Brick by brick One of the best things one can say about a work of art is that it allows the viewer to change their perspective. The art of Jim Baker, an Art 4 Shelter contributor from Edina, does just that. Jim’s watercolor and ink world is full of carefully sculpted...
Capturing life moments and art Todd Wildenauer, a Stillwater native, has been taking photos since he was a kid in the ‘80s. As a high schooler, he’d put himself to work snapping photos of concerts, events, and landscapes. Working in a pre-digital world, you had to...
Creation in the void Art 4 Shelter regular Susan Davies’ intuitive world Susan Davies’ paintings include animal portraits full of movement and heightened personality; atmospheric halos; “meditations” and “visual melodies” made of color and kinetic brushstrokes....
My name is Crystal Sokuu. I am a self-taught visual artist and paint instructor residing in Minneapolis, MN. I began branding myself in the art industry by selling my artwork, hosting a “one of a kind” exhibition, and instructing several heART therapy...
Food stylist Abby Wyckoff and photo stylist Juli Hanssen share a talent for design and a love of art. Creative professionals in the community, the duo also leverages their strengths as volunteer committee members for Simpson’s annual Art 4 Shelter fundraiser. Five...
Kim Senn is an artist, business owner, and community advocate committed to helping end homelessness. She studied journalism and started her professional career in advertising. To create balance in her life, Kim recalls taking life drawing classes and focusing her...
Celebrating 10 years as an artist, botanical printmaker Linda Snouffer describes her work as “multi-layered fine-art.” Over the years of practice and learning from artists in the field, she has fine-tuned her techniques to create a stunning and varied collection of...
One way or another John Morse has immersed himself in art throughout his life. He received his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Minnesota in 1988. Building on an early career in painting and photography, he was a creative director with Target...
Ceramic artist and Art 4 Shelter committee member Cindy Syme has been creating pottery for 30 years. She recalls early memories of handbuilding as a child and her transition to working on the wheel. Cindy and her family have a shared talent for the fine arts: Her...
World–renowned and award-winning professional artist, Jim Denomie is admired for his colorful and expansive oil paintings, often 5’ x 7” to 9 x 12” in size, that capture his surroundings and the richness of his Ojibwe heritage in surreal style. From the time...
Davie Duke is a trained painter and self-taught sculptor. For the past two years he has focused on oil painting on canvas. Davie’s recent work, what he calls the “Black and White” series, is a collection of larger oil paintings on canvas that...
Professional photographer Paul Nelson creatively captures nature and wildlife themes in his artwork. Partnering with conservation groups, he photographs songbirds against a white background as they fly from bird banding studies. This video shows the...
A career draftsman and designer, Peter Mathews is an artist at heart. From a young age, he loved to draw and paint. He was later voted most artistic in his senior class. Interested in a career that utilized his artistic talents, he compromised on a drafting career,...
Talented artist and Art 4 Shelter committee member, Deann Speltz is dedicated to creating art and supporting the important work of Simpson Housing Services through Art 4 Shelter. She began contributing her work to Art 4 Shelter four years ago after first attending the...
Madeleine Lowry’s artistic repertoire encompasses drawing, painting, collage, encaustic, and other techniques. Impressionism, color field art, and process-based art are her favorite styles. She identifies most with impressionist landscapes. Madeleine has been...
Ann’s abstract paintings incorporate vivid colors and textiles. Her life-long love of art was inspired by her mother, who was also a painter. Ann went back to Macalester College for her fine arts degree when she was 40 years old. She continues to immerse herself in...
Marla Gamble has been a self–employed professional artist for nearly 50 years. “I decided I would be an artist in fifth grade, but when I helped a classmate complete a Picasso–inspired art project which won her the first prize, I was committed to being a...
As an acclaimed fine art photographer, Annette’s work is influenced predominately by photography, both analogue and digital, and also by other media such as painting. Themes in her art include Wabi-sabi, longing, and currently the concept of women as goddesses. ...
Christopher Santer highlights the beauty and mystery of the natural world through drawings and paintings in arcylic, coal, and charcoal. “My work has always been connected to the landscape and man’s imprint on the natural world. The often incongruous nature of this...
As a professional graphic designer, Lisa Romanowski creates abstract digital paintings with pixels instead of paint. “I begin with a base photograph and layer on fields of color and visual texture that interplay with the classic design elements of shape, form,...
John Grancorvitz paints primarily in watercolor and sometimes in scratchboard art. His artistic talent emerged when he was young, and his artistic medium changed over the years. “From a very early age, maybe five or six, I started drawing birds from a bird handbook...
Bonnie’s artwork in acyrlic and watercolor is inspired by nature — plant life, landscapes, and many animals. Bonnie’s appreciation of nature and art began in her early childhood as she worked beside her mother, an avid gardener, in their flower beds. “Time spent...
Karen Anderson finds herself continually challenged and fascinated by watercolor. The landscapes of Minnesota’s North Shore are her inspiration. “My paintings are an attempt to understand God by trying to capture the beauty in nature,” she says. Karen has also...
Minneapolis artist and Art 4 Shelter committee member Tom Baker has been donating his artwork to Art 4 Shelter since the inaugural event nine years ago. “The simple idea of selling affordable art that in the end has a great impact on our homeless community is why I am...