wide variety of modern art techniques until the age of 25.

I discovered pyrography by trying to make the impression of a stencil on a piece of wood in a different way. Since then I have been burning pyrography in the traditional method going on 12 years on wood, 9 years on leather and another 7 years on bone.

I have chosen to keep alive antiqued techniques by recreating them for a modern age, all the while intentionally reducing my carbon footprint through repurposing materials. I'm still constantly building on skills and talent handed down through genetics, creating every piece I make to reflect the rarity that is me.

website: http://www.tanyaherrera.com/ email: Tanyahg@gmail.com

Burn it Down to Watch it Grow hand burned pyrography gold leaf on cow sacrum 7" x 5" x 4" $1800

Coyote Who Stole Fire hand burned pyrography gold leaf on coyote skull 8" x 4" x 3" $5000

La Tica hand burned pyrography gold leaf on deer skull 12" x 5" x 10" $4500

Dianne Hoffman

I have a tendency to personify inanimate objects and feel genuine compassion for those that are damaged or disregarded. I see potential in broken bits and find beauty in rust and erosion. The older an object, the more haunting and alluring its ghost.

Assemblage art allows me to indulge these concepts by creating dimensional worlds of allegory where tall tales are told, jokes are cracked, emotions stirred, and poems imparted.

I like to link organic objects from nature with industrial and figurative remnants by combining complementary muted color schemes to harmonize dissimilar media. The narrative facet of each piece often derives from the variety of music I am listening to, a phrase that strikes me, or a sentiment I’d like to give a visual context to. My intent is to portray a delicate balance between light and dark by depicting the sincerity found in their unified stories.

website: https://diannehoffman.wixsite.com/artist website: email: email: dhoffman4art@gmail.com

A Means To An End mixed media assemblage 15” x 20.5” x 8” $650

A Glass Half Full mixed media assemblage 28" x 14" x 12" $750

Born This Way mixed media assemblage 40” x 16” x 7” $750

Shane Izykowski My mission is to depict the depth of the human experience through the exploration of visceral imagery, honest emotion and the common threads that tie us all together. My artwork revolves around the idea of healing, despite emotional turmoil, trauma and grief. I paint people I know, places I've explored and animals that have crossed my path.

Shane Izykowski has a colorful history of professional artist positions, including the lead artist at Madame Tussauds SF, a preparator at the SFO Museum, a set designer for theatrical productions, a curator and gallery director, and a production designer for films. Currently, Shane is a full time artist known for oil paintings of dark imagery that reflect the shared human experience of grief, suffering and healing through imaginative storytelling. He is also the host of the Drawing From Experience Podcast, an art podcast dedicated to helping and inspiring artists through relatable content and genuine triumphs and failures of the art life.

website: http://www.shaneizykowski.com/ email: shaneizykowski@gmail.com

I Left My Heart in San Francisco oil on masonite 35” x 40” framed $2800

The Conjuror of Earth Spell oil on masonite 17” x 15” framed $650

Haunting of the One Who Never Was oil on wood panel 12� x 10� framed $525

Linda Larson

These images painted for Awakened by the Midnight suggest a botanical allegory of imagined regeneration from our collective past. Using traditional oils, I paint a myriad of disparate organic images superimposed upon each other to capture half forgotten, fleeting memories that dance at the edge of our consciousness. Delicate glazing techniques involving overlap and redundancy allow me to experiment and freely layer multiple renderings subtly visible through veils of paint. Using precise excision I augment these transitional shapes with saturated color and intricate detail enhancing and clarifying my imagery.

website: http://www.lindalarsonart.com/ email: linda@lrlart.com

Thief of Sleep oil on panel 30" x 24" $1600

Traveling Times oil on panel 20" x 16" $1100

Trespass oil on panel 20" x 16" $1100

Caitlin McCarthy

Caitlin McCarthy currently lives in Northern California.

She is an artist and illustrator who studied art at Dominican University, graduating with a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Art. Since a young age Caitlin has been interested in magic and using art as a tool to explore it. Her work often features visions of dark dreamy women in the form of seers, mystics, and witches. Channeling her fascination of Victorian sensibilities and the occult, her drawings invoke feelings of melancholy, and create an eerie, otherworldly atmosphere.

Caitlin’s preferred medium is graphite on paper.

website: https://www.instagram.com/caitlinmccarthyart/ email: caitlinlouisemccarthy@gmail.com

The Lightbringer graphite on watercolor paper 12.5" x 10.5" $300

Natalie McKean

The body of work I've presented is all on scratchboard, a form of sgrafitto. I love the feeling of cratching off the black ink to reveal the white clay board underneath, then adding colored inks which almost seem to bring the images to life. With this method, instead of adding shadow to light, I can reveal the light within complete darkness. This dichotomy is the fuel for my art which tells a story of unconventional but harmonious existences, where supposed opposites are fused; light and dark, magic and science, organic and technic. The images come from all vibrational levels, from the raw and sinful to the enlightened celestial. My work is dark and mystical yet it hopes to inspire love and expansive thought. It is science fiction representing the metaphysical world, often portraying my experiences, views & visions through the imagery. In addition to external influences, I use lucid dreaming and astral projection experiences as a large source of inspiration .

website: https://www.nataliemckeanart.com/ email: nataliemckean@gmail.com

Empress scratchboard mounted on a wood frame 36" x 24" $1300

Knowing Your Demons scratchboard mounted on a wood frame 18" x 14" $800

Unbound by Dawn scratchboard mounted on a wood frame 36" x 24" $1300

Catherine Moore

Through the creative process I am able to explore both external components of life as well as the inner workings of my own psyche. I am fascinated with the magic and mystery of what we do not yet understand as well as the complete beauty of what is already proven and tangible. Like many, I am also consumed by the world of pop culture and with my having an education in traditional illustration, I love to create narrative works inspired by some of my favorite genres of movies, books, and folklore. These stories are often shrouded in the supernatural and darker parts of one's imagination. Bringing elements of these worlds together in my work helps me share a bit of myself with the viewer and hope I connect to something inside of them.

website: http://teaandcanvas.com/ email: catherine@teaandcanvas.com

Heartstrings oil on linen on panel 24" x 18" $1750

A Disquieting Metamorphosis oil on linen on panel 14" x 11" $525

Be Still (My Beating Heart) oil on linen on panel 20" x 16" $1500

Monique Motil

I build each assemblage with the collections of cast off items that I find. Scraps of beautiful fabrics and trims, ratty lace and appliquĂŠs, broken jewelry, bones, pen nibs and dull blades, feathers, thrift store frames, and just about anything that I find in multiples.

With a bit of magic, these cast-off mundane items are given new life in a mandala or as part of a reliquary. I receive a great amount of pleasure by bringing a sense of order to a pile of mis-matched items.

website: http://moniquemotil.com/ email: zombique@gmail.com

On the Wings of a Plague assemblage 16" x 12" x 3" $375

Difficulty of Letting Go assemblage 18" x 18" x 4" $325

Lesser Never Wish assemblage 36" x 6" x 5" $1800

John Nieto

These works offer a visual manifestation of the subconscious mind and its process by taking life events and layering them with the anxieties, pains, hopes and dreams we face as humans while honoring the presence of each moment.

Whether exploring the coast, city streets or sitting with a friend, they all pay homage to the dreamlike state of our short lives and the choices we make.

website: http://johnnietophotography.com/ email: johnnieto@earthlink.net

Kim The Glass Blower photography 17.5" x 14.5" $1200 (edition of 5)

Bull Kelp For Baby photography 14.5" x 17.5" $1200 (edition of 5)

Spring 2020 photography 14.5" x 17.5" $1200 (edition of 5)

Carlos Paz

Carlos Paz is an artist and illustrator based in San Francisco. His primary mediums are video, painting and drawing. Born in Honduras, his inspiration comes from the bold colors found in its heritage and landscapes. The subjects that come out of his work evoke the very spirit of humanity; dark, cruel, anxious with a glimmer of hope and beauty.

website: https://www.carlospazart.com/ email: carlosrpaz@earthlink.net

Midnight Offerings acrylic and oil on canvas 30" x 24" $600

Bright Chaos acrylic and gold leaf on canvas 12" x 12" $300

Regrets acrylic on canvas 18" x 18" $300

Norm Quiros

Born and raised in San Francisco, Norm was raised on a steady diet of horror movies, cartoons, science fiction, and comic books.

He developed a fascination for the surreal and strange, fed by an interest in Polish Surrealism, the geometry of Precisionism, and machine art. The bold shapes of pop culture in the 80’s. The demonic imagery of Heavy Metal music. While as a working professional illustrator, his artwork and imagery has been varied in the extreme.

His great interest in his personal work, however, is in imagery that combines the studied, realistic form, geometric shapes, the golden ratio, and nonsensical, fantastic purpose.

website: http://www.normquiros.com/ email: normquiros@gmail.com

Teratoma II acrylic on canvas 20" x 16" $1200

Skull and Pipes 1 acrylic on hardboard 22" x 18" $1200

Skull and Pipes 2 acrylic on hardboard 22" x 18" $1200

Ransom & Mitchell Ransom & Mitchell is a still + motion creative team in San Francisco featuring the combined talents of director photographer Jason Mitchell and set designer - digital artist Stacey Ransom. Together we create highly-detailed and visually-lush photographic-based digital art scenarios and portraits. Our work is narrative in nature and draws upon the darker undercurrent that exists within all aspects of society. Our process is a combination of cinematic lighting, theatrically-designed sets, hand-crafted custom props, and CG, which is digitally composited and painted with an illustrative approach inspired by the Italian and Dutch Master painters. We aim to blur the lines between digital artistry and classical painting to create worlds that cannot exist (and quite possibly shouldn’t).

Many of the folk tales that society has embraced out of rote habit are past due for reexamination. On The Way is a reframing of the age-old tale Little Red Riding Hood, with the roles viewed from a place of empowerment and supernatural curiosity rather than the outmoded dichotomy of good vs. evil.

This new tension offers a more nuanced interpretation of the fabled chance meeting in the forrest, thus opening the door for alternative outcomes and potential alliances.

website: http://ransommitchell.com/ email: info@ransommitchell.com

On the Way digital art / archival pigment print (edition 1 of 9) 23" x 27" framed $1250

Doug Rhodes

I believe art changes our perceptions of the people and world around us, broadening our perspectives in ways that cultivate greater respect for humanity and nature.

My studio is in the Mission District on Clarion Alley, a location covered with murals. I am almost always there Thursday through Sunday in the afternoon. Stop by and take a look.

website: http://dougrhodes.com/ email: circfire@yahoo.com

This Lost Soul is Seen Crossing the Street at Main and Broadway acrylic on sole 10.25"x 3.75"

$350 (all three pieces $950)

This Lost Soul is Seen About One Meter out from the Ledge of a Cliff acrylic on sole 9.3"x 3.25" $350 (all three pieces $950)

This Lost Soul is Seen Wondering Around Down By the River acrylic on sole 8"x 3.25" $350 (all three pieces $950)

Lee Harvey Roswell

Lee Harvey Roswell is a self-taught artist from Freefall, New York, currently living and working in San Francisco.

website: http://leeharveyroswell.com/ email: lee.roswell@gmail.com

Beast of Burden graphite on paper 12" x 9" $800 (framed)

Lee Harvey Roswell

Prosperity (is a Refugee) oil on canvas 12" x 9" $1300 (framed)

Kristen Sard

Dark Times Painted blue and black, these nudes are photographs of reflections taken in a distortional mirror and the dark environment in which they pose. The reflections are beyond the control of the individual. This allows the photograph to be spontaneous, and also heightens the natural improvisation that the sitters indulge in whilst posing for the photograph. For all of its artifice and distortion, the final image is one that would be unreachable were the subjects allowed conventional control of the image they present.

In Boo, Possibility and Tullee Bird, the models are all wearing masks, partly to hide their identity but also to play with the opportunity to become something else, something spirit like. I’m exploring how in the dark, our thoughts can be animal, they can deceive, and they can protect. In this mysterious place, we can be safe. I asked my models when posing to think upon, “When all is dark look to the light.�

website: https://www.sard.com/ email: kristensard@gmail.com

Boo Epson platine; archival cotton fiber (edition of 25) 25”x 19” framed / 24”x 18” unframed $600 framed with museum glass / $350 unframed

Possibility Epson platine; archival cotton fiber (edition of 25) 25”x 19” framed / 24”x 18” unframed $600 framed with museum glass / $350 unframed

Tullee Bird Epson platine; archival cotton fiber (edition of 25) 25”x 19” framed / 24”x 18” unframed $600 framed with museum glass / $350 unframed

Andy Sciazko

Andy Sciazko is a San Francisco-based illustrator with a focus on the horror genre. He is best known for illustrating Nightmare Soup and Nightmare Society, spiritual successors to 80's and 90's classics Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark and Goosebumps. His work dwells somewhere between the comical and macabre, grasping firmly at the strings of an unfinished terrible dream. His work has been featured by Bloody Disgusting, Fangoria, and The AV Club.

website: https://www.andysciazkoart.com/ email: andysciazko@gmail.com

to swallow the sick of man graphite/watercolor/inkwash on 140lb cold press watercolor paper 12�x 9� $300 framed

Mary Syring

Mary Syring is a San Francisco-based artist and illustrator interpreting themes of European folklore from childhood and the surreal magic world of her imagination.

website: https://www.etsy.com/shop/marysyringart email: marysyringart@gmail.com

A Twighight In 1865 ink on paper 12�x 9� $300 framed

Marya Taylor

My work is primarily about seeking to find the beautiful and connectedness in death, decay, and all of the pain of this human experience. It is easier for me to find oneness and joy in sunsets and puppies, but can I also find that connectedness in the pain and in the challenges? Can I remember to see pain as my friend that is aiding/guiding me in my growth towards love, softness, healing and compassion? My work helps and reminds me to walk towards regeneration, gratitude, and transformation on this spiritual journey.

website: email: maryatdog@gmail.com

Criminally Insane mixed media,wood, photo, metal 17" x 12” x 3.5” $400

Lapsed Reverence mixed media, wood, taxidermy, metal, paper 16.5" x 13" x 3" $400

Scorpio mixed media, wood, photo, metal, scorpion taxidermy 15.5� x 11.25" x 2.75" $450

Paulette Traverso

When COVID 19 hit I was in the midst of making pieces for several upcoming shows.

The shock of the new reality brought many of my projects to a halt. In this new world, I’ve been struggling to come to terms with the result of humankind's neglect and abuse of the natural world. Added to catastrophic fires and floods of the last decade, we’re seeing a resilient virus that has killed upwards of 500,000 beings. The one area of my art that I’ve been able to work on are the videos I call Messages from Quarantine.

I work on them daily. I find it calms me as I work out my emotions in creating art. The videos are about working with angst fear depression helplessness anger grief instability the unknown and unknowable.

I’ve made over 1000 drawings over the last decade both on paper and on vintage photos. These are my source imagery for Messages from Quarantine. Once I finish what will be a canvas print, I start working on animating the piece. Many pieces are being reworked in response to the pandemic. I’m relatively new to video but have found that movement and sound are becoming essential to expressing the myriad of emotions this pandemic is provoking.

website: http://www.paulettetraverso.com email: pmtraverso@mac.com

Messages from Quarantine Video animation looped and shown on artist provided screen 24” x 28” x 8” NFS

They Contain Multitudes archival canvas print with hand printed gold 4 part wood and magnet hanging frame 22� x 17� $475 (edition 1 of 5)

Wild Things Lockdown archival canvas print with hand printed gold 4 part wood and magnet hanging frame 22� x 17� $475 (edition 1 of 5)

Sandra Yagi

My work incorporates anatomical imagery to explore the human psychological condition, mortality, and humanity’s effect on the natural world . The work that I created for Awakened by the Midnight explores the theme of plague, in the form of a hydra protecting coronavirus/eggs in a nest. Athena, the goddess of wisdom, is preparing to battle the monster. The hydra is a metaphor for the covid virus. Like the virus, if you cut off one of its heads, it grows a new one, and is very difficult to destroy.

website: http://www.sandrayagi.com/ email: info@sandrayagi.com

photo credit: Troy Holden

Hatching Death oil on canvas 12" x 16" $1600

Sandra Yagi

Athena versus the Hydra ink on Arches paper 10" x 14" $800

http://arc-sf.com http://arcfinearts-sf.com 1246 Folsom St. San Francisco, CA

arcgallerysf@gmail.com 415-298-7969