SCIART Past Featured Artist Spotlights

Meet August’s featured Artist-in-Residence, Marion Wood! Visit Marion in Studio B1 during the next Open Studios.

Expressing her Internal Dialogue

Much of Wood’s themes are a result of an inner discussion of solitude, self- reflection and physical expression. Architectural forms and the harmony of organization and chaos are used to develop her compositions. The duality in the joy and pain of creation is another recurring subject within Wood’s art, where the physical act of painting stimulates this thought process.

A Common Ground between Fate and Intention

Wood inhibits the entirety of the canvas, where she wanders and searches to explore the natural flow of its progression. She enjoys experimenting by painting without brushes, spreading, layering or even dripping the paint, allowing gravity to determine the direction and position of the paint.

Established British Artist

Marion Wood has displayed and sold her work widely across America, including the Los Angeles Art Show, Art San Diego, Sergot Contemporary Gallery, TAG gallery as well achieving many awards and featuring in collections at Stanford University.

Meet June’s featured Artist-in-Residence, Mary McGill! Visit Mary in Studio B2 during the next Open Studios.

As a ceramics artist, my work is a reflection of my deep appreciation for the art form and its rich history. I am fascinated by the way that clay can be molded and transformed into vessels, sculptures, and functional objects that are both beautiful and practical.

My creative process is centered on experimentation and exploration. I approach each piece with a sense of curiosity, allowing the clay to guide me as I work. Whether I am hand-building or throwing on the wheel, I am constantly seeking new ways to push the boundaries of the material and create pieces that are truly unique.

One of the things that draws me to ceramics is its tactile nature. The process of shaping and forming the clay is a deeply physical experience, and I love the way that my hands become an extension of my creativity. I also appreciate the meditative quality of the work, and the way that it allows me to slow down and focus on the present moment.

In my work, I am often inspired by the natural world, and I strive to create pieces that capture the organic beauty of plants, animals, and landscapes. I also draw inspiration from traditional pottery techniques and historical styles, incorporating these influences into my contemporary designs.

Ultimately, my goal as a ceramics artist is to create pieces that are not only aesthetically pleasing, but also imbued with a sense of meaning and purpose. Whether I am creating a functional vessel for daily use or a sculptural piece that tells a story, I hope to bring joy and inspiration to those who encounter my work.

Meet May’s featured Artist-in-Residence, Andy Lepe! Visit Andy in Studio B4 during the next Open Studios on the first Saturdays of the month.

Andy Lepe is a geometric abstract artist that creates calm hard-edge paintings with subtle transitions in colors.

Lepe developed a mindset practice he calls “Color Flow” created to help slow his over stimulated and hyper active mind in order to tune into being present. This process embraces calmness and taps into a gentle rhythmic stream of creative thoughts.

Lepe’s paintings depict our own unique frequencies through colors that uplift, shift and unlock the greatness within.

Elana Kundell is a longtime Artist-In-Residence at Studio Channel Islands whose oil and mixed media paintings explore our connection with nature, the body and each other through the evocative language of color. Her experiences as the granddaughter of a Holocaust survivor led her to curate this exhibition focused on the theme of displacement.

Kundell’s artwork has been exhibited at the Carnegie Art Museum in Oxnard, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) Artists Gallery, the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) in Los Angeles, CA for the Fresh! Art Auction, the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, and in galleries in the United States and in Korea. She has received grants including a residency at the Vermont Studio Center and three Ventura Music Festival commissions. Her artwork resides in numerous private collections in the United States and abroad.

Kundell studied art at the University of California at Santa Cruz and Painting and Sculpture at the Accademia di Belle Arti in Bologna, Italy. Her past curatorial projects for Studio Channel Islands include CA Printmaking Now, co-curated with Jennifer Printz in 2008, and Assistant Curator for the 10th Anniversary Exhibit in 2007, curated by Gerd Koch.