After taking a brief break to revamp almostrealthings.com and order the next issue, we’re finally back with 10 new Artists to Watch!


In our Call for Art for Issue 14: VIVID, we received more submissions than we ever have before. There’s only so much we can squeeze into our tiny print mag, so we’ve chosen ten of the submissions to spotlight for the month of April.

This month we have a range of visual artists, all with their own unique style. From acrylic paint to collage to glass work, each artist has found a seamless way to meld their materials with their concept.

Scroll through to learn more about the process and background of our Top 10 Artists to Watch!

1Martin Lewis

No Ordinary Love
Magritte Meets DeKooning

Martin Lewis is an Austin artist that we featured in Issue 07: Fail Well. He incorporates a range of materials to create one-of-a-kind collages, each with a surreal spin.

“I primarily work in mixed media. Vintage used and found items are my muses as I try to revive the past via collage, montage or painting. Art has become a true extension of who I really am. I hope to share this with others.”

@mjlewisart 

2Alanna Bass

Sunning Flowers
Traveling Monarch

Though I began to write an intro about Alanna Bass, I realized I couldn’t come up with anything that matched the impressive bio she already sent me: When Alanna isn’t caring for her two toddlers, experimenting with veggies in the kitchen, or drinking coffee – you can find her with sketchbook & pen in hand. She loves the art of storytelling and studied Creative Writing and Film at Texas State University in San Marcos. She strives to produce images that test her abilities or nurture her passion for the natural world.

“As a self-taught artist I’m trying to hone in on my style. The work attached showcases some of that evolution, but also my desire to use art to address issues. Bringing attention to women in a male-dominated industry, endangered animals, and the often ignored beauty in our backyard.”

@alanna_did_that | Website

3Ryan Gianelloni

Fissum2
Delta

Ryan Gianelloni works as a visual artist and studio assistant of George Dunbar in Slidell, LA. Ryan creates texture in his work by adding natural objects, like bamboo, beneath a layer of metallic leaf.

“I utilize both natural and found objects to bring texture and depth to otherwise flat surfaces.  Often, these objects are inclusive of bamboo, string, and other natural or upcycled/found materials. I then finish the work experimenting with metallic leaf and old world gilding techniques.”

@ryangianelloni

4Natalie Allgyer

Is it Greener?
Cheerless Void

Natalie Allgyer lives in Charleston, South Carolina, and specializes in photographic collage. Each piece is a combination of art processes, that includes sketching, photography, collage and digital design.

“I’m full of passion for what I do! If Tim Burton and Thomas Kinkade had a baby you would basically have me. That is the general vibe of my work. As for my process, it can take an upward of 20 images to create one of my pieces. I start by getting an idea, sketching it out, scouting out props and locations, then shooting each at the proper time of day. Then collage those images together in photoshop to create a final piece. This process can take weeks to complete. All photos used in the process are my own.”

@natalieallgyerWebsite

5Red Moth Art (Kimberly Grau)

Easy Breezy
Swimming with the Fishes

Kimberly Grau, better known as Red Moth Art, is an artist/illustrator/graphic designer and fashion creator in Austin. She found a love for art at a young age, and made sure to translate her passion into her professional career as a freelance graphic designer and artist.

“My artwork is ahem girly (so I’ve been told, which is), colorful, and whimsical. I believe in joy and want the audience to feel joy when they see my work. In addition to traditional surfaces like paper and canvas, I also paint on fabric. Specifically silk and satin, that I then sew into wearable kimonos and skirts! I also turn certain artwork into prints, bookmarks, stickers and necklaces!”

@redmothart Website

6Sapira Design (Samantha Jacobson)

Migrantes
Small But Mighty

After trying her hand as a costume designer in NYC, Sapira Design (Samantha Jacobson) decided to relocate to Austin to fuel her other artistic passions in a community filled with “like-minded, uplifting creatives.”

“One of the mains goals of my artwork is to help me express myself as an empath and a person living with chronic anxiety. I am very sensitive to my environment, picking up on small nuances that many others don’t notice and I carry the feelings from these observations around with me until I can deposit them into my work. As a result from what I can only describe as being overstimulated, my work is done in loud colors with high contrast and I try to depict the intensity of the feelings that I get when I look at things to help others understand my experience interacting with our world.”

@sapiradesign | Website

7Jared Rosenacker

Emergence
The Royal

Jared Rosenacker is a new artist in Austin. He works with molten glass, an art form he discovered while studying film in college. He was so taken by it, that he ended up switching majors to 3D Studies. After traveling around the world via cruise ship to share his skills, he’s settled in Austin, hoping to find artists to collaborate with.

“The beauty of glass is that it holds and transforms light, and glass color is amazingly vivid! So I strongly incorporate color into my work. As an expensive material, a glass artist needs a spectrum of work in regards to price. So my work ranges from an object as simple as a cup, to a multi-layered colored bubble, that once cold, is cut with industrial diamond abrasives to expose those layers.”

@jfr_glass | Website

8Wolf Garden

What You Give is What You Get
Trust

Wolf Garden is an Austin artist and meditation coach. He combines these two paths to create paintings that have a deeper meaning.

“My paintings are spiritual, with specific meanings behind. Most came from realizations I had while meditating, on spiritual retreats, spending time with Buddhist monks, and such. What You Give is What You Get is a reminder to always give your best. Trust is a reminder to drop the baggage of the things I can’t control and leave them to the universe.”

@wolf.garden.artist

9Nada Krstajic

Sunrise
Sunset

Nada Krstajic is a multimedia artist from Belgrade, Serbia. Her work is a blend of photography and paint, filled with vibrant colors.

“I mostly create murals but I also combine photography in my drawings and paintings in order to create a colorful multimedia artworks.” 

@muralsofhope | Website

10Katherine Leung

Frigid Landscapes
Frigid Landscapes

Katherine Leung is a painter and middle school art teacher living in San Jose, California, but originally from Austin, Texas. She created the diptych Frigid Landscapes (seen above) after spending time teaching in Samara Oblast, Russia.

“As a native Austinite, it was the first time I encountered snow and ice. The Volga River was a fitting backdrop to this eerie, melancholic city. Jagged, jutting icebergs were not uncommon amidst the smooth surface, frozen for much of the year. What struck me was the color – never a pristine white. I attempted to capture the forlornness of winter on the Volga River.”

Website


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