Author: Iris

For Allan Wesaquate, painting is a way of exploring emotion rather than preserving a single moment in time. His abstract works develop through movement, intuition, and the physical behavior of paint. Using acrylics and expressive forms of mark-making, he constructs layered surfaces in which colors appear to flow, collide, dissolve, and reappear. Although personal experiences may provide the initial impulse for a painting, Wesaquate does not limit the finished work to one story or interpretation. Instead, he creates an open visual space where viewers can form their own emotional connections. His bold colors, fluid gestures, and richly worked textures give…

Anna Mazzotta follows an independent creative direction, developing her work through observation, instinct, and imagination rather than contemporary trends. Born in the United Kingdom and influenced by her Italian heritage, she divides her time between London and Bristol. The culture and contrasting rhythms of these cities inform an artistic practice concerned with identity, performance, memory, and the complexities of human behaviour. Mazzotta studied at the Royal College of Art, where she developed the technical skills that support her distinctive approach to drawing. Her work, however, is not limited to accurate representation. She reshapes familiar people and events through her own…

Jane Gottlieb has created an unmistakable artistic style rooted in her fascination with vivid color, dynamic movement, and visual rhythm. Raised in Los Angeles and currently based in Santa Barbara, she began her creative career as a painter before expanding into photography. More than 30 years ago, Gottlieb started applying paint directly to individual Cibachrome prints, establishing a technique that would become central to her practice. Through this process, the photographic image is no longer a fixed record of a place or moment. Instead, it becomes a surface for experimentation and reinvention. Intensified colors alter the mood of buildings, cityscapes,…

From an early age, Der Poeck discovered the joy of drawing through the encouragement of his mother, who introduced him to art when he was just ten years old. Although drawing became a familiar part of his childhood, color entered his creative life much later. Looking back, he sees his father’s passion for oil painting during the 1990s as an important influence. Although family responsibilities eventually required his father to set painting aside, his dedication left a lasting impression. Fascinated by color but not yet ready to pursue it himself, Der Poeck waited until 2010 before beginning his own journey…

Every so often, a story arrives with a coincidence too good to overlook. This one began with a message from someone named Peter Parker. Considering the subject matter, the name immediately stood out. Whether it is his real name or simply a remarkable coincidence, we’ll leave that mystery unsolved. Still, it briefly crossed our minds that New York’s most famous web-slinger might have taken an interest in the art world. While Peter Parker is not the artist featured here, he is an important part of the story. As a supporter of Pete “PG” Garcia and his work, he helps introduce…

For Miguel Barros, art serves as a way to explore the connections between humanity, nature, and the changing world around us. Born in Lisbon in 1962, he has lived across cultures and continents, holding citizenship in Portugal, Canada, and Angola. In 2014, he settled in Calgary, Alberta, where new surroundings influenced the continued development of his artistic practice. Having earned a degree in Architecture and Design from IADE Lisbon in 1984, Barros approaches painting with an eye for balance, form, and spatial relationships. We are delighted to speak with Miguel Barros and explore the experiences, influences, and ideas that have…

Allan Wesaquate is a Canadian artist whose creative practice spans both painting and photography. Working across these two mediums allows him to explore the world from different perspectives, capturing moments, emotions, and experiences through distinct visual languages. While photography enables him to document and observe the details of everyday life, painting provides the freedom to interpret those observations through color, texture, and imagination. His work reflects a deep curiosity about the relationship between people and personal experience. Whether behind the camera lens or standing before a canvas, Wesaquate approaches each piece as an opportunity to communicate ideas and stories that…

Born in Lisbon in 1962, Miguel Barros has developed an artistic practice shaped by life across multiple continents and cultures. His experiences in Portugal, Angola, and Canada have contributed to a visual language informed by observation, transition, and personal reflection. Since relocating from Angola to Calgary in 2014, Barros has found himself increasingly drawn to the memory of Lisbon. Though physically distant from the city, his connection to it has only grown stronger. In his paintings, Lisbon is less a geographical destination than an emotional presence—rebuilt through recollection, imagination, and longing. This relationship with place runs throughout his work, where…

Pasquale J. Cuomo has spent more than five decades behind the camera, yet his approach to photography still carries the curiosity of someone discovering the medium for the first time. What began as a teenage fascination with cameras slowly became a lifelong practice rooted in observation, patience, and technical discipline. Cuomo first picked up a camera as a young man and never really put it down. Across changing eras of photography—from darkrooms and film stock to digital sensors, smartphones, and now AI-assisted imagery—he continued working steadily, adapting without losing sight of what first drew him to photography: the act of…

Nicola Mastroserio does not approach art as decoration, trend, or commercial product. His work moves in the opposite direction, away from the noise of the marketplace and toward deeper philosophical questions about existence, consciousness, and the hidden structure of reality. Rather than creating images designed to satisfy expectations, Mastroserio treats art as a form of inquiry — a way to examine what lies beneath ordinary perception. His practice is rooted in reflection and inner investigation, resisting fixed categories or simplified interpretations. At the center of his work is a search for essence rather than appearance. He is less concerned with…