Saturday, November 27, 2010

Holiday Reception 2010: Artist Biographies: Meirav Haber, Akym Rinkovsky & Peter Churchill

Meirav Haber is an LA based artist who specializes in merging the realms of sculpture, painting, and ceramics. Born in Israel with an early life of travel split between Israel, South Africa, and the United States, Meirav has an eclectic culture that undeniably informs her work. Meirav’s recent series of ceramic sculptures, called Mimesis, came to life in 2009 inspired by crumpled metal and trash from the streets of LA. “I was searching for beauty and life in a city full of road kill and trash, and I found it.” Her works transcend realistic depiction and take on a life of their own, with personality, emotion, and psychological states all fused into one. The clay body, paint, and glaze compete for the eye’s attention, and plays back and forth with optical illusions. Ms. Haber graduated from UCLA with a bachelor’s in Fine Arts in 2009, and is currently attending Loyola Marymount for a master’s degree in Art Therapy. http://www.meiravhaber.com

Akym Rinkovsky was originally inspired by ancient Aztec art. He developed a love for using natural materials and a sacred philosophy of preserving the earth into an 'interactive style of art.' Akym has created a very rare furniture-art show called Going Green, The Fix it Kit “Palm.” This is a specific collection of his natural form benches and tables built from king and queen palm fronds and bark. It is in his own interpretation of these tree's flow and function that spawned this truly unique brand of indoor and outdoor leisure sculpture. This is a complete paradigm shift, a new way of thinking, analyzing the 'proper' utilization of something that exists all around us. Via old school building techniques with new school respect for the environment, Akym has created pieces that must be seen to appreciate.

Peter Churchill is an accomplished stained glass artist who has been creating pieces that are inspired by nature. His passion for geology is channeled through his work in that it uses mineral colors and crystalline form. He has clients all over the West - Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Nevada and Arizona. Peter's business includes custom stained glass windows, decorative glass art projects, and memorial pet garden stones. Much of his work is inspired by things he loves - his latest series of water fowl evolved out of his love of these incredible birds; Peter's memorial stones evolved from a desire to create a lasting memory when his beloved dog died. http://churchillstainedglass.com/Home.html