As a teen I roamed Yosemite with a 4x5 Speed Graphic in hand following in the footsteps of my idol Ansel Adams. I would then return home to spend hours in my darkroom – an 8x4x8 foot box – developing large prints late at night in our bathtub. Many years later watching a documentary I realized that both of us were trying to capture our spiritual experience of nature on film – always falling short – but creating some beautiful failures nonetheless.
Singer-songwriter/pianist Aaron English is a touring artist based out of Seattle WA, playing his own soul-searching, world-music-inspired songs along with interpretations of prayers and traditional songs from the far corners of the Earth.
Terry Marks is a New York City based artist who works in painting, drawing, printmaking & tattoo. She has been affiliated with the international, ReModernist arts movement Stuckism since 2001, and has exhibited with various configurations of the group on three continents, including the Liverpool Biennial, and in Tehran, Iran. After accidentally falling into acting, she can sometimes be seen in films or on television, and plays a little ukulele on the side...
Anne Smyers creates bold colorful fiber art inspired by the vast array of commercially available fabrics on the market today. She is particularly drawn to florals which she uses to create fanciful, abstract “floral landscapes.” She also draws much of her inspiration from Traditional Chinese Five-Element Theory as understood through her long association with tai chi and acupuncture.
As a theatre artist I recognize that Tai Chi offers a method for the deep embodiment of body, mind and spirit. Theatre like the commedia dell’ Arte demands that an actor be totally relaxed and completely aware all the while performing physical expression of a high gestural skill. Further, the five elements provide keys to character types, environments as well as dramatic and comedic situations. By practicing Tai Chi an actor can perform at top expression and in good health. Skills hard won need cultivation and I find Tai Chi provides not only a base for artistic expression but for a life well lived...
Born in Albania, I currently live and work in New York City since 1996. Started to paint very early in life. I paint constantly and intensively to feed an inner need- My art is the vehicle and the means through which I express and redeem myself.
Violinist, Michael Braudy, specializes in Western classical and Celtic music and the music of India. A versatile improviser, Michael collaborates with poets, storytellers, dancers and mimes.
