Eric “El Cappy” Lowry

Detroit, Michigan
‘rose water’
60x48in mixed media on canvas, 2024
Made especially for the Uncork for a Cure auction
@elcappy

Eric " El Cappy" Lowry is a Detroit-based, self-taught artist who has been breaking through the contemporary art scene and the fashion industry. He has gained immense notoriety from his vast population of work, idolizing pop culture with his imaginative edge. He has worked with top companies such as Shinola, Stella McCartney, Nike for March Madness, Complex for the film "Detroit" cast, and The Detroit Pistons & the Lions for "My Cause, My Cleats".

Eric is widely known for his artistry in shoe customization, using leather paint atop high-end sneakers. He has produced works for Detroit's biggest names, such as Dan Gilbert. His time spent living in Austin & Dallas, Texas, has led to Lowry's growing popularity amongst athletes. Lending his creative hand, Eric Lowry is the premier sneaker customization artist - establishing his clients from athletic teams such as the Cowboys, the Bills, the Saints, the 49ers, and the Lions from the rest of the sneaker collectors.

In addition to dominating the custom sneaker market, Eric has created fine art in mixed-media collages. Utilizing strategically cut clippings from books and magazines, he meticulously places each piece to form intricate collages of patterns and new imagery. In 2019, Eric had his first art show, "MOOD," in his hometown of Detroit, Michigan, at the Lisa Spindler Studio. Artwork from his 1X1 Studio is on display at influential companies & charities such as IBM & ORT America.

Mike Han

Detroit/Los Angeles
Untitled
62x35in acrylic on paper

www.thehouseofhan.com
@mikehan_detroit

Mike Han is an artist and designer working out of studios in LA and Detroit. Han strives to achieve dynamic balance in art by connecting people, place, and purpose through his organic and abstract character line work. He constantly evaluates and learns from his process just like he does in his yoga practice, learning how to breathe and move in an effort to learn how to live well.

His signature mark making is a meditative process that draws influence from his Korean heritage, graffiti, the work of Keith Haring, and modern design. His work contemplates sustainability, the paradox of creation and consumption, and the relationship between the individual and community.

Mike has been commissioned to create art at Pitti Uomo in Florence, Italy by the MEDC, Bloomingdale’s 150th Anniversary at their flagship location in NYC, and has live painted for Fiat during Detroit’s Concours d’Elegance. Han has painted in Osaka, Japan, exhibited in Seoul, S. Korea and in Miami during Art Basel with Model No. Furniture.

Han has painted murals for Google for Startups, Ford Motor Co., LinkedIn, and has artwork in the permanent collections of Mercedes Benz Financial Services, Somerset Collection, Huntington Bank, Henry Ford Health Systems, and Shinola Hotel.

Mike has been an awards juror for ArtPrize and has hosted a workshop at the DIA. He is currently the Official Creative for Ann Arbor Street Art Fair, The Original and has artwork on display at the Kresge Foundation headquarters. Han has an upcoming solo show at the Detroit Athletic Club and the release of his first furniture collection with Gardner White.

Han works with a variety of non profits like Uncork for a Cure and has helped raise over $300k through the sale of his artworks in the past three years.

Takeisha Jefferson

Ypsilanti, Michigan
‘United’
24x36in Photograph on archival paper
@takeishaart 

Takeisha Jefferson is an international portrait photographer and artist based in Michigan. Her artistic journey developed while she was a Public Affairs Specialist in the Air Force. Shortly after that, she established a successful photography business and continued to refine her craft at Auburn of Montgomery University. She expanded her Birthright Series and developed a deep passion for art history during this time.

Takeisha Jefferson's talent and dedication led her to participate in over 55 global exhibitions. Her work has garnered recognition, including a nomination for the Lecia Oskar Barnack Award and a feature on Google Arts and Culture. Her art revolves around significant themes such as family, black womanhood, and empowerment.

One of the most significant milestones in Takeisha Jefferson's career was being featured in "As We See It - Redefining Black Identity," a publication from the UK that showcased 30 global artists. Her artistic practice, deeply influenced by her experiences as a disabled veteran, wife, and mother of four, adds a profound depth and richness to her work. This personal connection resonates with viewers, fostering a sense of empathy and understanding.

Elijah McNeeley

Boise, Idaho
‘Nuanced by Nature’’
60x36in acrylic & water on canvas
@dripthro

Elijah McNeeley is an abstract artist based in Boise, Idaho. Art serves as my language, allowing me to translate complex emotions and experiences into tangible expressions. My journey as an artist is an ever-evolving narrative, with each canvas representing a chapter of growth and transformation. I explore the depths of creativity through colors, forms, textures, and scale, constantly pushing the boundaries of my craft.

Abstraction is my chosen mode of expression, where I find freedom from constraints and the opportunity to learn from my “mistakes.” Through this form, I discover beauty in chaos and meaning in the seemingly random. The process of evolution is not one of finality but of continual growth. As you explore my work, I invite you to join me on this journey of discovery, find inspiration in my art's evolution, and reflect on your journey of growth.

Elijah’s work has been featured in House Beautiful Magazine’s Whole Home Chicago. He has shown his work with Virgil Catherine Gallery in Chicago. In Boise, Idaho, he had a solo exhibition at the James Beard Award-winning KIN and the show One Night in March. He is represented by Drew Marc Gallery in Tampa, Florida, and Virgil Catherine Gallery in Chicago, Illinois.

James Collins

Detroit, Michigan
Untitled
60x48 oil and acrylic on canvas 2021
@jamescollinz

Detroit-based artist James Collins is known for minimalist op art and abstract works created through various imaginative processes that embody chemistry and chance. These processes produce a spacious and gestural sense of predictable unpredictability. In his multidimensional line-heavy chance-based works, Collins applies a custom process in which oil paint and water-based acrylic interact in a fluid state and repel each other.

Collins has shown in several group exhibitions, including An Anonymous System at the Rogaland Kunstsenter in Stavanger, Norway; A Painting Show at Simone DeSousa Gallery in Detroit; 99 cents or Less at the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit; Summer Group Show and What Birds Can See at Document in Chicago, IL; New American Paintings at the Elmhurst Art Museum, Elmhurst, IL; On the Blue Shores of Silence at Tracy Williams Ltd., New York; FOG Design and Art with Jessica Silverman Gallery, San Francisco; Library Street Collective, Detroit; Urban Institute for Contemporary Arts, Grand Rapids, Mich. and at the West Michigan Area Show, Kalamazoo, where he was awarded the Grand Prize in 2012. Materia Art Gallery in Detroit represents Collins.

Edvarda

Oslo, Norway
‘Kittens’
46x55in giclee fine art print
@studioedvarda

Edvarda Braanaas, a distinguished Norwegian artist based in Oslo, brings a rich international perspective to her work, influenced by her years in Los Angeles. Her art, which draws inspiration from film, literature, illustration, and design, explores the intersection of high art and pop art. By blending Art Deco nostalgia with a modern pop aesthetic, Edvarda has crafted a unique signature style that resonates with global audiences.

At the core of Edvarda's artistic philosophy is her unwavering commitment to challenging and reshaping the portrayal of women in popular culture. Through her art, she strives to provide women with a platform for representation on their own terms, fostering empowerment and agency. This narrative focus allows her work to transcend traditional categorizations, making a significant contribution to the evolving landscape of contemporary art and inspiring others to join her in this important mission.

Her involvement in the Los Angeles art scene from 2010 to 2019 enriched her exposure to a vibrant artistic community, where she exhibited her work in established and emerging venues. This experience and her participation in numerous solo and group exhibitions across Europe and the United States highlight her versatility and broad appeal.

Edvarda began her artistic journey in the mid-1980s at the Scuola Internazionale di Grafica in Venice, Italy. She furthered her education by earning a Master of Arts degree from the National Academy of the Arts and a Bachelor of Arts in Art History from the University of Oslo. Initially focusing on abstract painting under the guidance of Professor Irma Salo Jæger, she eventually transitioned to a stylized figurative technique, emphasizing storytelling in her work.

In summary, Edvarda Braanaas is an artist with a vision dedicated to shaping the future of artistic discourse. Her innovative approach and unique style serve as a testament to the endless possibilities of creativity, inspiring a new narrative in art.

John Neary

Detroit, Michigan
’Fighter’
51x51in acrylic on canvas
@nearyart

Meaning: Like all of my pieces, this work uses an ancient form of Irish writing, Ogham, in an abstract manner. The markings (across three columns and six forms) in the piece spell “Laoch” which means warrior/hero, and “Saol” which means life.

John Neary is an Irish-born Detroit based artist who utilizes a structured abstract approach in his installations. His work delivers a peaceful and minimal aesthetic heavily influenced by a contemporary take on traditional Irish arts and culture. Most of his pieces include abstractions influenced by the ancient form of Irish writing known as Ogham.

He works in multiple mediums, producing a diverse portfolio of work bound together with a recognizable language of minimalism, structure and quiet forms.

Martyna Alexander

Detroit, Michigan
‘After Dark Remorse’
40x30in acrylic on linen canvas & wood frame
From the "Fields" series, 2022
@martyna_alexander

Martyna Alexander is a Detroit-based artist and designer. Daughter of a Polish immigrant with Korean ancestry and a Michigan local, her work often compares the strange harmony of the strict and systematic to the expressive, organic, and spontaneous - oppositions that mirror the many tensions of her interests and modern life. Originally, she worked in corporate settings as a designer for over 10 years, but now she uses her design tools to create new abstract and anti-solution-based works of art through painting to discover deeper connections felt to place and examining the simple structures of man-made systems as visual objects.

About the work: The Fields series was based heavily on this idea of finding balance in the extreme oppositions I felt and lived in my life at the time. Much of the series was painted during the pandemic when there was this release of the daily and often arbitrary pressures of my corporate design jobs while replaced with new extreme stressors of the health of myself, and everyone around me. The abrupt release from the structure of my previous life was a blessing in disguise and required a reprocessing of my priorities and ways of living. 'After Dark Remorse' is based on a feeling of having lost time living your life based on unhealthy ideals and expectations. It's a feeling of letting go of something that you once had and thought was right just before finding and accepting your true path - often apart from the expectations of society and of culture. The darkness before the light.

Mary Wysocki

Art Consultant
Paragon Art Collective
www.paragonartcollective.com
@paragonartcollective

Paragon Art Collective was founded by Mary Wysocki to help you find original art you love, even if you are an art novice. Paragon Art Collective provides art consulting, curation, and artist business advisement. There is no need for mass-produced wallhangings; original works of art CAN be affordable!

Finding the right piece takes time, and the art world can be intimidating, giving you the feeling that art is outside your reach. Visiting galleries and negotiating the price of original art can be a time-consuming and stressful venture. My job is to get to know you, listen, and understand your needs. Then, present options that express who you are and what you love to find a match within your budget. I scan the market, reach out to my worldwide connections, bring you a shortlisted proposal, and then help guide you through the acquisition.