2026 Five Star Invitational

John Weecks

Woodcarving

Born in Austria, John Weecks spent many of his formative years in Paris, Munich, and Vienna, where he developed a deep appreciation for the arts and, in particular, the tradition of woodcarving.

His extensive creative career in New York City included jewelry design, model-making, custom furniture restoration and building, and commercial book illustration — all reflecting a lifelong commitment to originality, craftsmanship, and creative expression.

Weecks’ sculptural work honors the natural beauty and character of wood while demonstrating extraordinary technical skill and attention to detail. His work can be found at The Finer Arts Gallery in Cave Creek and the Fountain Hills Artists’ Gallery in Fountain Hills.

JohnWeecks.com
Instagram, Facebook & YouTube: @JohnWeecks

Melanie Harman

Watermedia: Watercolor, Acrylic & Collage

Melanie Harman is an Arizona-based artist working in a variety of watermedia, including watercolor, acrylic, and collage. She began her artistic journey in 2005 as a mid-life beginner and has since studied with nationally and internationally recognized artists including Tom Lynch, Lian Quan Zhen, and Laurie Goldstein-Warren.

Her work is held in private collections throughout the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Harman is an active member of numerous Arizona and regional arts organizations and volunteers in several capacities within the arts community. She is also available for workshops and demonstrations in watercolor and acrylic gel print collage.

Harman’s work reflects the world around her — people, places, flowers, and everyday moments. A full range of values is central to her process, regardless of medium, as she seeks to capture what first compelled her to paint: striking contrasts of value and color, or emotionally resonant subject matter. In recent years, she has been drawn to subjects that evoke a quiet mood — peaceful, contemplative, and at times gently melancholic. Her current work with poured watercolor from dark to light allows the paint to move organically across the paper, creating soft edges and luminous transitions that mirror the meditative nature of the process itself.

mharman.art
Instagram: @mharmanart

Ruta Janiulis

Oil Painting

Born in Lithuania, Ruta Janiulis studied at the Fine Arts Gymnasium in Kaunas before continuing her education at the Vilnius Academy of Arts. Since moving to the United States in 1994, she has worked as a full-time artist, living and creating in Florida, the Chicago area, and Arizona.

Drawing inspiration from her European roots, Janiulis often explores themes of architecture, history, vintage imagery, and portraiture. In recent years, her work has evolved toward a freer and more personal visual language as she continues to explore new subjects and directions. Her practice includes oil painting, watercolor, collage, and large-scale mural work for residential and commercial spaces.

Hank Keneally

Mixed Media

Hank Keneally has spent a lifetime immersed in the arts. From learning piano with his grandmother, a piano teacher, to discovering classical music through his brother, music became an early foundation for a deeply creative life. Over the years, his artistic path has included photography, painting, and digital media, alongside a 42-year career in counseling and social work — a practice he views as another form of artistic process grounded in compassion and observation.

Keneally creates daily, beginning with attentive and empathetic observation of the world around him. Rarely without a camera in hand, he works at the intersection of painting, photography, and digital technology, embracing the unexpected discoveries that emerge when mediums converge. For him, the most meaningful moments occur where disciplines merge and creative reciprocity develops between artist and material.

His work reflects an ongoing dialogue between intuition, technology, and lived experience — always open to surprise within the act of creation.

hankkeneallyfinearts.com

Jules Gallatig

Photography

Jules Gallatig’s photography is inspired by the vivid beauty and quiet poetry of the natural world. Through her lens, she explores the delicate interplay of light, shadow, texture, and color found within botanical forms and organic landscapes. Jules' images range from recognizable desert flora to evocative abstractions of repeating form, pattern, and luminous color.

Her work invites viewers to pause and connect with the subtle elegance often overlooked in everyday moments. By revealing intricate details and atmospheric nuance, Gallatig’s photographs celebrate the serenity, wonder, and restorative presence of nature.