I was born in Moscow, Russia, and grew up in a family of physicists—a background that led me to a career in mathematics. After moving to the Pacific Northwest in 2010, I discovered quilting, and later, painting. I’m still not sure how I lived without it before.

-MARIA MICHURINA

HENRY MURPHY 

B.1995 living in Philadelphia, Pa

 Henry graduated with a certificate degree in painting from the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts where he received the Von Hess memorial travel scholarship, he has shown his work in Philadelphia at Fleisher Ollman Gallery, Art at Kings Oaks, Procession Gallery, Gross Mccleaf, as well as The Hampstead Arts Society in London, The Spring Break Art Fair, Stellarhighway in New York and The Ruffed Grouse Gallery of Narrowsburg NY.

BRANTNER DEATLEY

A few years ago I thought it would be funny to make a bear holding a cabin as a nod to the donor portraits or Saints holding cathedrals from medieval European art. 

  I made one here and there but never really gave them much focus. When Dean offered me the opportunity for this show he mentioned the bears with cabins which opened the door to really explore the idea. 

Making animals immediately leads you into our environment and all of the stress we put on nature with the choices we make in our lives and even more pressing the choices that are being made for us without our consent. 

TATIANA TRUNOVA  was born in St. Petersburg, Russia  in 1994, and currently lives and works in Argentina.

She graduated  from the School of Fine Arts and the I.E. Repin Academy of Fine Arts, Department of Painting. The works are in Museum collections in Russia, as well as private collections in other countries.

SEAN SAWICKI

“Reinvention and the element of surprise are essential to my practice. Art and life are obviously intertwined; a lot of the time I am using leftover material or tools from household projects in my work. Connecting with familiar places or objects and working to find their heart is at the core; having been born and raised in Western Massachusetts, I need to slip into each dimension of this place for renewal. 
Sean Sawicki lives in Belchertown, MA 

AFFSOONGAR   means "charmer," "enchanter," or "captivator" in Farsi.  It can also carry connotations of a "femme fatale," a powerful woman seeking revenge against injustice. 

The term is notably associated with  self-taught Iranian artist who goes by the name of Affsoongar. The artist, born in 1999,  chose this persona to explore themes and create works that are not openly permissible in Iran. Her work often features female protagonists in  settings which challenge  traditional narratives and societal constraints.