Directory of Artists

Artwork appears courtesy of PSA members. Copyrights held by the artists. All rights reserved.

2023 Pasadena Society of Artists www.PasadenaSocietyofArtists.org

Flow

Michele Benzamin-Miki

Japanese Ink & Graphite

Pencil on Paper see page 14

Awards Awards of Merit

Dreamland 2

Karen M. Holgerson

Fabric Collage on Board see page 32

Remnants of War

Rebecca H. Pollack

Etching & Colored Pencil see page 55

Hubley Cap Gun

Mike Pitzer

Graphite and Colored Pencil on Canson Paper see page 52

Honorable Mention

Fiona’s Dreams

Ken Weintrub

Watermedia on Paper see page 63

Trickle Down

Leah Knecht

Oil, Acrylic, Sand, Cash Drawer, Ephemera see page 43

The James Ackley McBride Landscape Award

Sentinel

Rhonda Raulston

Photograph see page 58

Nopalera Cactus Garden

Vibiana Aparicio-Chamberlin

Acrylic on Canvas 16" x 20" $400

I used Aztec turquoise, Mexican cochineal crimson, lavender and jade green to paint this wild cactus growth. The nopalera grows in abandoned lots, backyards, alleyways, deserts and hillsides. It is sturdy and gorgeous, prickly and dangerous. It is also delicious to eat. Its tuna fruit is sweet and it is cherished. Its thick penca leaves are used in our Mexican salads, desserts and savory egg omelets. I hope my painting looks good enough to desire and to eat. It was healing for me to paint my cultural icon. It is also challenging to gather, touch and slice. I like to imagine that with each brushstroke I remove the thorns of the penca pad and the thorns from my grieving heart.

Contact information for this artist can be found on page 66.

Julianna Aparicio-Curtis

Acrylic and Mark Making on Paper 20" x 16" $625

The rains have given us the most gorgeous abundance of wildflowers, and in between the storms we have been taking little hikes and foraging wildflowers in our canyons here in Redlands. I have a simple glass bowl vase that reflects the light in my kitchen and the different shades of orange throughout my home. This is my little bowl and my painted flowers in acrylic and thick impasto with blocks of gold. The simple things in life that bring a feeling of warmth and contentment are really priceless.

7 Contact information for this artist can be found on page 66.

Lucia and Her Flowers

Julianna Aparicio-Curtis

Watercolors, Ink and Pen on Paper 12" x 9" $480

The ginkgo biloba tree or maidenhair tree is fascinating. It is one of the oldest living tree species in the world. It’s the sole survivor of an ancient group of trees that date back to before dinosaurs roamed the earth. I imagine Lucia picking the ginkgo leaves and tucking them in her hair. I painted her in watercolors and liquid ink and outlined the flowers in pen and liquid gold ink. The cerulean sky above her head and negative space below her face allow the crown of her head to catch the eye.

Contact information for this artist can be found on page 66.

Springtime at the Alhambra

Julianna Aparicio-Curtis

Acrylic, Pastels, Ink, Impasto and Mark Making on Canvas 48" x 24" $1,100

I traveled to Spain several years ago in early spring and had the amazing opportunity to tour the Alhambra palace and fortress in Granada, Andalusia. The Generalife gardens at the Alhambra are among the oldest surviving Moorish gardens.

Islamic architecture is by far my favorite style. The calligraphy, arabesques, and geometric motifs really inspire me. This abstract is my version of the splendor of springtime in the garden as light and flecks of gold filter through chartreuse and turquoise in the flowers and flora.

9 Contact information for this artist can be found on page 66.

Saguaro in First Light

Julianna Aparicio-Curtis

Acrylic and Mark Making on Canvas 20" x 16" $675

My indigenous ancestors came from the Sonoran Desert. I imagine some of their first morning views were giant saguaro cacti with their upward bend reaching the light. The fruit of this cactus can be eaten raw or cooked. After the slow-growing saguaro dies, its woody ribs can be used to build roofs, fences and furniture. I painted this acrylic and pencil abstract with thick textured impasto and flecks of gold as I was imagining my Yaqui ancestors gazing in awe at the beauty they experienced in this enchanted land.

Contact information for this artist can be found on page 66.

41st Street

Cyndi Bemel

Photography 10.5" x 16" $555

In a city of constant stimulation, being curious drives the train forward. It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you see, and often the train is moving so fast that the blur is deceiving. Interpreting and seeing through the haze is exhilarating as it shows the hidden truth from ordinary places that most of us pass by.

To see in color is a delight for the eye but to see in black and white is a delight for the soul.

– Andri Cauldwell

11 Contact information for this artist can be found on page 66.

Mission Street

Cyndi Bemel

Photography 10.5" x 16" $555

The neighborhood Metro L line is my constant fascination. Capturing the calmness of the whizzing motion in a blur adds to the mystery of who the passengers are and where they are going on their journey. Standing on the sidelines, freezing the moving shadows, using light to illustrate rhythm and space creates an illusion that you are not sure of what you are looking at, where you are and how you got there.

Michele Benzamin-Miki

Japanese Ink and Graphite Pencil on Paper 35" x 49" $5,000

There is power in being seen not just by others, but in seeing oneself. My art is inspired by a lifetime of work as a teacher of Zen meditation and the non-violent martial arts of Aikido and Japanese sword. This spiritually integrative work becomes a strong part of my art. The brushstrokes are created in one continuous movement informed by my sword forms (katas). The path of the sword, the path of the brush, are interconnected.

13 Contact information for this artist can be found on page 66.

Flow

Michele Benzamin-Miki

Japanese Ink and Graphite Pencil on Paper 37" x 28" $2,500

The brushwork comes out of a “point zero” inner stillness in meditating before or while producing a piece. I want to make visible this inner world. The figurative part of my art explores the power of the female form, and the brush strokes elevate it.

Japanese Ink and Graphite Pencil on Paper 37" x 28" $2,700

Much of my work is inspired by my dreams and a dream journal. One dream that I had 15 years ago inspired me to combine calligraphic brush strokes with figurative realism. My art bridges East and West and my Japanese and American heritage. I am a self-taught artist.

15 Contact information for this artist can be found on page 66.

Untitled Arnor Bieltvedt

Oils on Linen 40" x 30" $3,000

Painting requires an in-between mindset. Through the act of creating art, one has to summon one’s creative spirits, allow one’s intuition to come alive and create without inhibitions. Having moved from my native home of Iceland as a young man, I have explored the in-between space of my original roots and my later homes around the world. The contrast between the golden light and purple shadows of Californian beaches and Icelandic textured mossy lava rocks can exist in the same space as complements in painted poetry. My untitled painting expresses my love for the California floral palette of pinks and reds contrasted with the clear and cold light of my old North Atlantic island home.

Contact information for this artist can be found on page 66.

Mariko Bird

Stoneware Clay 5.5" x 4.5" x 4.5" $190

I formed a thin slab of clay into a column, altered it, and cut out the small leaves to resemble branches of a willow tree. An electric candle or LED light used inside will give a fantastic effect.

Two Towers

Mariko Bird

Stoneware Clay 16" x 12" x 5.5" $530

The inspiration for this sculpture came from my trip to Provence, France. The impressions from visits to the Pope’s Palace in Avignon and the ruins of Les Baux-de-Provence somehow morphed into these towers.

Acrylic on Canvas 11" x 14" $2,500

“Diosa” was created for Women’s History Month. I knew many topics would be addressed, but I wanted to address the accessories women use to accentuate their beauty. Men do the same thing. We dress and groom ourselves to be attractive and take pride in doing so. I know I do. I appreciate when my girlfriend takes the time to accentuate her beauty. I wanted to pay homage to that fact through this painting with articles of clothing, jewelry and makeup.

Contact information for this artist can be found on page 66.

Acrylic on Canvas 8" x 10" $1,500

“Hollow Point II” is a follow-up to “Hollow Point I,” which had more to do with a lifestyle. “Hollow Point II” is more of an exercise in painting theory and attractiveness. When creating a piece of artwork, whether you have a message or not, you want to attract the viewer any way you can. We live in America where guns are very popular and trigger strong emotions most of the time. We should get attention with that. Many people drink, so that’s something else that many can relate to. Contrast is good in a painting and will help draw eyeballs, therefore we have the nice white roses against the dark red background and mostly mid-toned colored objects.

Contact information for this artist can be found on page 66.

Dwelling: Adults Gathering

Darien Donner

Watercolor, Tea Stain on Cotton Paper 12" Diameter $350

Here is a basket. I look inside. I see young adults gathering. They congregate inside a safe dwelling. They are meeting to talk honestly about possibilities life has to offer. I hear curious enthusiasm, endless possibilities and combinations pouring out of the basket mixed with fear and apprehension.

21 Contact information for this artist can be found on page 66.

Dwelling: Young Meeting

Darien Donner

Watercolor, Tea Stain on Cotton Paper 12" Diameter $350

Here is a basket. I look inside. I see young people meeting. They are sitting together inside a cozy dwelling. They are meeting to talk about life. It is one of their first earnest talks about meanings. I hear questions coming up, laughter, more inquiries but few answers.

Karen Duckles

Oil on Canvas 30" x 30" $3,000

The inspiration for this painting is the beauty that can be found in disintegration and decay. The partially wiped out image refers to the uncontrollability of nature and the impermanent quality of life. In our culture, youth and vitality are celebrated almost exclusively. Yet disintegration, death, and decay are also an integral part of life. Here I am trying to recast this part of the life cycle as something beautiful that should be appreciated.

Trumpet Flowers

Karen Duckles

Oil on Canvas 30" x 30" $3,000

This painting is part of a series titled “Beautiful Decay.” It celebrates the beauty that can be found in disintegration. The image has been wiped out leaving a decayed ghost image. It is informed by the Japanese concept of wabi-sabi, the appreciation of the transitory and imperfect nature of life. Here I am trying to recast the last part of the life cycle as something necessary that still remains beautiful.

Contact information for this artist can be found on page 66.

Cornrows

Martin Ehrlich

Raku-fired Ceramic 7.5" x 4.25" x 4.25" $175

While touristing in Nassau, Bahamas I noticed this beautiful woman shopping at the farmers market. She was tall and stately with long dark hair braided into cornrows reaching halfway down her back. Each braid had dozens of golden beads woven into it by the artist that did her hair. Many of my works are interpretations of, or inspired by nature and the world around me.

Raku-fired Ceramic Assemblage 56" x 18" $1,075

This is part of my “Kilauea” series, which was inspired by a helicopter trip on the Big Island of Hawaii. New lava flows along a path blazed by a previous eruption until running out of land and burying itself in the Pacific Ocean. The edge of the earlier flow borders on the lush greenery of a tropical island. Many of my works are interpretations of, or inspired by nature and the world around me. Kilauea’s beauty and magnificent power take my breath away every time I visit.

Contact information for this artist can be found on page 66.

Ice Cone, Yosemite Falls, Yosemite National Park, CA 1977

Kevin Hass

Gelatin Silver Photographic Print by Kevin Hass 9.44" x 7.44" $700

I remember the hike to this vantage point at lower Yosemite Falls. It was very cold, very quiet, and very isolated. I did not see another person, but there was a spot of life: a dog running on the large ice cone in front of me. This was just another reminder of how small we are in the grand nature of things.

Old Building, Los Angeles, CA 1976

Kevin Hass

Gelatin Silver Photographic Print by Kevin Hass 9.37" x 7.25" $700

This building, a part of the history of Los Angeles, seemed to ask me to photograph it. Using a 4” x 5” view camera, I was able to adjust the perspective of the building to match what I wanted to say with my image. This print shows the grand dignity of the wooden structure and iron staircase. The horizontal, vertical and angular lines give great strength as well as delicacy to my chosen subject.

Aya Valley

Karen Hochman Brown

On a winding mountain road in Japan, I paused at the view of the Aya Valley filled with atmospheric haze. My photographer’s eye is always in search of fodder for my digital manipulations. However, on occasion, the imagery is so pure and quiet that I find it compelling on its own, with minimal intervention on my part. To maintain the intimacy of the moment, I have constrained the image to a small square presentation.

Coxcomb Hill

Karen Hochman Brown

Archival Pigment Print on Hahnemühle William Turner 15" x 15" $225

A sojourn along the Columbia River took me to Astoria on a misty morning. The view from Coxcomb Hill, which is the setting of the Astoria Column, was tranquil and poetic, with mist enveloping all but the treetops receding in the distance. My photographer’s eye is always in search of fodder for my digital manipulations. However, on occasion, the imagery is so pure and quiet that I find it compelling on its own, with minimal intervention on my part. To maintain the intimacy of the moment, I have constrained the image to a small square presentation.

Contact information for this artist can be found on page 67.

Dreamland 1

Karen M. Holgerson

Fabric Collage on Board 14" x 18" $750

It’s all about color and fantasy in this fabric collage “painting”! I wanted to create something magical and fun! I started with an idea, selected colors that captured my imagination, then cut fabrics into shapes that would work like a jigsaw puzzle. I used acrylic medium to glue the fabric pieces into place.

This dreamland fantasy was created in a mood of calm and gratitude. I work in my garden as the weather permits. It’s always a place of color, texture, shape, and joy. This combination of colors is sedate and meditative. The choice of fabrics combines subtle and not-so-subtle patterns.

Beach Party

Nancy Lasater

Acrylic on Canvas 21.375" x 31.375" $1100

Southern California sun on shaggy palm trees, what’s not to like? I took the reference photo while on a long walk. One of those palms is lit at night with one of those turning light color wheels, like on a Christmas tree. I have no idea how anyone got up so high.

Beach Party is custom framed in caramel-colored wood to give it a sort of retro beachy vibe.

Bird’s Eye View Nancy Lasater

Acrylic on Canvas 30" x 15" $1,050

This piece is brand new. I chose to do something different with the lollipop palm trees in Los Angeles, which are normally painted standing tall at the tops of their long, thin trunks on a vertical canvas. I decided to use the same large canvas but to paint only the crowns of the trees at the bottom in order to provide a new point of view – one that only birds can see. Aren’t they lucky?

Bird’s Eye View comes in a black floater frame.

Contact information for this artist can be found on page 67.

Warner LeMénager

Photograph

Lago Garda, furthest east of the major lakes in the north of Italy, has an undiscovered feel to it next to the other major lakes. To get to Sirmione, a finger sticking north in the lowest point of the lake, one must go through Colombare, a good place to stay. The three-mile walk from Colombare to Sirmione is great for the artistic photos one is looking for.

Kukuxumusu

Warner LeMénager

Photograph

You see the photo and wonder what it is ... well, what they sell in the shop is teenie-bopper clothing, and it is located between the river and the cathedral/mosque in Cordoba, Spain. Really didn’t fit there, but then they knew how to be seen. Found on webpage: “known by their trading name Kukuxumusu, is a Spanish company from Pamplona, Navarra. Its name means flea kiss in Basque.”

Fish in Reeds Plate

Mims Ellis

Ceramic 12" x 12" x 2" $400

So much of ceramics is coincidental. Unlike painting, where the artist has control over the color palette and size of the piece, ceramics never cease to surprise me. When glazing this piece, I took a leap of faith by pouring several different colors of glaze from different directions across the surface. The resulting pattern just happened to outline the shape and face of a yellow fish!

Your Origin II: A Tribute Award to Soil

E. M. Tietjen

High-fire Stoneware Ceramic, Glaze, and Oxides 7.5" x 10.5" x 9" $600

Trodden on, shoveled, criticized for getting into places where it doesn’t belong, soil is not always appreciated for the contribution it makes to our very lives. Good soil will produce good food. Good soil is an elaborate ecosystem of microbes, algae, fungi, springtails, mites, nematodes, earthworms and insects all helping to recycle nutrients by decomposing dead plants and animals. From its depths to its surface springing with growth, soil deserves our thanks!

In Theremin Air

Maryellen Eltgroth

Cibachrome Photographic Print 16" x 20" NFS

Lines and colors appear and recede as I stride alongside an electric display – camera shutter open, ASA minimized, f16, ambient light midnight. The subconscious prompts me to linger on, then circle, certain spots so that an unseen image is revealed. Time and motion intercept one another in the ether. This technique brings to mind a strange musical instrument that is played by never touching the device. The musician’s hands interfere and reshape frequency bands circulating around two metal rods. Under the right circumstances an opus springs forth from the theremin. There are wavelengths everywhere just outside of our four-to-seven-thousand-angstrom visual range. There are frequencies everywhere just outside of our audible reach. This unseen, unheard energy stirs our collective self.

39 Contact information for this artist can be found on page 67.

Deconstructed 2

Jean Richardson

Oil on Canvas 12" x 36" $600

The lines and curves of the human body create intrinsic movement and, when deconstructed and rearranged, can evoke images of many bodies moving together. After studying figure drawing for many years, this abstraction of the body creates a break from tightly controlled depictions.

The Violinist

Jean Richardson

Oil on Canvas 20" x 16" $600

This model was compelling individually, but I wanted to create a context for her. That became a music studio in an urban setting where she played the violin.

Near the eye

It moves slowly

Old Wind

Arella Tomlinson

Oil, Acrylic, Collage on Wood 8" x 8" $450

Her cloak a sanctuary from the clash –Land meets Sea.

Where verdant outposts push west

Meanwhile the Pacific and her fluid memories Flare blue, and weave back valiantly, riding the Ways of the ancients.

I paint figures embedded into or imposed upon maps. “Old Wind” is painted on a vinyl raised-relief map of Northern San Diego, California, and is my poetic imagining of an indigenous Kumeyaay Ipai woman, her bold eagle eyes meeting the enchanted wind.

Trickle Down

Leah Knecht

Oil, Acrylic, Sand, Cash Drawer, Ephemera 48" x 40" x 3"

$5,000

My piece, “Trickle Down,” depicts the portion “Commerce” of the mural in the U.S. Capitol where the Roman god Mercury is handing a bag of money to Robert Morris. Mercury ruled over wealth, commerce, and thievery. The crumbling stairs include carved precedents that prevented many classes of Americans from achieving financial security. There is a vintage money drawer incorporated at the bottom filled with Green Stamps. Food wrappers from various ethnic grocery stores and other ephemera are embedded in the thick acrylic stair portion. Economic injustice based on race and gender still persists and is passed down through generations.

Honorable Mention

43 Contact information for this artist can be found on page 67.

Wanna Play

Janet Manalo

Mixed Media Assemblage 12" x 18" x 18" $1,200

“Wanna Play” is a tribute to the allure and history of board games. The four-sided assemblage is constructed of old books and vintage game boards. Nostalgic games like CandyLand and Snakes and Ladders charmed us as children. Chess, Monopoly and Scrabble still entertain us as adults. A colorful assortment of cards, dice, tokens and game pieces playfully move throughout the artwork’s many perspectives. Enticing curiosity, small keyholes provide unexpected views and become portals between sections. “Wanna Play” invites your imagination to be interactive with exploring and reliving the fascination of games.

Rainbow on Brick

Jeffry Jensen

Digital Photograph 11" x 11.5" $260 for this artist can be found on page 67.

For this photograph, I took advantage of a rainstorm. I noticed that after a big soaking the brick patio was covered in a thin layer of water, and in the water was a rainbow. It was as if the image was screaming at me to take a picture. So after enhancing the digital image, I had intense red bricks, reflections off the water of tree limbs, and - of course - a rainbow. There are times when an image just hits you and you must make creative use of it. This is one of those.

Eternal Stillness

Robert Michael Sullivan

Photograph on Canvas 22.5" x 15" $900

The planet was created through a dynamic interplay of various astronomical forces. Its surface has been sculpted and refined by the etching of geology and weather. Daily it spins on its axis and continues its yearly journey around the sun. Yet only eternal stillness is evident. We are reminded that equanimity and peace constitute our true nature as we experience the varieties of experience in life.

Acrylic on Pellon 36" x 42" $2,000

From my “Cancer” series - Dr Hoffman was my surgeon. I met him when I was diagnosed with cancer, and he removed a significant portion of my large intestine as well as a piece of my liver. He was a very caring doctor, and I enjoyed working with him. His wife was studying to be a rabbi. He called me out of the blue one day about a year after the surgery to see how I was doing. Thanks, Doc.

Clown

Tom Oldfield

Digital Inkjet Photograph 16" x 20" $300

My photography is an escape from everyday reality. I am fascinated with the process of how things became what they are and where they are going, whether the subject is a grand landscape or some decaying technology from the past.

All of my work is in black and white. To me a black and white image is more elegant and encourages people to participate by bringing their imagination into play. I mostly use traditional large-format film and traditional darkroom techniques. Although large-format film is my passion, I use other processes when that avenue is more appropriate for my image.

This image is from the Neon Boneyard in Las Vegas, a graveyard of sign art from years past. The clown generates varying emotions in people. I’m not allowed to hang the image in our home!

Contact information for this artist can be found on page 67.

Naxos

Serena Refoua

Mixed Media 8" x 8" $300

I use watercolor, gouache, ink and pastels to create expressionistic abstracts that evoke the natural world, often in a surrealistic manner. In this piece, I was inspired by a trip to the Greek island of Naxos. I had the privilege of a private tour with an archaeologist. We spent an exhilarating day zipping through mountain villages, gaping at Byzantine frescoes by candlelight and dodging the goats with bells around their necks who guarded the village roads. 49 Contact information for this artist can be found on page 68.

Graphite and Colored Pencil on Canson Paper 72" x 36" $4,600

This drawing is one of my bigger pieces at 72” x 36”. It’s of my beautiful Epiphone Casino Sunburst electric guitar that I bought at Guitar Center up on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood about a year after Lynn and I got married. I never really practiced playing like I should have, but I absolutely loved how it looked when I did play. The sound was incredible. During a time when I was freelancing and clients were taking forever and a day to pay (if ever), I had to sell it to pay taxes. That sucked.

Contact information for this artist can be found on page 67.

Hershey’s Kisses No. 1

Graphite and Colored Pencil on Canson Paper 62" x 35" NFS

Hershey’s Kisses were a major part of my childhood memories from the holidays growing up on the St. Clair River in Algonac, Michigan. Every year, my Grandma Carter would have a bowl of these on one of the end tables. The bowl was magic, because no matter how many you ate, it seemed to always be filled. If you were lucky enough to sit on the couch next to one of these magic bowls, you could reach over and sneak one or two Hershey’s Kisses without the adults catching you. Well, at least they pretended not to notice.

51 Contact information for this artist can be found on page 67.

If we weren’t looking for pop bottles, we were probably playing Cowboys and Indians. This was my Hubley cap pistol. I must have had it from the time I was six until I was eight. I remember my Dad taking it away because a bunch of us kids discovered that you could take a whole roll of caps and smash ‘em with a hammer on the cement and it would sound like an M80 going off! We also cracked the cement sidewalk. None of the Dads seemed happy about that.

Overwhelmed Rebecca H. Pollack

Etching and Aquatint 14" x 18" NFS

This piece is an etching depicting the emotional fallout of war and displacement. It is based upon some clippings of Pakistani refugees but could easily be symbolic of any global conflict and its influence on people that are victims of that conflict.

Refugees Crossing

Rebecca H. Pollack

Etching and Aquatint 14" x 18" NFS

This is an etching of people fleeing from their homes and heading into the unknown. Unfortunately, it is too common a theme these days. With power and corruption, many peoples are displaced. This image is based on the Macedonian and Serbian exodus, although this could be anyone and anywhere, past or present.

Remnants of War

Rebecca H. Pollack

Etching and Colored Pencil 14" x 18" NFS

This is an etching enhanced with colored pencil. It is a depiction of what is left after the destruction of a city. This city is symbolic of many. This has been happening throughout the millennium and is especially poignant now in Ukraine.

I sit in solitude, and I am soothed by the soft colors and the deep silence following the final note of sonorous chant. The columns recede in the distance - echoing the journey of memory and life. This photographic series - “Solitude” - explores the places that welcome and encourage solitude, silence, and contemplation.

Homage

Alone and enjoying the solitude of the dunes my only companions are the sounds of the wind and waves and a solo raven. I happened upon this boat - clearly, a casualty of some storm, forgotten and abandoned. This photographic series - “Solitude” - explores the places that welcome and encourage solitude, silence, and contemplation.

57 Contact information for this artist can be found on page 68.

I walk in solitude and silence blanketed in a soft fog and watched over by a lone sentinel on a distant hill. This photographic series - “Solitude” - explores the places that welcome and encourage solitude, silence, and contemplation.