Influences in my ceramic work are interests in Architecture, Archaeology, and History and I strive to create forms and surfaces that, at once, embody a sense of present and ancient time. Works that achieve that desire appear to have been lifted from ancient tombs. Further, the use of archetypal imagery through associative play allows exploration [...]

My current work is on canvas; mixed media w/acrylic, gold leaf, oil sticks, pumice, marble dust, silk tissue and collage elements. Intense color continues to be the core of my process, sometimes brilliant, other times muted, with hues hinting at the mystery of the process. I am constantly in awe of the creative energy that leads me to the [...]

Arthur’s love of photography began in the 1930′s when he took his first picture as a boy in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.  The love and the photographs continued in the 1940′s during his service in World War Two with the Merchant Marines, where he photographed Ruins at Le Havre, France, canons at Edinburgh Castle, a ship [...]

Creativity is often born of play. I get my ideas for paintings while having fun. It is then that someone or something catches my eye and moves my heart. Consequently, I want viewers of my work to see the surrounding world with new eyes that may have become dulled by the daily routine of life. [...]

I’m an eclectic artist that believes every image is a narrative. Landscapes, abstractions, and portraiture tell a story. When I paint a portrait, I strive to capture likeness, the spark of personality, and inner and outer beauty, unified by a harmonious composition of color and shape. My landscapes are painted in oils on canvas or [...]

I am entirely self-taught and by design so.  I learn everything I can about painting from experimentation and from the process of working itself.  For me, this method is not only the most enjoyable, but also the most conducive to learning by intuition and experience. I work with oils and acrylics and occasionally with chalk and pastels.  I [...]

Karen Archia is a native of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, but has firmly planted southern roots, having lived in the Triangle since 1984. She has worked at WUNC-TV as part of the Public Affairs team, and as a public relations professional, most recently at the National Education Association’s state affiliate in North Carolina. “The “behind-the-scenes” work of [...]

Alley Bird Number Seven is a homegrown multi-media movement of two artists that are joined by proximity and philosophies that translate the awe and curiosity of the every day world into art. Artists, Mark Cunningham and Lee Moore Crawford, create multi-media art in various forms such as visual art, music, parenting, comics, community events, gardening, education, poetry, and Ikebana.  We endeavor [...]

Belinda Paige Blakley graduated from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago with a concentration in Fashion Design and Fiber and Materials Studies in 2010. As a self-identified feminist, Belinda has always found the feminine form something to be celebrated rather than hidden; this idea is a foundation of her design process, always striving [...]

Creating something from nothing, that’s what we as artists do. Of course, we’re often inspired by what we see around us and from something that’s within. The manifestation of a tangible piece from some abstract thought is a fascinating process. For me, this is what makes drawing so alluring. I’m a Michigan-native and a recent [...]

I have always been inspired by iconic women from different genres, decades, and places. I admire the strength, playfulness, individuality, and style of such women as Erika Badu, Missy Elliott, Twiggy, Grace Jones, Adele, Diana Ross, Madonna, and Lucille Ball. I aim to capture this essence in Girlina, my line of jewelry designs. I like [...]

I’m a poet and psychotherapist. My photographs are intended to be poems of a sort, insights of a sort. Most important, like poetry, my photos are intended to “evoke.” My most recent book of poems is If This World Falls Apart which won the Blue Lynx Prize for 2010. I live in Chapel Hill.

Many years ago I participated in a photography workshop in Maine. The instructor gave us an unusual assignment: shoot a roll of film before getting out of bed. To my surprise the photos of silk curtains bathed in creamy light were some of my best. That bright summer Maine morning crystalized why I love photography–the [...]

Kelly attended the School of the Art Institute of Chicago where she studied painting in the fine arts program. She is the owner of LabourLove Art Gallery in Downtown Durham, NC where she is the curator and arts director. Please call LabourLove @ (919) 373-4451 if are interested in learning more about Kelly, or to [...]

An engineer by education and profession, I have been interested in art since high school but haven’t practiced much over the years.  After a 3 decade break from drawing, pen and ink, pastels, I leaped into painting three years ago after enrolling in a class at Durham Arts Council. My initial attempt at painting reflected [...]

In my paintings, animals always take on a pivotal role. Sometimes the animals I paint are simple portraits, and other times they are more symbolic. In my series “Optimal Foraging”, birds are chained to the pharmaceuticals which they hunt for. Birds are often used to represent freedom, but the repetitive display of these birds foraging [...]

Anna earned a B.F.A. from UNC-Chapel Hill, where she studied painting with Marvin Saltzman and Richard Kinnaird. Her work is largely abstract, but informed by nature. She recently returned to North Carolina from Denver, Co., and paints at Golden Belt studios. While she works in a range of media, she is currently painting with oils [...]

Focsi (pronounced Fox-cee) is comprised of J. Phillip & Erika Smith, a husband and wife team with a slightly nomadic history, who like to challenge and display traditional standards of beauty and feminine strength/power with a twist in an unexpected, thoughtful, and celebratory way via fine art prints, canvas, or portraits. Empowering women with the [...]

Around the age of seven, I lingered in the front yard and let my gaze drift to the night sky. With my eyes wide, and a deep sense of wonder, I stood in awe and open. I felt a connection to every star beyond my reach and every blade of grass beneath my feet. I choose [...]

In my abstract oil paintings I search for intense color by working with palette knife and brush and applying many layers of colored glazes.  I hope to achieve a vibration that will resonate with the viewer.  I am interested in the interplay of geometric and biomorphic forms and lost and found edges. Early travels throughout [...]

I grew up in San Diego, and moved to North Carolina in 1989. I have lived in Durham since 1996. I began making jewelry as a child. I don’t know how, why, or when, but I always remember making jewelry. I sold my first pieces in 7th grade – bracelets made from aquarium tubing filled [...]

Jim was born and raised in New Orleans. As a teenager, he apprenticed with a commercial photographer and learned color and black-and-white darkroom technique. His camera has been his companion through the intervening years documenting explorations as an undergraduate at the University of Colorado, as a drop-out working for the US Forest Service on the [...]

My images are hand-made—not digital, although I do sometimes use a sewing machine to make photo “collages.” I have enjoyed printing in various darkrooms—Durham Arts Council, Duke’s Center for Documentary Studies, and my home darkroom. My photographs are about mystery, mood, observation and remembrance. . .. aspects of the images often seem already imbedded in my [...]

Kelly Cross studied photography at San Francisco Art Institute where he received his MFA.  After working as a freelance massage therapist for 18 years, he decided to explore working with clay.  Clay evolved into painting. Currently, he studies privately under Margie Stewart and paints mostly with oil using a palette knife. Kelly Cross’ subjects range from [...]

Embracing Creativity with Attitude Ne’Moori is a brand that is based out of North Carolina. Our mission is to create jewelry that embraces a person’s sense of style and unique look. Simply put-Attitude! We stand by our motto: Embracing Creativity with Attitude because we believe that all people strive to create and sustain a rewarding self-image; and [...]

I paint for the same reason that I first began to like drawing.  In Mrs. Burney’s third grade class at David Fairchild Elementary School, I drew hundreds of airplanes. While I drew, I could feel the thrill of flying in them and soaring above the ground.  When I stopped drawing, the feeling was no longer [...]

Michael is an artist and a magician living in Morrisville, North Carolina.  He was born in Baltimore, Maryland and grew up on the Chesapeake Bay around steel men and dock workers.  During the 80’s his father’s factory was closed and he swiftly joined the Marine Corps, sending the family to Memphis, Tennessee and then Jacksonville, North [...]

I have spent most of my life being drawn to science and working with my hands.  My educational and professional backgrounds are in plant biology and forestry. I want to convey the beauty of what I study to other people, and I do this through research, teaching, and art.  My work is nature based. I [...]

“Creativity is contagious; pass it on.” … Albert Einstein I’ve always been a mixed media artist, and now mostly work in metal. Unless we choose vintage, handmade or personalized objects for ourselves, we can end up looking like human peas in a pod. My intention is to make objects that have personal meaning for the [...]

Ty Brueilly, a 2005 Appalachian State graduate and founder of Mightier Than The Sword Records, has shifted photography from primarily a hobby, to a more professional level in the last three years. His main inspiration coming from his constant travels to Asia, where he encounters several different cultures during each visit, enabling his creative imagination to flourish and bloom. His [...]

While in high school I feel in love with painting. I dreamed of studying art but my friends and family encouraged me to go into dentistry. I opened my endodontic practice in Durham after serving overseas as an officer in the army. That left very little or no time to create art. Suddenly losing most [...]

My journey into art started from an attempt to figure out how I actually learn, to unravel this from how I was trained to think.  I began to feel confused about what constitutes thinking.  Many years ago a friend urged me to “just think harder” when I was stuck in some aspect of my History [...]

“Bull City Craft outpost at LabourLove” The arts and craft shop Bull CIty Craft will be selling a select assortment of art supplies, books, and items to inspire your creativity at LabourLove Gallery. Bull City Craft is excited to partner with LabourLove and be a part of the arts community at Golden Belt. Jessica Greene [...]

Even though it was a childhood dream, and I studied art in college, I never really thought I could be a “real” artist, as I called my dream back then. I spent my young adult years being a wife, mom, and creative community volunteer, being asked to illustrate a cookbook, make banners for activities, and [...]

I have been drawing, painting and photographing things my entire life. Always a skilled illustrator, in college I studied with Herb Jackson who changed my attitude toward action painting and abstract imagery.  That exposure was instrumental in changing my thinking about imagery from the purely literal to a more conceptual approach.  It has informed my [...]

Franco is a visual activist awakening his audiences through conscious and exciting art. He received his Bachelor of Arts in Art at North Carolina Central University with a concentration in Visual Communications and a Certificate in Multimedia at The School of Communication Arts. Franco primarily works in the digital environment but also enjoys acrylic and other mediums. His artwork [...]

I am a native of Durham, North Carolina and I have been creating ethnic inspired jewelry for about 8 years. I love studying jewelry from different cultures to gain inspiration for my own designs. Currently, my designs are reminiscent of Egyptian and Indian culture. I am also fascinated by the healing properties of natural gemstones. [...]

As Monty Python famously put it, “And now for something completely different” probably best describes my decision to try painting after a long career representing universities in Washington, DC. Once discovered, the challenge, the surprise and the satisfaction of painting has kept me returning to the easel. Simply put, I paint because I love it. [...]