Joe Higgins

I work in monotype and my pictures deal with the vexations of making connections of the spirit. The images are representational, but also conceptual and symbolic. I use distressed landscapes as a metaphor for the uncertainties of life, or interiors to express ineffable messages of the heart. I've shown in many venues including Boulder Art Center, Sangre de Christo Arts Center, Colorado Springs Fine Art Center, and the Aspen Art Museum . In 1988, I was awarded an Individual Artist Fellowship by the Colorado Council on the Arts. http://www.joehigginsmonotypes.com

Ren Cannon

Ren (they/them) is an artist based in Denver, CO. They have a BFA in Fibers and Drawing from Colorado State University in Ft. Collins although they primarily work as a printmaker and potter right now. They think that the best way to learn is to experiment, make mistakes, and gain some knowledge rather than seeking perfection. When not in the studio, Ren likes to ride bikes, pet dogs, learn about science and nature, and try new things.

Karmen Franklin

Mikael Olson

Born in Denver in 1973, Mikael Olson has been painting for as long as he can remember.“I paint because it is the most natural way for me to define myself. I prefer to paint ordinary things, and I try to paint them honestly. Painting is my response to the intoxication of my visual experience.”
Mikael is a graduate of Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design and has continued to hone his craft through studies at the Arts Student League of Denver. He has worked alongside such prominent painters as Quang Ho and fellow Coloradan Kevin Wechbach, and includes among his influences such diverse talents as Andrew Wyeth and Richard Diebenkorn. His painting style, which he describes as “impressionistic toward slightly expressionistic,” is beautifully suited to the subjects he prefers: single objects in bold still-life, human figures thoughtfully composed and cleanly rendered, and light-infused street scenes.

Anita Rodriguez-Harman

Timothy Standring

Timothy James Standring, Curator Emeritus, Denver Art Museum:

Though small in scale, Timothy James Standring’s oils and watercolors pierce the assumed poetics both media aspire to express. Over the past decade, Standring has brought a gimlet-eyed attention to a painterly parity of close observation and delight in his material. Deft material sensitivity and technique, both traditional and radical, register in the recurring themes he paints. Just as they resonate with Standring’s influences in a line of artists extending from Edgar Degas and John Singer Sargent to Joaquìn Sorolla and Andrew Wyeth. 
His recent watercolor works reflect a preference for painting with the pigment-loaded sable belly instead of the brush’s tight point which results, surprisingly, in marks and images reminiscent of dry brush oils on unprepared paper. Such heavily pigmented watercolors enliven the poetic statements his compositions sustain. Similarly, his plein air oil sketches betray watercolor techniques. Indeed, these paradoxes of approach underscore Standring’s radical authenticity in both media. Standring conveys in his meditative observation of intimate scenes and settings a challenge to the fickle attributes that watercolor and oils encompass.  
Standring’s works are held in numerous private collections across North American and Europe. On three occasions his works have been included in the prestigious 10 x 10 x 10 juried exhibition in Tieton, Washington. In 2022, 2023, and 2024 Standring participated in the Coors Western Art Exhibition. One of his monographic exhibitions was reviewed by the national critic Ray Rainaldi in the Denver Post; another was cited in Fine Art Connoisseur.

A sensitive and voluble teacher, Standring conducts watercolor painting workshops at the Art Students League of Denver in June, as well as the Lunenburg School of the Arts, Lunenburg, Nova Scotia in September.  His legacy as an artist and scholar has influenced generations of artists. Many around the nation—and indeed—the world are indebted to his generous mentorship.

Elizabeth Truskin

Susan Vaho