Artists

Painting, for me, is less a finished picture than an active threshold between inner and outer worlds. I use the language of doors, windows, architectural fragments, and intersecting planes to create passages through which images, memories, and materials can flow. My paintings develop through accumulation rather than illustration. Fragments of architecture, historical painting, commercial typography, mythology, portraiture, and abstraction are layered together until no single narrative dominates. Instead, each work becomes a site where symbolic systems, cultural references, and visual languages overlap, interrupt one another, and generate new associations. I think of paintings not simply as images to be viewed, but as constructed objects whose physical form is inseparable from their meaning. This investigation extends into my Painting Crosses, where paintings physically intersect with concrete slabs that pass through the canvas. The concrete acts simultaneously as architecture, support, obstacle, and horizon line, transforming the painting into an object that occupies real space. Rather than looking through an illusionistic window, viewers encounter an interface between painting and sculpture where changing viewpoints continually shift meaning. Across both paintings and sculpture, I am interested in the tension between image and object, memory and material, spiritual aspiration and physical weight. Painting becomes a threshold—a site of passage where identities, histories, and forms continually cross, dissolve, and reassemble.

I have spent much of my life close to nature; on islands, among forests, and on the water. I feel a closeness and connection to the essence of its being. This comes through in how I choose my materials and the voice I want to communicate through them. My work begins intuitively. Though I may have something I want to communicate, I allow my materials to speak to me as I create, and once they do, the creative process begins to alchemize them into an expression of story. I hope the work invites viewers into a moment of stillness and contemplation. My desire is that each piece resonates with others, creating space for quiet connection and personal reflection.

My work is rooted in a love of the strange, the whimsical, and the wonderfully ordinary. I’m inspired by the Pacific Northwest landscape I’ve grown up around, the creatures and characters that seem to belong to it, and the small, often overlooked moments of everyday life. I’m especially drawn to the feeling of discovering something unexpected tucked into a familiar place. Nature, nostalgia, humor, and imagination all find their way into my work. Growing up with the visual language of 1980s fantasy, I developed an appreciation for things that are a little mysterious, a little spooky, and completely unapologetic about being weird. I like combining that sense of fantasy with the warmth and familiarity of everyday life, creating work that can feel both nostalgic and new. Whether I’m painting, illustrating, or working with clay, I’m interested in giving personality to things that might otherwise go unnoticed. A forest creature, a garden plant, or a peculiar little character can become the starting point for a story. I often allow happy accidents and unexpected details to guide the work rather than trying to control every outcome. At the heart of what I make is a desire to bring a little more curiosity, humor, and wonder into ordinary spaces. I want my work to make people smile, look twice, or briefly imagine that there might be something magical hiding just around the corner.

Bianca Youngers is a contemporary painter working in large-scale acrylic on canvas. Her layered paintings build immersive environments from botanical forms, undersea gardens, and luminous spaces at the edge of what can be named. ​ Youngers begins each painting with a clear point of departure, then allows the work to evolve through instinct and sustained attention. Her process is cumulative: tinted gesso grounds give way to successive layers of acrylic pigment, gestural mark-making, and sweeping brushwork. Text and names are buried beneath the surface, invisible but structurally present. Each decision responds to what the canvas asks for, building toward an image that could not have been reached by a fixed plan. ​ Her paintings hold lush, saturated color alongside shifting organic form, botanical abundance, and atmospheric depth. The surfaces accumulate the way memory does, in strata: some visible, some submerged. They create emotional landscapes that deepen and move the longer a viewer remains with them. Youngers makes paintings that function as spaces to enter, offering an experience of immersion, reflection, and discovery. ​ At the center of the practice is the body as instrument and subject. Youngers follows felt experience, what the body registers before language can reach it, as a form of knowledge worth trusting. Her paintings are records of that pursuit: meditative and immersive, driven by the conviction that instinct, followed through paint over time, can reveal something true about being alive inside a body and reaching toward what sits just beyond the visible.

I was raised in a rural logging and ranching community in Eastern Oregon. I developed a love and appreciation for the incredible gifts creation has to offer. I like to capture and share what I discover in nature that excites me, be it the colors, texture or subject matter. I enjoy the transparency of watercolors. I like the challenges it presents along with the different papers, and mediums to create texture and special effects. My way of using line and color are to evoke a sense of mood and movement in my work.

A native Angeleno, De Camille attended the Lycee Francais at age six and went on to study art and fashion at the Paris American Academy and the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris where she had a one-woman sell-out show in Montmartre. The world of the French Cabaret has continued to inspire her work. There is a sense of the collector and traveler in her work having lived abroad for five years. From the Caribbean islands of Montserrat and Grenada to Paris and Bath UK, she takes from the past to update it through her unique and quirky lens. Her work is a synthesis of Pop Culture through a dream-like state; her technique is layered. It may start with the collaging of a Blue Print and images to set the scene or create the impressions for the structure of the work. She experiments with various mediums to create altered states of texture such as; saw dust, paint medium; egg yolk; tea bags; paper; found objects. Her varied style lends itself to the commission work she is presently creating with her private collectors.

Anna VonRosenstiel is the founder and creative mind behind Carter + Rose, a ceramic studio in Portland, Oregon centered around making beautiful and functional wares. In the past, Anna worked as a classroom art teacher. She first experimenting with clay so she could do ceramics with her students, and from there, her love of clay grew! She decided to focus on making handmade ceramic products, and the idea for Carter + Rose grew and became a reality. Carter + Rose’s signature design is the hanging wall planter and ceramic snake. The wall planter and ceramic snake were initially envisioned from scraps of clay, and were born out of a desire to create a product with a focus on simple, handmade lines. Anna’s inspiration as a designer is the beauty of simplicity. She believes that unique design should be accessible additions to any home, and that creativity truly brings people together.

My name is Catherine Freshley and I live with my husband in Portland, Oregon -- our hometown. I love to paint and I love to make colorful art that makes people happy. I have been making art forever and started selling my art in 2010. I have been a (nearly) full-time painter since 2016. Before that, I worked in digital strategy and brand strategy at an ad agency. I have a degree in economics from Tulane University.

I create fine art and illustrations to spread joy. I use mostly watercolor and acrylic in my paintings, but you may find some other material in my work as well. I love using colored pencil, embroidery, natural materials, or anything else that adds the texture and depth that I want to achieve. My illustrations are mostly digitally rendered with a look that replicates watercolor, ink and colored pencil. I was trained in fine arts at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, and received mt BFA in 2007. In 2017 I moved with my family to Oregon City and redirected my artistic focus to Children’s Illustration to allow me to be home with my two young children. I have continued to be involved in local arts by volunteering with Three River Artist Guild to help organize the Festival of the Arts. Through the guild I discovered the local movement to change Oregon City Mural Ordinance and have worked where I could within the movement. I was consulted as a muralist and worked with the Three Rivers Artist Guild to write a grant for future murals in Oregon City. I recently completed the first of these proposed murals, a restoration on Main St. of Larry Kangas’ “Trolley Cars” Mural. I like to keep myself busy, but I still find time to paint gallery works and commissions.

My studio practice produces multi-media works on canvas and paper, using acrylics, soft pastels, oil crayons, and charcoal to explore presence, subtraction, and legibility. Rather than filling a surface with content, I treat painting as a process of unearthing—building up layers only to scrape, dissolve, or cover them up. I work with materials like charcoal and water that resist total control, allowing unpredictable drips, broken remnants, and fine dust to remain as integral parts of the composition. I think of the resulting paintings as contemplative artifacts that hold a sense of quiet questioning. Drawing directly from physical theatre methodologies, every mark responds to spatial awareness, movement, and immediate impulse. Introducing words, symbols, and fragmented lines allows me to play directly with the edge of legibility—exploring how language can both expand and constrain our experience. Ultimately, my goal is to create surfaces that hold the physical history of their own making, inviting viewers into an intimate space of pause and attentive looking.

I'm someone that appreciates the past and I use vintage papers from 1890-1980 in my work. I feel strongly about sharing other artists work that is why I help run the IG page for PNW Collage Collective. My goals in my art are to make people smile and feel a connection to memories/nostalgia.

As a PNW native, much of my work is inspired by memory and my sense of place. The paintings are all started in “play,” choosing colors or collage papers that I’m drawn to, or inspired by an emotion I’d like to explore. As the multiple layers, shapes, colors and textures are added and removed by sanding, uncovering a previous layer, an abstracted image begins to appear that I can recognize from my life, such as a bridge, island, mountains and river of Portland, the view looking across the Clackamas River, a lost blue bird nest. While these are recognizable to me, my goal is that a viewer might be attracted to and enjoy the final painting a get a sense of the place, event or emotion.

The majority of my themes come from surreal and tattoo style imagery. I am inspired by surrealist artists, and my work is mainly exploring imaginative interpretations of the human body and skeletal structure, and expressions of fun and humor. My goals are to continue to grow my work into more 3-dimensional expressions and to play with motion and size.

I create large-scale abstract paintings that bring a room alive through movement, emotion, and atmosphere. Inspired by nature and the tension between chaos and calm, my work explores what happens beneath the surface—what we carry, what we try to hold together, and what happens when we let go. My paintings are meant to be felt as much as they are seen. I want them to add depth and presence to a space while leaving room for each viewer to bring their own experience to the work.

My name is Denise Kendig but everyone calls me Deni. I live, work and play in Vancouver, Washington. I am a self-taught artist. My mom said I drew a perfect blue rabbit when I was only 3 years old with my crayons. I've never lost sight of crayons since....or pens, paper, watercolors, etc! My passion is drawing and painting animals of all kinds. I love creating pet portraits and bespoke illustrations. My art is anthropomorphic and always has been. To me, animals wear clothes and act very much like we do, when we aren't looking. Or maybe they do this in another galaxy somewhere! It's real to me...always has been. You can find my art creations in art galleries and retail shops across California and Oregon and Washington.

What does it mean to be a "layerist" painter? My collage artwork is composed of many layers, each significant in the process of my art making. I use bits of torn magazine papers as my "palette of paint" working the image by adding and subtracting tonal values of this paper until I create the effect that I desire. Words, phrases, and imagery from the materials that make up the collage become visible upon close observation of the work adding to the meaning of the piece. I am continually amazed by specific words that appear almost magically between the torn edges as if they are themselves part of the creator of the artwork. Often, I use unusual collage materials such as band-aids, gum and candy wrappers, heirloom family photos, and sentimental letters from which to create my layered images. I leave the rough collage edges visible to add to the layered effect. I hope you enjoy looking at my artwork as much as I enjoy making it.

Hand crafted, beautifully scented, soy wax candles.

Ghost Forest Luxury Scents began where some of the best ideas do: outdoors, together, and a little bit of magic. Today, every candle is still hand-poured in small batches here in Portland, Oregon. What started as simple family hikes through our local forests quickly turned into an adventure through imagination. As we wandered winding trails and towering pines, our daughters decided the densest, mistiest parts of the woods must be "the ghost forest." It became our favorite place—quiet, mysterious, and filled with the unmistakable scent of pine needles, fir trees, damp earth, and forest moss. Those moments sparked more than just memories—they sparked inspiration. As a family, health and wellness have always been at the center of our home. We wanted candles that smelled incredible without compromising clean air or peace of mind. When we couldn't find products that truly aligned with our values, we decided to create our own. Every Ghost Forest candle is hand-poured using a clean-burning coconut–soy wax blend and premium natural fragrance oils, thoughtfully chosen for both quality and well-being. No shortcuts. No unnecessary additives. Just beautifully crafted scents designed to feel as good as they smell. Our signature nature-inspired fragrances pay homage to those childhood hikes—capturing the grounding calm, fresh air, and quiet wonder of nature's most enchanting places. Ghost Forest Luxury Scents is more than a candle company. It's a family story, a tribute to nature, and an invitation to slow down, breathe deep, and brings the ideal ambience into your home.

My journey into metalsmithing began as a happy accident. What started as a girls’ afternoon ring-making class, sparked an insatiable passion for shaping metal. In short order I gobbled up every foundational class I could access, took tentative steps to share my work publicly, then was blessed with a connection to join a vibrant local art cooperative. Working primarily with silver, copper, brass, and enamel to create jewelry and small decorative objects, my creative process is driven by a continuous desire to learn and experiment. Over the years, I have continued to expand my technical vocabulary, developing a toolkit that allows me to manipulate metal in ways that feel both organic and highly structured. My jewelry is deeply rooted in botanical forms, translating the delicate, ephemeral structures of the natural world into enduring wearable art. Beyond nature, my influences draw heavily from broader visual experiences; past global wandering has soaked up memories of color, texture, and geometry. These varied experiences, combined with an appreciation for architectural perspectives and abstract concepts, deeply inform the structural integrity of my designs. Recently, my focus has expanded into two-dimensional realms through etched and enameled copper plate wall art. This medium allows me to merge my love for intricate metal textures with vibrant, painterly expressions. Whether capturing the essence of a vivid landscape or exploring geometric abstraction, my goal is to highlight the dynamic interplay between raw metal and fired glass.

Ever since that cataclysmic day, I have evolved from creating pots from earthenware to functional stoneware to functional yet decorative porcelain. Since relocating to Oregon in June of 2009, I have directed my focus on crystalline glazes in a high-fire electric kiln and Sgraffito technique in high-fire gas kiln. The more I learn, the more I realized that working in clay combined science and art and I found myself right where I wanted to be.

Holly J. Kroening is a native Oregonian, mother and grandmother. She and her husband Dwayne live in Oregon's Willamette Valley. Her father, Ed Jerman was her inspiration. Art is a matter of taste, no single flavor works for everyone. My personal statement: You can't ever capture the same thing twice, you just hope to capture something new. My paintings express the joy, delight and passion I feel when I paint. 'Letting it Go' provides freedom and self expression. These things come true when I paint with my grandchildren. They have managed to break down the barriers by painting green zebras and outside the lines and creating masterpieces, 'WHAT JOY'. I love knowing that one of my paintings reached out and touched someone.

I am a retired geologist and spent most of my career doing field work in every part of Oregon, during which time I became fascinated with the shapes, colors and textures that stones in the wild acquire. In retirement I started to make sculpture with natural stones that I collect from roadside ditches all around the state. I let the natural shapes guide the form and try to preserve some of the natural patinas to contrast with the worked and polished stones. I try to find the story that each individual stone can tell about its journey through deep time.

The comfort and warmth of wrapping up in your favorite blanket with a cup of tea. In many ways, the processes of quilting and ceramics are mirrored. Clay lends itself to fluid forms that are fired to permanent hardness, while quilting is rigid in its pieced design but when finished, draped and folds without concrete form.  In this work I enjoy exploring the processes that move between organic and geometric, incorporating elements of collage and mosaic to create nostalgic everyday pieces that feel like home.  Ithaca Janzen lives with her husband, two young kids, and one middle-aged dog in Oregon City where she enjoys a cozy cup of tea every morning.

Oil Painter of Landscapes.