Brad Bisbey

Brad Bisbey began drawing and painting at the age of 9 and decided early on to pursue a career in fine art, particularly painting. He graduated from St. Ambrose University with a B.A. Degree in Art. Brad also studied with renowned portrait painter Daniel Greene in Chicago.

An oil painter for many years, Brad developed an allergy to oil paint and solvents and had to find another medium in which to work. Acrylic paint was a possible solution. After getting used to the acrylic, Brad wouldn’t return to oil paint, even if he could.

Brad lives in Moline, Illinois in the same house in which he grew up. He exhibits, teaches, and works with Bereskin Gallery.

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Naidine D’Angelo

Nadine was born and raised in the Bronx, New York. Upon graduating from high school, she attended Truman State University (formally known as Northeast Missouri State) in Kirksville, Missouri graduating in 1969 with a BS degree in Physical Education and Dance. She began teaching at United Township High school in East Moline, and remained there until her retirement in 2004.

At the age of three, her father, who was an immigrant from Italy, put a pencil in her hand and she’s been drawing ever since. Over the years she expanded her love for art by including photography, and began including her drawings, most specifically original face drawings into her photographic pieces, a technique that has become a unique way to challenge her creativeness.

Naidine has also added black and white STEAMPUNK drawings and STEAMPUNK lamps to her list of subject venues.

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Larry Mendenhall

A former newspaper photographer and editor, Larry Mendenhall began concentrating on landscape photography in the late ‘90’s and began Quiet Places Photography in 2003. Since then, his work has appeared in numerous juried art shows and exhibitions. His botanical images are a natural spin-off from his landscape photography, celebrating a close-up, intimate look at the shapes and forms found in nature.

In 2009, he began a different project called “Places of Spirt and Light”, a study of churches in rural Iowa. The project was selected for a solo show at the Octagon Center for the Arts (Ames, IA) and part of the “Places of Spirit and Light” portfolio was published in Issue #109 of LensWork magazine. Other honors include: Best of Show in the Octagon Art Center (Ames, IA) Snapshot photo contest; selection of two photos for the Vet’s Auditorium renovation (Des Moines, IA); an appearance in Iowa Public Television’s Iowa Outdoors segment on Iowa State Fair’s Photography Salon; Best of Show at the Octagon Arts Festival in Ames, IA; and selected as an Artist in Residence at Ashford College in Clinton, IA.

His photographs are in the permanent collections at Mary Greeley Hospital; the Municipal Fire and Police Retirement System of Iowa, The University of Iowa Library, and are on display in the Environmental Protection Agency’s Kansas City office. The Iowa Farm Bureau Association of Iowa selected Mendenhall’s Summer Storm to represent the state at the Farm Bureau National Headquarters in Washington, D.C. He lives in Altoona, IA, with this wife, Nancy Eichmann.

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Jason Platt

Like most artists out there in the world, I was known as that kid in the class who could draw. I was the one who could mimic Charles M. Schulz or Jim Davis’s characters on a dime and make the other kid’s smile. And as I grew older my tastes changed too. I became enthralled with Mad Magazine’s Mort Drucker and, famed movie poster artist, Drew Struzan. With Drucker’s work I would always pick up my copy of Mad at the Eagle grocery store and study his amazing line work before I even read a line of copy. And with Struzan, I would find myself admiring his work for, what seemed like, ages wondering what adventure the movie was going to be about. This was pre-internet days, and it wouldn’t be until years later that I realized that his first name was Drew, and not his last.

Working my way as a professional actor and puppeteer (yes, those jobs actually exist), I focused on the art of illustration and graduated from the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD for those in the know). I’m particularly drawn to the art of humorous and children’s illustration (pun not intended), but I’ve done other types as well. Including paintings, technical illustration and portraits. But, since being a kid I’ve always taken to the humorous illustration. I’m in the business of making people happy. I can’t think of a better way of making a living, can you?

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Radim Schreiber

I grew up in the Czech Republic where fireflies are very rare. In 20 years, I had seen them only once.  They have always intrigued me and the abundance of them in the United States inspired me to photograph them. Almost every summer evening since 2008, I have gone out on my bicycle to nearby fields, braving mosquitoes and chiggers in my striving to catch exceptional photographs of fireflies.

When conditions are right, I stay out late into the night, photographing fireflies in the dark forest landscapes or under the Milky Way. Sometimes, I leave my camera on its tripod and enjoy the show.  When I photograph fireflies I feel connected to nature. Fireflies are illuminated beings guiding me on my life journey. I am interested in portraying fireflies as accurately as possible.

All of the photographs are shot in the fireflies’ natural habitat, without digital manipulation or supplemental lighting. Each photograph faithfully portrays the location of the fireflies in the scene and their apparent luminosity. 

“Fireflies are for me the light in the dark. They show me the oath to joy, hope, healing and connection with nature.” Says Radim. 

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Kaitlin Walsh

Kaitlin Walsh is an independent artist specializing in abstract anatomy watercolor and oil paintings. From a young age, she exhibited an immense fascination with both art and science. She focused her studies on both disciplines, taking medical courses alongside fine art ones. This culminated with a graduate degree in Biomedical Visualization at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Soon after graduation, Kaitlin married and had her first child. Her son spent several months in the hospital recovering from prenatal complications and an early birth. This experience motivated Kaitlin to focus her career on her passion: Portraying the beauty and complexity of the human body, as her son’s initially precarious health status, while frightening, also compelled her to appreciate the things were going well within his body. She was naturally impelled to convey this appreciation through her paintings, using the skills gained throughout her education.

After spending some time honing her craft and increasing her inventory (and having more children), she opened up shop. Kaitlin now feels incredibly lucky to have found success doing what she loves while getting to spend time with her family. She is currently in the top 1% of Etsy sellers and has sold over 15,000 prints of her anatomical fine art paintings.

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David Zahn

David Zahn resides and works in Moline, Illinois. Originally from the Chicago area, he has been creating art work for many years. David works in both 2-D and 3-D art mediums, and is known for his ceramic and bronze sculptures. Whether sculpting or painting, his art works are always imaginative, interesting and contain some sort of mystery in them.

Movement is another important aspect of David’s art. He likes to create intriguing juxtaposing of static and flowing forms in his artistic imagery. Works by David Zahn can be found in both public, private, and corporate collections.

There are many pieces of his art on permanent public display both indoors, and outdoors, in Iowa, and Illinois.

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