Shows

December 2023 

November 2023 

Featured Artist: 

Debra Lowman

"I’m a professional by day and an artist by night. My great grandmother was a lifelong painter and I grew my love of painting and art from her. I have engaged in some form of drawing, painting and creative art my entire life and see my art as an extension of me. I have some formal education in art, but my degree is not. My background in science, however, fuels my creative spirit and often I try mediums that require some knowledge of chemistry. 

I work in education and believe that we are constantly growing and learning about the world around us and learning about ourselves, our talents, and our strengths. My art medium is fluid. Often, I paint with oil, alcohol inks, and gouache, but purposely dabble in an assortment of mediums pushing myself to stretch my artistic talent. 

I love exploring art in groups. I'm an introvert, however, and I really don't take myself so seriously, so likely I won't give a huge backstory or rant on and on in a lengthy dialogue. But, I'm happy to answer any questions you have and hope you take a medium explored with me in a class and continue to expand on it on your own in the future. 

You can see more of my work at the Brick Street Gallery Catalogue and at Fine Art America."

Deb currently meets to do art and "art therapy" on an almost weekly basis with a group of local artists. She is a board member on the West Liberty Area Arts Council, teaches various classes/workshops, and serves on the Brick Street Gallery committee.

October 2023 Featured Artist: Monica Leo

Monica Leo is a first-generation American, born to German refugees in the waning days of World War Two.  After the war, her parents ordered a set of Kasperle hand puppets from a German craftswoman, and Monica began telling stories with puppets.  A graduate of the University of Iowa, she studied for two years at the State Art Academy in Düsseldorf, Germany, with Josef Beuys. There she discovered that her visual sense was influenced by the illustrated Grimms’ Fairy Tale book she devoured as a child. Since 1975, she has been creating and performing as founder and principal puppeteer of  Eulenspiegel Puppet Theatre. 

Eulenspiegel’s home is Owl Glass Puppetry Center, a tiny center in the small town of West Liberty, Iowa.

Monica also makes dolls and linoleum block prints and writes for the Puppetry Journal, a national magazine. She lives in a log cabin in the woods built by her late carpenter husband, John Jenks.

Block printing is a relief printing technique that uses a carved material (typically wood, linoleum, or rubber) to transfer ink onto fabric or paper. The block serves as a stamp, with the final product resulting in a mirror image of the carving. Woodblock prints can range from small images intended to be repeated in a pattern to large works of art that require a large printing press to print. In the past, these were also used to print entire books. Depending on the size of the knife and the quality of the material, it’s possible to capture a fine degree of detail in each print. However, since the process is generally done by hand, no two prints are ever the same.

During the 2020 pandemic, Monica wrote a book about her life, family, and puppetry. It will be available October 2023 from Ice Cube Press and is titled Hand.Shadow.Rod: The Story of Eulenspiegel Puppet Theatre. Since 1974, Eulenspiegel has toured in thirty-one states and four other countries while also establishing and maintaining a nationally known puppetry center in West Liberty, Iowa. Her memoir traces its history and explores the relationship between work and play, between loss and recovery, between puppets and puppeteers. It reflects on midwestern life between the late 1970's and the present day.

Monica is a board member on the West Liberty Area Arts Council, teaches various classes/workshops, and serves on the Brick Street Gallery committee.

September 2023 Featured Artist: 

Stephanie Vallez

Stephanie Vallez

Stephanie Vallez is a puppeteer and toymaker from West Liberty, Iowa. She has been working with Eulenspiegel Puppet Theatre Company as a puppeteer since 2018. She has a background in dance, music and foreign language. Stephanie has performed in ballets and horror films, although her academic pursuits with the University of Iowa were focused on grammar and phonetics, mainly in French and Spanish. She also designs and creates dolls and miniatures using a variety of media. Her work has been seen occasionally in Iowa’s many art galleries. She is a published writer of essays and articles in English and Spanish, and she often writes songs and poems, many of which appear in her puppet shows. She spent many years working in group homes and long-term care facilities for adults with developmental disabilities. Stephanie has one son who constantly keeps her on her toes, as if she didn’t already have plenty to do. 

Stephanie is a board member on the West Liberty Area Arts Council and serves on the Brick Street Gallery committee.

August 2023 Featured Artist: Mary Maxson

Mary Maxson is a retired Spanish teacher and alumna of West Liberty High School, Iowa State University and the University of Wyoming. She taught Spanish for 32 years in West Liberty and was a Fulbright exchange teacher for 6 months in Argentina at La Universidad Nacional de Villa Maria.

Among the places she's traveled to immerse herself in Spanish are Spain, Mexico and Argentina. She and husband Ron, a retired history teacher, have two grown sons and two grandchildren. Mary and Ron continue to travel and have been to such places as Croatia, Slovenia, Kenya, Thailand, Mexico, Germany, Argentina, the Caribbean and Middle East. While traveling, Mary’s first priority in packing is her sketch book and watercolors. She first studied art under Karel Cline, but has continued to take workshops and classes in Iowa City, particularly with Jo Myers-Walker.

 “I find watercolor challenging. My favorite is drawing, as taught me by Karel Cline. I love the pleasure of drawing something and watching it appear on the paper as if by magic. I take my sketchbook with me almost everywhere.”

June 2023 Featured Artist: Garth Conley

A BIT ABOUT THE ARTIST

Garth Conley earned his BA in history and art from West Virginia Wesleyan College, Buckhannon, WV.  He also studied at the Evanston Art Center in Evanston, IL., took Plein-aire painting under George Liebert from the Art Institute of Chicago, and life drawing from Max Ranft at the American Academy of Art in Chicago, IL.

Garth continues to teach drawing at the Johnson County Senior Center, has taught painting demonstrations at Hillcrest Academy, held painting and color mixing demonstrations at Blick Art Materials in Iowa City, and has taught painting classes for the West Liberty Area Arts Council.

Garth has held solo shows at Mercy Hospital, Hillcrest Academy, and the 2015 Gallery Walk for the Johnson County Senior Center.  He's also been part of many group shows including the Hudson River Gallery in Coralville, Blick Art Materials Employee Christmas Show and Sale, 2014-2021, The Chait Gallery's Small Works Exhibition in Iowa City, the 2018 Bird Exhibition for the Raptor Project in Iowa City, and the 2018 West Liberty Plein Aire it and Exhibition where he earned the First Place Award. Most recently he earned an Honorable Mention at the 2023 Muscatine Art Array 23, a juried show.

His work was selected for the cover of three books by Joseph Brisben and his art has been included in several corporate collections and commissions including:  Ambrose & Associates Realtors, Inc in Iowa City, IMT Insurance Co in Des Moines, IA., West Music in Coralville, MidWestOne Bank in Iowa City and Mercy Hospital in Iowa City.

Garth is our Tuesday afternoon host for Brick Street Gallery.

ARTIST’S STATEMENT 

"This is where I’m supposed to say something profound and meaningful about my artistic  vision and why I paint what I paint the way I paint it." 

THE JOURNEY 

"When I was twelve, I bought a small set of oil paints, brushes, and a book. Two older friends helped me get started. In high school, a couple fantasy illustrators really caught my  attention with their paintings of warriors, elves, dwarves, and fantasy worlds. It struck me that, though the worlds they paint are not real, the figures and elements in the paintings  look solid and three-dimensional. They occupy real space, they catch the light, cast shadows, and there is atmosphere surrounding it all. The fact that they are fully rendered and not  flat or cartoony really caught my imagination. 

In college, I worked at the Terra Museum of American Art, in Evanston, Illinois, during my breaks. (Dan Terra’s collection is now part of the National Gallery in Washington, DC.) I connected with the American Impressionists and several illustrators, who were their contemporaries. The French Impressionists’ paintings evolved into an ethereal gold/pink/ lavender/blue velvet fog, but the Americans maintained the drawing as well as the light in their compositions. It was during this time that I learned the specifics of how light works  and how to render it effectively. 

In my last years of college, I saw the work of a few 20th century French-school artists who painted dramatic city landscapes in many different kinds of light and weather: rain, snow, bright afternoon sun, and evening. I loved their work, but didn’t have the vision to pursue the complex compositions they created. It was not until a decade later that I began painting city landscapes. 

After college, I studied portrait painting in an effort to increase my observational skill and broaden my painting repertoire."

PRESENT DAY 

"Owing to my early exposure to the work of illustrators, my paintings have always had an illustration look to them. In the last few years, I’ve been pursuing figure painting and illustration. 

Whatever the subject of a painting, my main concern is what the light is doing and what the mood or atmosphere that’s created by it is. Another artist took the title of  “Painter of Light,” so I can’t—but it’s what I do and who I am as an artist. Is the light soft and muted? Is it strong and directional? Is there reflected light bouncing around the composition illuminating the shadows? Is the light cool or warm? Are the shadows cool or warm? In my drawing class, I have one session in which I teach and demonstrate my particular understanding of how light works. 

Painting is not photography. I have chosen not to pursue photorealism, or to create a smooth, highly-rendered finish with lots of detail. Seeing the brush strokes is really important. I break up the surfaces and forms into planes, for a painterly result. Oil is my main medium, but I paint city-landscapes in acrylic. I use graphite pencil both for preliminary studies and finished drawings, as well."

May 2023 Featured Artist: 

Jan Stephan

"I have retired after fifty years as a nurse and now my time is my own. Art has begun to fill it. 

Art has always been part of my l life, if only part time: lessons with oil paint at Nellie Geber’s studio when I was about 13; some other forays into oil/acrylic painting and many years working with polymer clay sculpts, but not until I got the courage to try watercolors did I find my niche. 

It is said that water colors are the most difficult medium but they are also magic. Magic happens when I can let go of the control and let the paint do what it wants, go where it wants with the results that it seems to want. I have learned to usually love the conclusions. 

I am new to this medium so my style is still a work in progress and may always be that way with curiosity at the helm. I begin with an idea and the paint does the rest…..magic. There are pleasant surprises and some unpleasant surprise, but I hope you enjoy the results as much as I enjoy the process."

April 2023 

Featured Artists (WLHS students):

Teacher:

Seniors:

Juniors:

Sophomores:

Freshmen:

March 2023 Featured Artist:

Tony 

Frausto

"My name is Atanacio "Tony" Frausto. I'm a mexican-american Photographer and Artist from West Liberty, Iowa. Ever since I can remember art has been one of the consistent and positive aspects of my life. ..

"As a child I could always be found coloring or drawing. As I grew older, I started to breakdance with my cousins and friends competitively and in breakdancing individuality is very important. We would travel to different cities around the midwest meeting other dancers and creatives and I always say that if it wasn't for those diverse experiences I would not be who I am today. After high school I went to Kirkwood taking mostly art classes, which gave me an introduction into the foundations of art: perspective, color theory, and composition and gave me a chance to be surrounded by all disciplines of the arts: visual artists, musicians, dancers, writers and actors. Being in this environment I was able to further develop my understanding of foundational artistic elements like motion, rhythm, character and aesthetics. My passion for photography started about 3 and a 1/2 years ago when I got a camera to photograph cars at car shows. However, I quickly realized that with this medium I could do so much more and use it to tell stories through photographs and I realized that this isn't just a hobby, it is my calling. Photography became a way in which I could express my own feelings through images, and as I started learning and progressing I started to realize how powerful an image could be. My main objective is to hold still a moment in time and create something that has emotion, depth and energy and create art that is a reflection of who You are. Check out my work and let it speak for itself. " 


February 2023 Featured Artists:

Several of our gallery artists are bringing in new works.

We have paintings with sunflowers (showing support for Ukraine), a tulips painting, stained glass, Valentine's collages using vintage Valentines, cards, photography, and more to come all in the theme of Heart & Flowers! 

January 2023 Featured Artist

Karel Cline and Students

Karel Chandler was born December 21, 1940 in Nashua, Iowa in her parents home. She attended Nashua schools and graduated in 1959. She enrolled in Iowa State Teachers College (UNI) for two years. She and Robert Cline were married in 1961 and after several years of raising their family, she enrolled at the University of Iowa. She graduated Uof I in 1977 with a degree in art. She taught in West Liberty schools and after retiring, she organized and led an adult, non-profit art class that is still ongoing.

December 2022 Featured Artist

Dorianne Rees

Dorianne Rees has taken every art class she could since she was a young girl. Having a mother who is an art teacher certainly helped spark her creativity.

She primarily works with prisma color markers and pencil. Her work has been described as "wacky" and she likes that. "It's fun to use colors and shapes and to design things in a different way"

Dorianne is originally from Kansas but has called West Liberty home for 7 years now. She has other interests besides drawing. She also directors theatre, acts and enjoys teaching and performing improv.

She would like to thank the community for supporting Brick Street Gallery and local artists and really supporting art in general whatever form that might take. 

November 2022 Featured Artist

Annette Henderson

"My name is Annette Henderson and my husband Jeff and I have lived in the West Liberty area all our lives. We raised two children, Cole and Hannah.   Having grown up on a farm, I developed a love for the outdoors and nature’s beauty.  For me, all art is derived from nature. 

I have always loved to draw and create things and enjoyed art classes in school but beyond that I’ve no other art instruction. Over the years I have dabbled in drawing, stained glass, jewelry making, photography and making mosaics.  All self taught.  I just could not find my creative niche.  Then in 2015 I was urged to participate in one of the WLAAC classes they offer.  I chose painting and found I really enjoyed it.   

At first I was very detail oriented and wanted every painting to look like a photo.   It was easy to get frustrated.  I struggled with mixing colors and my paintings usually turned out dark.  In the last couple of years, I’ve been trying to force myself to paint more freely. I’ve become more comfortable with mixing colors and not so afraid of color.  Also not to be so stingy with my paint. I’ve found that I really enjoy layering colors to achieve certain effects.   

I’ve also gotten over the fear of painting over an area that I’m not happy with and just starting over.  I would always try to fix it but somethings just can’t be fixed.  It’s easier and less frustrating to just begin again. 

I would say landscapes are my favorite subject to paint.  I’ve taken a lot of pictures while trail riding my horses around the country. I’ve  ridden in 15 states so far.  I get a lot of my inspirations from my trips. " 

October 2022 Featured Artist

Clark "Mick" McFerren

Clark "Mick" McFerren, a high school English teacher, began to dabble in watercolor painting in 1990 after the birth of his first child.  He Needed a hobby that helped him unwind, was portable, and easy to engage in while watching a curious child.

Mick finds most of his subject matter in Iowa, neighboring states, and from family vacations.  His work generally starts with a plein air sketch.  He then uses the sketch and photographs to produce a finished work in his 'studio'.

"Watercolor painting is tremendously rewarding.  The Medium comes under the 'creative influence' of the watercolorist but tends to behave with a will of its own.  A painting becomes a conversation with the paint and the paper - sometimes it turns into a debate and things really become a lot of fun!" - McFerren


September 2022 Featured Artists

Ron & Jean Lawrence

 Ron discovered woodturning while at their winter home in Texas where the community has a complete woodworking shop with five woodturning lathes, in addition to many other woodworking tools and machines.  Learning about different species of wood, turning techniques and how to correctly finish a wood piece under the eye of experienced woodworkers was an invaluable experience.  He decided to put a basic workshop in his garage in West Liberty so he could continue this hobby year round.

After starting with small bowls he has turned pens and seam rippers. Larger bowls and lidded containers have been added to his inventory.  He also makes clocks, lamps and breadboards.  He has also made many birdhouses in all different shapes and sizes, many using reclaimed wood.



As a retired couple challenged to find new outlets for their time and energy, Ron and Jean are happy to be busy and involved with their hobbies in creative projects.


Ron and Jean Lawrence have lived in West Liberty since 1968.   They raised a family of three children, David (deceased), Dianne and Kim who all graduated from West Liberty High School.  Ron worked at Oral B Labs in Iowa City as a brush machine technician and Jean was Assistant Registrar at the University of Iowa.  After they both retired in 1997 they began to explore various hobbies in addition to traveling the globe.

Jean has worked with fabric since she started sew at the age of twelve.  Finding few patterns for clothing that were age appropriate in the required size, she began to design her own clothes, including her wedding dress.

She continued her seamstress work while raising her family and sewing clothes for all her children in addition to her own wardrobe.  This included prom dresses, bridesmaid dresses and another wedding dress for her youngest daughter.

After retirement she began looking for another outlet for her sewing skills and a way to make use of a generous “stash” of fabric collected over the years. Quilting became the chosen hobby.

Various techniques, patterns and color combinations provided a wide range of choices in quilting.  Starting with simple patterns she made quilts for her own family and soon graduated to more difficult pieces.  She became interested in machine quilting and acquired a long arm quilter that was capable of sewing computer guided patterns.  Working with the computer program she learned how to make her own quilting designs and adapt them to fit different size requirements.  She soon began to quilt for women in her quilt club and other quilters in the area. 

One of her goals was to make quilt for every member of her family. That goal has been exceeded. She also donates quilts for the Muscatine County Fair, University Hospital and the Simpson Home. 

Recently she has discovered art quilts and wall hangings.  Using a collage technique and unexpected color schemes is the newest trend in her work.

August 2022 Featured Artist

"My name is Morgan Forbes (Nichols). I am an artist and art teacher born and raised in Nichols, IA., who just recently moved back to the West Liberty area to teach secondary visual arts after finishing College. I have a BA in Art and a BA in Art Education, and am currently working towards my MA in Art Education from the University of Iowa where I also am a Teaching Assistant. I enjoy exploring many art forms but find the most joy and freedom when working with clay. When I am not trying to squeeze in time on the pottery wheel or work with watercolors, I go by Mrs. Forbes in the art room at West Liberty High School."

Morgan Forbes

Janet Rees

July 2022 Featured Artist

"I consider myself very fortunate to have had a mother who nurtured creativity. I was the only kid on the block who had a ream of newsprint in my toy closet. I don’t remember having many coloring books. I liked drawing my own pictures.  As a senior in high school, I wrote my senior term paper on art education.  I was hooked. I entered college and majored in art education at Kansas University. I didn’t do a lot of art when my children were little.  I worked as an elementary art teacher, a middle school art teacher, print shop artist, and a framer. After I started teaching art at an at-risk high school, I realized I needed to be working on my own art.  I knew I wasn’t “God’s gift to the art world”, but I wanted to start doing art for myself.  I taught art at Hope Street Academy in Topeka Kansas for 20 years and worked on my own skills."

"After my husband and I retired we moved to West Liberty, Iowa to be closer to grandchildren.  I became part of Karel Cline’s art class on Saturday mornings.  Once again, I was actively working at doing art for my own enjoyment.  Now I have a place to show work at Brick Street Gallery and I am delighted."   

June 2022 Featured Artist

Carlos Maldonado

Carlos Maldonado is an artist from West Liberty, Iowa, currently living in Iowa City. He specializes in Plein Air painting with  his preferred medium being acrylic and gouache. He's been painting for over 20 years and began painting full time in 2019.  When he's not doing Plein Air, he takes commissions from his home studio. He's inspired by beauty in the mundane and is compelled to capture that in his art. Check out his website https://carlosmaldonadoart.com

May 2022 Featured Artist

Deborah Weiss

Deborah has resided with her husband Rick on a farm west of Atalissa for nearly 50 years. They met at Iowa State but when Rick graduated, he suggested that Deb marry him and finish school in Iowa City. Therefore, her degree is from the University of Iowa.  She did her student teaching in WL and a position opened up so she began teaching 5-8 middle school art in January of 1976.  She taught until June of 1983 and then stayed home for a year-long "sabbatical" that turned into 12 years while her three children were young. She returned to teaching in 1998 and just recently retired (last check was in August 2021). She is the chair person of the Brick Street Gallery committee, has trained to be a docent for the University of Iowa's Stanley Art Museum, and is a mentor in the local Dream Catcher's program. She is grandmother to one adorable grandchild. Deborah's artistic vision varies, but she particularly likes to work on art that makes her happy such as flowers and landscapes and interesting buildings. She likes to try a variety of media and has yet to settle for just one, perhaps a bit of a "Jill of all trades, master of none."

April 2022 Featured Artists

Ms. Morgan Forbes

Ms. Forbes is a WLHS 2017 graduate and earned her teaching degree from the University of Iowa in December 2021. She particularly enjoys working in ink, mixed media, and ceramics.

She is a first year teacher at WLHS and will be showing mugs and cups she's created as well as a few paintings and calligraphy pieces. 

She is a member of the West Liberty Area Arts Council and a regular artist participant at the gallery where she sells her pottery (mostly cups and vases) and paintings.

Ms. Forbes is also a volunteer in the Art Division at the Muscatine County Fair where she herself was once the Grand Prize winner of the junior division.

Ms. Forbes teaches a variety of art classes at the high school including Design, Sculpture, Ceramics, Painting and Drawing, and she also is in charge of the production of the annual yearbook, the Cometeer. She holds a student Art Club on Mondays after school.


Ms. Shawna McLeod

Ms. McLeod is in the midst of her 10th year teaching at West Liberty Middle School. She enjoys working along with her students on art in a variety of mediums. 

For the last couple of years, she has been completing more art outside of teaching. The largest piece is the mural downtown, completed during the pandemic in the spring/ summer of 2020. During this time she was searching for some normalcy or a routine and found art was to be an  outlet during this time and sharing that with her students on google classroom as learning continued virtually. She encouraged daily drawings in sketchbooks to develop a routine for herself and the students. She has since continued that in the art classes daily to segue into projects to better the skills and provide more opportunities for self-expression through daily drawings. 


McLeod's  work is highly inspired by nature and bettering the places in which we reside. Ultimately making those a more inspiring place one would want to be in, such as her classroom. In the Fall of 2020, students painted the inner and outer walls of her classroom as one enters, adding splashes of color, to brighten the space. The grow lights from the plants in the classroom help illuminate the spaces of color. 

Ms. Darcy McGuire

Ms. McGuire has a bachelor of fine arts in 3D design and is displaying a lamp and serving tray at the gallery, both previously shown at international furniture fairs in Chicago and New York City. 

She earned her teaching certificate from the University of Iowa and says working with kids is "way more fun" than the design life. Ms. McGuire did part of her student teaching at WLHS and once she was certified, she filled in for the previous elementary art teacher who had taken a leave of absence.  So eventually when that teacher left the position, McGuire was a natural fit to continue in the role. She is known as Ms. McG to her students.

As the elementary art teacher she sees a large number of students, far too many to haul their art to the gallery. However, one fourth grade student did come to her and ask if she might be able to have something displayed and even offered for sale at our gallery, so Ms. McGuire did oblige.

March  2022 

Featured Artist


Cara McFerren 


The Brick Street Gallery's Artist Showcases continue on March 4th with the exceptionally multi-talented visual artist Cara McFerren!

Artist Statement: Cara McFerren

Local business woman, artist, and member of the West Liberty Area Arts Council. My work represents an exploration of a variety of mediums, history and experience. From 1989-1992, I was awarded an ISU College of Design scholarship for excellence, I interned at the Octagon Center for the Arts, and had my first show at Summerfield’s at the Gateway Holiday Inn and Conference Center in Ames. In 1992 I received my BFA in Fine Arts with an emphasis in three areas: printmaking, calligraphy and metalsmithing, from the College of Design at Iowa State University in Ames, IA. 

After graduation, I worked for Blick Art Materials in Iowa City for a few years. Then I switched my focus on personal development and went to work for a client-based business. Through that experience, I began to improve and sharpen my interpersonal and business skills, which has benefitted me when merging the necessity of art and business. In 1997, we moved to our current home in West Liberty. I began to recognize the need for an art outlet and how art and culture partnered perfectly together with the diverse community West Liberty has to offer. Little-by-little, with the right group of enthusiastic folks, my passion and art background proved as an asset in assisting in the creation of the West Liberty Area Arts Council and later, the Brick Street Gallery. 

As for my art…

One of my printing processes involves Intaglio (pronounced: in-TAL-ee-oh), printing. It’s a process that dates back to the 1400’s using techniques of acid etching, dry point engraving and aquatinting onto a copper (or zinc) plate. Ink is then applied to the plate, rubbed to remove the excess leaving the ink only in the incisions made. Paper is applied over the plate and then run through a printing press with enormous pressure that transfers the ink from the recesses of the plate to the paper. Voila….you have a print! Sounds easy enough when in fact, it is a very time involved and labor-intensive process depending upon the imagery and the size of the plate. 

After college, I began painting and found that I really enjoyed it. Especially after I found Eulenspiegel Puppet Theatre, where I worked for a time and helped to paint backdrops and scenery for several of their shows. As for my art, I started out painting abstracts and then found myself morphing to a very modernist approach. I have also enjoyed doing pen and ink drawings. I use the stippling or pointillism method with black India ink, as the images and gradations are created with the application of ink dots. 

I love working with metal. One of my creations was constructing a set of modular railings that are self-standing for repositioning. I was able to create those with the help of a great friend that gave me my first opportunity to learn how to weld. It was through him that I experienced how to work with larger scale metal fabrication than what I was used to in small metalsmithing projects such as the broaches and pins I had made before. I am currently fascinated with fiber arts and have been trying my hand at needle felting. Eventually I want to incorporate weaving with the felting. 

Presently, I am co-owner of a local business, Cardinal Sign & Graphics. We do vinyl graphic applications through decals, signage or labeling. I manufacture the graphics as well as install them. It ties into much of my art background, creative skills and hands-on approach and often times, it allows me to travel and work outside, which I love. 

Feeding my creative self is one of my spiritual necessities, so I find that I am always exploring and challenging myself through learning to work with different art mediums. I have been involved with the arts in West Liberty for over 20 years and to finally have a gallery in town has been an inspiring and rewarding undertaking. My ongoing goal is to continue learning and spreading the love of the arts to the worldwide community.

Chuy Renteria

February 4th, 2022 

Book Signing

January-February 2022 

Featured Artist

Christopher McMahon

Pop Artist and Illustrator

www.cwmcmahon.com

 

“Chris McMahon started drawing weird monsters and various comic book characters when he was just a kid. He then went to the University of Iowa, branching out into painting and sculpture, taking his skills to another level. Eventually, McMahon wound up teaching high school art. Throughout all of this, however, his admiration for weird, whimsical creatures never faded.  But over time, McMahon has come up with so many beings, his imagination can't house all of them. So, the man started browsing secondhands for paintings where they could relocate to. After he spots a suitable piece, McMahon buys it and adds his monsters to it. The end result is so good, one even became a Weezer album cover...”

-BoingBoing

 

"...which depicts a giant monster whose sharp teeth suggests that it might not be the cuddliest of beasts…”

-Spin Magazine

“...Chris McMahon, who paints goofy monsters over thrift store paintings, wryly echoing Mike Kelley’s dark take on suburban America’s treasures and the eerie landscapes of cult video game Shadow of the Colossus...”

-The Guardian


“The immediate success gave McMahon plenty of impetus to stick with the motif. To set such sympathetic scenes, McMahon fills the voids of each secondhand painting with just the right monster. (If you’ve got a spare landscape cluttering up the garage, you can commission your own via his Voluntary Involuntary Collaboration Program.) So painting monsters comes secondary to finding just the right landscape painting. But that actually started as an exercise in just sourcing cheap used canvases which he could then paint over wholesale. Soon enough though, monsters began occupying those lands.  ‘They’re only scary because they’re huge and don’t fit into a society filled with tiny humans,’ McMahon tells SYFY WIRE about his monsters. ‘Godzilla doesn’t want any trouble, but he can’t help the fact that he doesn’t live the way people do. He doesn’t speak their language.’”

-SYFY