Frida Kahlo and the Bat

Frida Kahlo and the Bat - by Florencio Lennox Campello

rida Kahlo and the Bat - by Florencio Lennox Campello

 

The Lenster on Canvas Rebel Magazine!

Check out this cool article on CANVAS REBEL Magazine about yours truly!

Link: https://canvasrebel.com/meet-florencio-lennox-campello/ 

Voices Through Visuals at Del Ray Artisans Gallery

Last night was the opening for the Celebrating Hispanic Heritage: Voices Through Visuals at Del Ray Artisans Gallery, show curated by the human tornado known as Laura Ramirez Drain!

The place was packed,  with over 200 people being counted in over the 4 hours that I was there as the awards juror. 

The curator did such an exceptional job in selecting the works, that it was immediately apparent that I was in for a very tough night in awarding the top three prizes and the four honorable mentions!

Frida Kahlo's iconic image was ever present as multiple artists interpreted her image, including powerful works by David Amoroso and Lian Sever.

Also liked the entries by Blanca Belisario, Evgenia Andreeva, Silvia Martinez, Amy Marx and many others!

Prizes awarded as follows:

First Prize: Gloria Valdez for her spectacular double self portrait.

Second Prize: Luis del Valle for Frida with Butterflies.

Third Prize: Paloma Vasquez for Drowning Quietly.

Honorable Mention: Leilani Checo for La Paleta de Fresa.

Honorable Mention: Kelly MacConomy for De Generacion en Generacion. 

Honorable Mention: Betsy Jones for her tiny work Rosario and Alex: Secret Lovers.

Honorable Mention: Walter Gordon for La Llorona II.

First Prize winner Gloria Valdez

Third Prize Winner Paloma Vasquez 

Paloma Vasquez - Drowning Quietly

Kelly MacConomy - De Generacion en Generacion

Betsy Jones - Rosario and Alex: Secret Lovers

Leilani Checo - La Paleta de Fresa.

Walter Gordon - La Llorona II

Frida with Butterflies by Luis del Valle 

The first Prize winner by Gloria Valdez "Tarasca"

Cruisin'

My daughter Elise is one of the planet's top-of-the-food-chain elite travel agent to the stars and she's got us a great 3-day cruise to Ensenada, Mexico! You can reach her at venturesbyelise@gmail.com

Many Countries in One

Call for Artists for "Many Countries in One: Immigrant Artists" at the gorgeou ARTSpiration venue  in Frederick!

Here is the link for new artists to apply - all preselected artists are already in the show, but as this new venue is sooo much bigger, we can select some more:

 

Reading Road Studio celebrates 10th Anniversary!

READING ROAD STUDIO CELEBRATES ITS 10TH ANNIVERSARY.

AT PYRAMID ATLANTIC   August 29 – October 4, 2026

RUMINATIONS: Our Stories IN PAPER

As a contemporary perspective, this exhibition brings together many of the artists who have generously contributed their ideas and visual explorations to Reading Road Studio. Presented as a smaller companion papermaking atelier to Pyramid Atlantic’s studios, the exhibition celebrates the first decade of creative exchange and experimentation, and affiliated archives.

Founded in 2016 by Helen Frederick in Silver Spring, Maryland, Reading Road Studio was created to offer artists an intimate, collaborative environment for exploring works in and on paper, artist books, installation, and critical conversations around visual and cultural literacy.

The studio emphasizes hand papermaking as an art form and provides opportunities for artists interested in papermaking as a translucent material, in combination with print media and mixed media, and as a painterly or dimensional element within their work. At Reading Road Studio, dialogue about contemporary art remains deeply connected to past traditions while continually inventing new concepts of materiality.

Featuring paper-cast life-size gold leaf doors, a translucent endangered species installation, printed Chinese papers, exquisite custom paper drawings, large scale pulp paintings, innovative artist books, and more, Ruminations: Our Stories IN PAPER celebrates the first decade of Reading Road Studio and the possibilities of hand  papermaking.

Featured artists are: William B. Adair, Maria Barbosa, Oletha DeVane/Chris Kojzar, Elsabe Johnson Dixon, Cheryl Edwards, Susan Firestone, Helen Frederick, Emily Fussner, Ellen Hill, Lisa Hill, Mia Holtan, Rick Hungerford, Aziza Gibson Hunter, Fleming Jeffries, David Joo, Jen Lillis, June Linowitz, Randi Reiss- McCormack, Andrea McCluskey, Chris Mona,Tom Nakashima, Tongji Philip Qian, Alice Quatrochi, Preston Sampson, Joyce J. Scott, Lisa Sheirer, Elzbieta Sikorska, Buzz Spector, Lynn Sures, and Yuriko Yamaguchi.  

Reading Road Studio, 8707 Reading Road, Silver Spring, MD 20901

Goodbye Dolly

Breaks my heart to note that Dolly Parton died today at age 80.  She was one of a kind in so many wonderful ways!