When we first entered this booth, it was because these pieces were vibrant and beautifully executed, and we were curious to see more.  The landscapes alone are stunning pieces of work, and he overlays bold shapes and lines on top.  He does that, which is fascinating because it shows the “inorganic realities” that are distractions or noise in our daily lives even when immersed in nature.  While this concept is a reality in today’s culture, these pieces are energetic and make us want to go outside and explore. 

Alex captured the creativity of our youth in his booth this year with his collection called Box Boy Junior – Travel Surrealism.  From the simplicity of a young boy imagining he is travelling to space in a quarter-operated mechanical rocket to pieces with much more complexity, capturing the innocence of our youth.  These whimsical pieces would be perfect for a family who embraces imagination or a good “Cardboard Box Adventure”.   After seeing Alex at the show this weekend, we checked out some of his other projects on his website, which are very different from these pieces, so it was fun to see his diversity of work.  You should take a minute to check out his website if you like animation, digital or ink work. 

Amanda’s playful mixed-media art will surely put a smile on your face. Her bold pop art pieces, inspired by the mid-century, would be a fun addition to a modern home. Some of our favourite pieces from Amanda incorporate whimsical humour, such as this cowboy roping a cactus. 

Between our love for plants and art, this booth was a fun surprise. Our favorite pieces were the large sculptures you see in the photo here. They are beautifully balanced, with organic succulents emerging out of the geometric base.

While we still determine how she accomplishes this beautiful pleat and twist effect with her canvas, we see that she paints perfectly clean lines on top. We love her use of bold colours and shapes on top of the canvas’s texture. These pieces will have your guests taking a closer look. 

When looking for photography art, we try to find something unique, meaning we haven’t seen anything like it before and that it would be very hard for someone to recreate.  Chris’s Measuring Abundance series was a show stopper with the layered semi-transparent acetate photo over the traditional rag paper print.  The photos have digital and handmade effects, including grid measurement lines.  Chris talks about “measuring and accounting the value of something that can’t be quantified.  And how do we measure abundance?”.  This modern and monochromatic series has a multidimensional warm glow that sparks deeper conversations. 

The minimalism and simplicity in Craig’s metalwork are executed so perfectly that it would seem effortless, even though we know this type of perfection is a true work of art.  His pieces are bold, and we loved looking at the details and unique materials incorporated into each piece.  They would easily integrate into a residential or commercial space, and we would love to get our hands on one soon.  As our husbands would say, they can tell we are reconfiguring wall space in our heads when we are looking at certain artists’ work. 

While we have been keeping our eye on Ezra’s work over the years, we wanted to give a shout-out to him this year. In his booth this year, we got a closer look at his work. The artwork initially reads minimalist with an organic background, but as you get closer, you can see the complexity, depth, and layers within his pieces. They would be easily incorporated into a modern home design. 

The beautiful homemade pigments in Mami’s one-of-a-kind prints had us searching for all organic forms and shapes within each piece.  Learning more about the printmaking process and the variety of techniques she uses to create each print made us appreciate her work even more. 

While the bold colours and prominent facial features brought us into this booth this year, his ink quail pen detail and 3D mixed media art kept us there. We looked into his artwork further after the festival, and his creative process is showcased on social media, where you watch him transform a painted figure with his quail pen into a stunning piece of artwork. He notably mentions that his artwork is spontaneous and is always surprised by the outcome when he lets his subconscious guide his art. 

From mixed media collages to paintings, this booth showcased bold colours mixed with pastels.  The paintings were more organic and abstract, while the mixed media also incorporated traditional shapes, lines, words, and prints she collected over time.  If you love colour and are looking for a piece of art to make a statement on your walls, you should check out more of Teri’s artwork on her website, as finding one image to represent her work was hard.