As varied as the arts themselves...
As varied as the arts themselves...
Posts
About
About Gallery Swarm Mission Established in 2010 by noted master painter Samuel Gillis, Gallery Swarm is unique in form and function. Located in an alternative gallery space in a 6,000 square foot facility with vaulted ceilings and exposed brick, it shares its home with high-end rug store Olson Rug. Gallery Swarm has but one guiding principle: anyone can be an artist. Founder Sam Gillis and his "swarm" have long believed that many an artistic genius has had his ember of creativity put out before it can blaze in all its glory because of judgment. From supporting budding artists in their first creative attempts to helping emerging artists build their portfolio and getting them ready for their first shows to exhibiting master painters at the height of their careers, Gallery Swarm seeks to give artists in all phases a refuge to call home. Like chameleon artist Gillis, who is known for his ability to paint with exquisite mastery i...
Amanda Neistat
Her work has been described as controlled chaos. To Ms. Neistat the most important areas of her canvases are those without paint: “The raw canvas is what gives the piece movement and flow.” Amanda’s “moving colors” allows the observer to connect in their own way to a piece. Her work is best experienced without opinion and an open mind. Amanda’s creative process is deceptively simple. She chooses different color paints then, using a pallet knife, spreads them across her canvass. The pallet knife is her tool to invent different patterns and textures. As the colors inspire her, the piece comes alive and eventually evolves into a completed work. The result is a moving, thought-provoking experience for the observer. Amanda was born in Miami but grew up in the Chicago area. She attended school at Hofstra University and received a Bachelors of Fine Arts with a focus in painting and drawing. Major influences on Amanda’s work are Kandinsky and Mark Rothko. Their ...
Jeff Kolak
To have an image look into you, as much as you look into it, is my goal as I create an image. I want you to lock eyes with the character in the piece and feel what it is he or she maybe feeling and create a story, a world even, in your mind. There is a goal to keep a person looking. Good characters in a piece draw a viewer in. As does an incredible amount of detail, design, and imagery. -Paintings- Using a specific technique of oil painting, I aim to create images that have a life like quality. Subjects in the paintings usually portait a connection to mortality, stress, and loss of control. Its that loss of control that creates a certain side of us, a side of us that has been defeated. Its that side that either goes on auto-pilot or goes mad. Masks are an important part of culture and psychology. They can be a literal mask and/or psychological mask. I like to explore both through my art. -Ink Drawings- Developed over years of doodling o...
Michael Angelo Gagliardi
Michael Angelo Gagliardi was born in New York City in 1962 to Irish and Italian Parents. He grew up living in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Staten Island, where he attended Msgr. Farrell High School. He received a B.F.A. in painting and sculpture and a M.A. in Theatrical Design from C.W. College of Long Island University in 1985. Michael Angelo sold his first painting in a bar on St Mark’s Place at the tender age of 17. He is eternally grateful for not being carded that day. Upon graduating college MA moved back to NYC where he kept studios in the East Village then Williamsburg Brooklyn. Though finding his own path artistically, he is still to this day influenced by the Neo-Expressionist style. Making a living in the NYC off Broadway theatre scene MA learned to be a scenic artist and stage craftsperson. He never stopped making his own art showing mostly at that time in the smaller East Village Galleries. Along with a group o...