Artists in Focus – to see all, click HERE.
This is a selection from the current collection of Focus On The Masters artist documentation. Click on the picture or artist name to view the portrait, biography, media presentations and website of the artist.
All artists’ portraits are by Donna Granata. The photographs and artworks shown on this website are copyrighted by the artists and may not be reproduced without permission from the copyright owner. By entering this website, you agree to these conditions.
Virginia Kron
Cellist
Accolades abound for Ojai resident Virginia Kron. She is called “a remarkable musician [with a] distinctive cello style.” Kron received her Bachelor’s in Music degree from University of Wisconsin, Madison in 1977...
Gerd Koch
Painter
Without a good teacher, many artists would never discover their full potential. Gerd Koch is that teacher. An instructor since 1953, Gerd Koch has personally contributed to the success of many well respected contemporary artists. He has a unique ability to “see” creatively and to teach his students to “see.”
Karen Kitchel
Painter
Karen Kitchel’s landscapes are definitely not traditional. Of her work Karen states: "I paint them with the traditional craftsmanship of the genre’s past, and a critical eye on the geography of the...
Norman Kirk
Painter
Having explored a broad spectrum of styles and media throughout his long career, Norman Kirk devotes his principal work to watercolor landscapes. He skillfully weaves large areas of white paper through his work....
Maggie Kildee
Sculptor
If you’ve ever been accused of being an uppity woman, you will love the work of Maggie Kildee. Her resume includes jobs as mother, teacher and politician; jobs that require talent, perseverance and a sincere desire...
Mary Kennedy
Ceramist
RTK Studios are tile artisans steeped in the architectural ceramic traditions of the early 1900’s. The partners, Richard Keit & Mary Kennedy have brought back the old world techniques of the exquisite Malibu...
Richard Keit
Ceramist
RTK Studios are tile artisans steeped in the architectural ceramic traditions of the early 1900’s. The partners, Richard Keit & Mary Kennedy have brought back the old world techniques of the exquisite Malibu...
Susan R. Kaufman
Sculptor
Susan’s sculptures remind us of the inevitable passage of time and the always present need for love. Her greatest influence is her father, a Russian immigrant whose art captured the horrors of Cossack marauders...
Joanne Julian
Painter
“Joanne Julian calls our attention to the beauty and transcendence of the natural world that surrounds us,” states contemporary art curator and writer Jay Belloli. Julian credits her old world, Armenian upbringing that paid attention to detail in...
Mikael Jorgensen
Musician
Mikael Jorgensen is lead pianist and keyboardist for the band Wilco as well as a member of the band Pronto. Mikael's father, an esteemed recording engineer, introduced him to the world of music and music...
Cassandra C. Jones
Photographer
Cassandra C. Jones is a cutting edge artist who finds paradox and contradiction in the world around her. Does an artist create public opinion or mirror it? Are artists the first to reflect on undercurrents in...
Wesley Johnson
Painter
Wesley E. Johnson was born in Ojai, California and became involved with art while studying at Ventura College, where his plans were to become an engineer. He continued his art education at the Brooks Institute and...
Connie Jenkins
Painter
Connie Jenkins is an accomplished Realist painter whose large-scale canvasses feature rocks, water and the natural landscape, but also contain elements that are not as easily identified. Her images often represent...
Dorothy Hunter
Painter
Her oil paintings bring the emotional palette of impressionism to the world of abstract art. "I am usually referred to as an abstract artist but perhaps my work should be called abstract...
Lee Hodges
Mixed Media
Lee Hodges combines disparate objects -- jewels, copper wire, recycled paper, cast-off plastics, and layers of iridescent paint -- to form artwork that shimmers. The fusion of her passions for art and her faith into...
William Hendricks
Photographer
Bill Hendricks is drawn to disappearing and shifting cultures, to the vulnerable among us, to the moment that separates today from tomorrow. His lens captures time and isolates it, giving us the...
Otto Heino
Potter
Otto Heino was a man who dedicated his life to his passion. In doing so, he was rewarded with serenity, true contentment and peace of mind. He was born to share his gift with others: his students, his...
Wayne Alaniz Healey
Painter/Sculptor/Muralist
“I think of myself as a journalist,” says Wayne Alaniz Healy, a painter, sculptor, muralist and retired aerospace engineer who understands the passion and political power of art. Through his...
Lynn Hanson
Painter
Lynn Hanson’s work stems from a rapt attention and visceral connection to the natural world: from a childhood spent stalking garter snakes at Whiskey Ditch in rural Minnesota to a daily ritual of exploring...
Mary Beth (MB) Hanrahan
Muralist
While attending a field trip from Taft High School in Woodland Hills, California, Mary Beth toured the Foster & Kleiser Billboard manufacturing facility. Later that day, staring at the awesome billboards as...
Tony & Daphne Hallas
Astrophotographers
Tony and Daphne have always worked together as a team. They became enamored with the stars in 1986 when they bought their first 8 inch telescope. They viewed Saturn and were so fascinated...
Porfirio Gutierrez
Weaver
Porfirio Gutierrez is an extraordinary weaver who combines ancient Zapotec traditions with a modern sensibility. Growing up in Teotitlan del Valle in Oaxaca, Mexico, he was immersed in the ancient art of weaving....
Colin Fraser Gray
Draftsman/Sculptor/Public Artist
Colin Fraser Gray’s eye on world events, ear for social nuance, and wry sense of humor have shaped his artistic path. His drawings, sculpture and public art are quirky, sometimes...
George Geyer
Sculptor
“George Geyer’s sculpture toys with the mind,” explained the late distinguished museum director and educator Henry Hopkins. “What we know and what we see are two different...
Luther Gerlach
Photographer
Luther Gerlach is a photographer whose work captures modern images using old-world techniques. He is an ambrotypist who has built his own camera and who produces negatives in the waxed paper collotype...
David Gallup
Painter
David Gallup, plein air painter and teacher, creates works that exquisitely capture a sense of place. A broad color palette and multi-layered paint only partially describe the paintings that explore nature’s character...
Monica Furmanski
Photographer
Monica Furmanski, photographer and installation artist, directs the viewer’s experience, blurring the lines between image and reality. In 2002 Monica placed window-sized, slightly out-of-focus transparencies...
Matt Furmanski
Sculptor & Land Artist
Matt Furmanski -- educator, artist, public arts commissioner and, oh, yes, surfer dude.– is driven by passion -- passion for his art, passion for teaching, passion that drives him to make...
Orazio Fumagalli
Sculptor
A renowned sculptor and teacher, Orazio Fumagalli was known for his “figure fragment” sculptures of the human form that evoked fragments from ancient ruins. Fumagalli also worked in...
Barbara Fumagalli
Engraver
Barbara Fumagalli knew she would be an artist at around age seven when she began sketching and painting on family outings. Instead of playing volleyball and baseball, the family would pack up sketch pads, paint...
Aimee French
Fiber Artist
Silk painter Aimee French loves the tactile sensation of moving the paint onto the silk with her brushes. Whether abstract or realistic, that sense of motion and color are inherent elements in her paintings. Her...
Carl Friedlander
Fiber Artist
Carl Friedlander, a retired computer scientist, is well-known for creating prayer shawls worn at Jewish religious services. His fiber art gene seems to have come...
Rich Deppe
Fiber Artist
Rich Deppe’s involvement in fiber arts dates to his early childhood, when his grandmother introduced him to knitting, at which he proved very adept. His fascination with...
Richard Franklin
Figurative Artist/Ceramist/Architect
“Creativity,” says Richard Franklin “is what life is all about. It is important to all our humanity.” When FOTM designates an individual as a “Master Artist,” various criteria are...
Richard Flores
Ceramist
Voraciously curious ceramicist Richard Flores says, “After food and shelter, art is everything.” First introduced to clay in grade school, art forever became an integral part of his creative existence. As an...
Alberta Fins
Expressionist
Alberta’s paintings and prints commented upon the human condition. She was an artist for whom the process of making art was more than a means to an end. The final artwork is, by her testimony, only...
BiJian Fan
Environmental Artist/Ceramist
It seems that BiJian Fan - paper sculptor extraordinaire - is everywhere. Strictly speaking, his art is not all paper as he employs a number of different materials,...
Robert Eyberg
Glass Artist
Robert C. Eyberg received a Bachelors of Fine Arts from the University of Nebraska in 1972. He has exhibited paintings in New York City until moving west to Ventura, CA. He studied glass blowing at the Pilchuck...
Robert Engel
Painter
Robert Engel has pursued a career in art since the early 1970s. After completing his formal education in fine art at Cal State Fullerton, Robert worked professionally in painting, drawing and ceramics. In 1978...