Creative Influences: Year in Review - Best Contemporary Painters

I am late getting to this post, but better late than never. At the end of 2007 - which seems like only a moment ago - I published a year-end review of Best Contemporary Painters (see previous post here). This was a popular post, I received many emails asking if I would do such a retrospective again, and this post is an answer to those kind emails. Happy New Year and thank you to everyone who reads my blog! Over the next several days, I plan to present a series of reviews.

If you are here for the first time, welcome to my online gallery. I think of myself as a curator. I am obsessed by art, and adore paintings. It is my belief that art and creativity can save the world. Here I present a review of some of the Best Contemporary Painters. What is the common thread among these artists? It is simply that I adore them. Some of the artists are well known, others will be well known. Many come from a street tradition, or pop art tradition. Pop art is a fascinating genre, but it is the evolution of pop artists that fascinates me. Take Andrea Heimer, for example. She is currently working on a fascinating series called Decadence. Her current work incorporates the cute factor that is so popular, but then adds an edge. See also my series on Chick Art which incorporates creepy with cute.

I am interested in graphic, multi-media and motion. Some of the themes I like are organic or melancholy. Last year one of the artists was offended by my reference to melancholy. It is important to note that these are just my perceptions. I hope to never offend, only to show work that I find beautiful. I have no particular favorite, I love them all! They are not listed in order of importance, they appear in alphabetical order (well more or less, I was having trouble moving stuff in blogger). Without further adieu, I humbly offer my Year in Review - Best Contemporary Painters. Hope you enjoy!

Bell.

I adore Bell's work and have written about her before. This young artist is one to watch. She's a real trendsetter. She does street murals, collabs, and custom toys. I predict that one day Bell will be world famous. Make sure to check out her custom toys, here. Bell, you go girl!

Lynn Beesley.

Amy Boling.

Jennifer Davis.

Lori Early.

The romantic, yearning and soulful works of Lori Early can be seen at her flickr set here, and her homepage here. I gotta thing for girls with pink hair.

Shepard Fairey

Shepard is probably the most influential propaganda artist our time. And I am sure he would bulk at that label. As an artist myself, I bulk at labels. So how about this? Shepard's art is relevant to our times and, blah, blah, blah. How about this? It's just fucking cool.

Eric Feng, more popularly know as Feric.

My gosh. These haunt me, when I visit Feric's site, I am transported to a parallel universe. A universe that is both primitive and futuristic. Where Buddha-like beings co-exist with and form symbiotic relationships with machine-like, organic beings. Forget all the pithy words, Feric's work is not to be missed. His motion work is a delight, and oh yeah, he designed a cool Dunny for Series 3. If you want to see it, click here.

Abbey Hendrickson.

Abbey is a young artist to watch. She has a very specific aesthetic. No matter what she puts her hand to, it turns to gold. I love her multimedia work and her installations. You must see her Susan B. Anthony installation, here. She is great at display, vignettes and decor. Her blog is a witty, eclectic, eccentric delight. Love the name - it's called Aesthetic Outburst. Indeed, that's an appropriate title for Abbey's life.

Andrea Heimer.

I've written about Andrea's work several times. I adore her pop art, but I am especially intrigued with the new direction she is taking. It fascinates me when pop artists become a little more edgy. You simply must see her new Decadence Series, here. Andrea, you go girl! Andrea's home page is here.

Irene Wood.

Koralie.

Koralie uses a myriad of influences from manga, to vintage Japanese photos. The way she interprets the things that interest her is amazing. I would love to have her work all over my home. And, oh yeah, she designed a cool Dunny, for series 5. If you want to see it, click here.

Mar Hernandez.

Mar is an exceptional talent. She creates wonderful paintings, is an exceptional graphic artist, does video and makes plush toys (link)! Her flickr set is here. Her homepage is here.

Beatriz Milhazes.

Images from picsearch. Very difficult to choose just a couple of images. If you want to go on a sublime journey, get your favorite coffee or tea and click this link.

Melissa Moss.

Congratulations to Melissa for the making Creative Influences' year in review two years in a row! I've written about Melissa's work many times. I simply adore it.

Jacqueline Myers-Cho.

Jacqueline states: "I awake every day and create. Sometimes it is art sometimes it is life." She's a beautiful creator. I adore her multi-media work. Images from her Etsy shop, here. Her home page is here. She has a wonderful blog, here.

Jeremy Stenger. I discovered Jeremy's wonderful work in the recent Elle Decor. (See previous post here.) The beautiful home designed by Jamie Drake is a perfect backdrop for this artist's work.

Gina Tolentino.

Gina paints whimsical ladies with long necks, and underwater creatures that make me insanely happy. Each time I look at her work, I am transported to a white sand beach, sipping a pina colada, and the biggest decision I have to make is whether to dye my perfectly cropped hair purple or green. Too divine! Gina's flickr set is here. Her website is here.

Monique Van Genderen.