Archives: Artists

Zac Kinkade was born in Fort Worth, Texas, in 1991 and grew up surrounded by art. His parents owned galleries showcasing the work of his uncle, Thomas Kinkade, and as the fourth generation artist in his family, Zac began drawing at a very young age. He earned recognition in local and national art competitions before turning to acrylic and oil painting at age 14. After participating in Fort Worth’s Main Street Art Festival where he first sold his work, Kinkade was accepted to Cornell University to pursue a BFA, experimenting with everything from abstract paintings to conceptual video while specializing in representational art.

Kinkade continued his education at the Art Center School for Design, learning digital painting and concept art. At 24, he published his first limited edition, a rendition of Noah’s Ark that gained recognition from the board of the Catholic Museum of Art and Library. He studied extensively under his uncle’s head studio artist, Dirk Wunderlich.

Travel has profoundly shaped Kinkade’s artistic vision. Annual road trips exploring North America with his father and brothers took him to all 50 states and most Canadian provinces, later expanding to Europe and Africa. Today, represented by Park West Gallery, Kinkade creates whimsical wildlife compositions and bold fantastical landscapes using acrylic paint, colored pencils, digital technology, and airbrushing, guiding viewers through vivid narratives drawn from real life and imagination.

John “Ziggy” O’Leary is a former graffiti artist who studied at one of New York City’s most prestigious art schools before becoming a well-known fixture in the Las Vegas art world. In 2022, he was selected as one of the Top 3 Finalists for Park West’s annual Made in Vegas artist competition. He has always described his biggest dilemma as being a traditional painter trapped inside a cartoonist’s body, and rather than choosing sides, he forged a new path that combines the skill of an accomplished fine artist with the humor and style of a master cartoonist.

In Las Vegas, O’Leary has found his home in the city’s thriving downtown Arts District. He draws inspiration from all things Vegas, including street art, murals, architecture, and the glow of vintage neon signs, as well as his love of music, guitars, movies, and pop culture. As an artist who prefers to work freehand, he believes a light sketch on canvas is all the preparation he needs, allowing his paintbrush and palette to slowly build shapes, shadows, highlights, and reflections. His masterful technique flows with motion and emotion, never feeling stiff or overly planned, while his strong composition skills and bold use of color engage viewers with his unique artistic vision. O’Leary is represented by Park West Gallery.

Walfrido is a groundbreaking figure in contemporary seascape art whose innovative works extend far beyond traditional ocean scenes. Born in the Philippines in 1966, he is the son of renowned artist Edgardo F. Garcia. His family reunited in California three years after his father emigrated, eventually settling in the San Francisco Bay Area in 1973. Watching his father teach and paint inspired Walfrido to follow the same path, and by age 14, he was learning the secrets of the Old Masters directly from him.

Walfrido’s passion for painting developed alongside his love for surfing. At 17, he was already teaching art classes and displaying work in Carmel galleries while studying at Ohlone College in Fremont, California. In 1987, a Hawaiian gallery on Oahu began representing him, attracting international attention. By 1991, at just 23, he became the youngest artist to exhibit in the Wyland galleries. His work is now represented by Park West Gallery and can be found in major galleries and private collections worldwide.

His distinctive style, which he calls “Romantic Luminism,” goes beyond photographic realism to capture a sense of timeless perfection. Working in layers from loose impressionistic beginnings to luminous highlights, Walfrido creates paintings that glow with light reminiscent of the Old Masters. His trailblazing collections include Koa wood pieces, surfboard art, his “Fire and Fantasy” series, and collaborations with Walt Disney Studios.

Québécois artist Sylvain Roberge brings a rare combination of academic precision and intuitive creativity to his vibrant paintings. Born in 1976 in Val-des-Sources in southeastern Quebec, he moved to Victoriaville at age seven following his mother’s death. Though he began oil painting at eleven, art truly captured him at sixteen when he resumed lessons in portraiture with dry pastels. He went on to study Fine Arts at Dawson College in Montreal, knowing then that painting would be his life’s work.

Today, Roberge is considered a true visionary because his work transcends trends and fads. He works with encaustic, a wax-based medium originating with the ancient Greeks over 3000 years ago. The technique requires vigorous application and expressive brushwork, and because it dries so quickly, his gestural strokes inject what he calls the Energy Line into each piece. He builds texture by allowing hot beeswax to drip in multiple layers, creating an almost three-dimensional effect. In his Glamour Girls series, Roberge celebrates the eternal muse of women through warm colors, modular touches, and carefully chosen accessories that convey both outward sensuality and discrete interiority.

Roberge’s work was exhibited at the International Art Expo in New York in March 2011, and he won the 2008 Price of Artist Recruitment Award from the Cimon Galleries in Quebec. His paintings are part of the Osum Oil Sands Corporation’s collection in Calgary, Alberta, and he is represented by Park West Gallery.

Vasily Kafanov creates surrealist works that blend the figurative and abstract, telling stories through rich symbolism and narrative. Born in Moscow in 1952 to writer parents, he was raised primarily by his grandmother, who provided him with a classical education. His rebellious youth led him to serve in the Soviet Armed Forces in the Far East, where at age 18 he discovered his calling as an artist on the stark Kuril Islands.

After military service, Kafanov studied arts at the Moscow Institute of Technology. In the 1980s, material scarcity in Russia inspired him to develop a distinctive technique of painting on blueprints using acrylics, incorporating his signature fish motif. After moving to the United States in 1990, he expanded his practice to include ceramics and sculpture while maintaining his focus on figurative painting. Today, he continues working on blueprints, beginning each piece with detailed ink pen drawings that create precise, layered details. The industrial lines and faded tones add texture and depth, while his bold use of color and black ink outlines create a cloisonné effect reminiscent of stained glass.

Influenced by Commedia dell’Arte, Hieronymus Bosch, Pieter Bruegel, and Marc Chagall, Kafanov’s work explores themes of alchemy and transformation. His paintings are held in the Zimmerli Museum at Rutgers University, the Beaulieu Museum in France, and numerous private collections worldwide. He has created large-scale murals, including at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital in New York City, and collaborated with musicians including Billy Corgan of the Smashing Pumpkins. Kafanov is represented by Park West Gallery.

Steven D’Hanson creates eye-catching abstract art that seamlessly blends modern technology with traditional drawing and painting techniques. Born in 1953 in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, D’Hanson showed artistic talent from an early age, encouraged by his father who was also an artist. His first recognition came in fourth grade when a local newspaper featured his painting of President Lincoln. He went on to earn a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the Minneapolis College of Art & Design, where he explored both realism and the surrealist works of Dalí and Kandinsky.

D’Hanson has always loved pairing visual and performing arts. As percussionist for his band Artsonic, he created multimedia performances featuring live musicians, dancers, computer animation, and theatrical lighting at venues including the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis. While in high school, he won a contest through the Famous Artist School, and Norman Rockwell showed his winning artwork on the Johnny Carson show.

Today, represented by Park West Gallery, D’Hanson creates vibrant cosmic flowers and abstract images using modern technology. He prints on canvas or the back of plexiglass, then hand-paints over the entire image. His work in the 1990s involved layers of plexiglass, silk screening, and hand-painted elements. D’Hanson views his abstract art as a study of harmonics, utilizing the energy of color, shape, and balance to challenge viewers in thoroughly exciting ways.

Paul Kostabi is a celebrated musician, record producer, and visual artist whose work hangs in prestigious institutions including the Guggenheim and the Whitney Museum. Born in Whittier, California, he immersed himself in the late 1970s and early 1980s punk rock scene before relocating to New York City, where he quickly became a fixture in the East Village art scene. He exhibited throughout the city and performed with his band Youth Gone Mad at legendary venues like CBGBs.

Paul developed an experimental approach that sets him apart from his brother Mark Kostabi, who was also emerging as a major New York artist at the time. His artwork seamlessly blends multiple styles, ranging from figurative expressionism to abstraction, with compositions that continually evolve. He describes his creative process as A-R-T: Attack, Release, Threshold—attacking the canvas spiritually until he releases it upon reaching his threshold.

A founding member of influential bands White Zombie and Psychotica, Paul continues to produce and perform worldwide. In 2014, he painted live in Times Square during the CBGB Festival while Devo and Jane’s Addiction performed. He is represented by Park West Gallery and maintains studios in New York and Italy. His art appears in permanent collections at museums including the Guggenheim and the New England Museum of Art, and has been featured in publications like Architectural Digest.

Solomon Hwang, born in 1956 in South Korea, is one of his country’s best-known fine artists and has built a large international following for his whimsically intricate portraits of scenic cityscapes and everyday life. His talent emerged early—a middle school art teacher once told him, “You will be a famous artist one day.” After studying at South Korean University, where he began working with oil painting, Hwang left to pursue his own studies and perfect his technique independently.

His distinctive oil paintings bring expansive city scenes to life in refined black, white, and gray tones that incorporate elements of pointillism. These muted environments are enlivened by bold color accents—streetlamps, flowers, signs, or most commonly, brightly-hued individuals going about their daily routines. He is also known for stirring abstract canvases.

After gaining recognition throughout Asia, Hwang moved to the United States in 1994, reaching a wider global audience. He serves as president of the New York chapter of the Korean Art Association and is represented by Park West Gallery. His honors include first-place prizes at the 1993 Korean Grand Prix Art Festival and the Seoul City Art Festival. In South Korea, the Korean War Memorial Museum commissioned him to create documentary paintings now exhibited publicly daily, and he has created works for charities benefiting handicapped children.

Mark Hadley is a self-taught artist from Dayton, Ohio who has built a devoted following for his dark, evocative acrylic paintings. Now based in Orlando, Florida, Hadley creates brooding artwork that stands in stark contrast to his sunny surroundings. His artistic journey began in fifth grade when his teacher, Mrs. Black, recognized his talent and offered private lessons. His first still-life watercolor was published in “Young Outstanding Artists in American Elementary Schools.” In high school, he focused on fantasy pen-and-ink drawings inspired by artists like Boris Vallejo and Frank Frazzetta.

In the early 1990s, Hadley began working with X-Acto knives and erasers to create striking images on black clay scratchboards. He performed as a restaurant’s in-house artist alongside belly dancers and fire eaters, and started exhibiting at outdoor art shows and conventions. At DragonCon in Atlanta, his black-and-white grim reaper artwork won a major prize, followed by “Best Horror” awards three consecutive years. These achievements cemented his reputation in dark art.

Hadley works without sketching or planning, beginning with backgrounds and letting images emerge organically. His diverse catalog ranges from children in gas masks to butterflies and fairies, though even his lighter subjects carry a dark edge. His work has been featured at Downtown Disney’s Pop Gallery, Hoypoloi Gallery, and Cornerstone Fine Art in St. Augustine. He has also created scenic art for WWE and a mural featured in Jackass Number Two. Mark Hadley is represented by Park West Gallery.

Captain Casual creates innovative contemporary art that fuses pop and graffiti styles with traditional themes of love, flowers, animals, and geometric shapes, all rendered in bold, bright colors. His journey to becoming an artist began with a profound second chance at life. In 2015, after years of stress in the financial markets led to a medical emergency, he was revived by paramedics and decided to completely transform his path. Trading stocks and bonds for color and joy, he adopted the name Captain Casual, inspired by a youth spent sailing to dozens of countries and his easy-going nature.

The artist works across an extraordinary range of materials and surfaces, from reclaimed street posters and sheets of currency to metal, wood, and luxurious paper. He employs spray paint, acrylic, and unconventional techniques like smashing cherries to create sumptuous reds. His singular goal is to spread happiness and kindness through playful, universal imagery that makes people smile.

Captain Casual’s vibrant work has attracted major brands including Louis Vuitton, Nike, Urban Decay, and Under Armour. He has created color palettes, hand-painted football cleats, and partnered with NBA superstar Steph Curry. Today, he is represented by Park West Gallery, where collectors worldwide seek his joyful masterpieces that bring color and happiness into their lives.