Portfolio | Artful Arizona

By Lindsay Mitchell

This story was featured in the November 2018 issue of Southwest Art magazine. Get the Southwest Art November 2018 print issue or digital download now–then subscribe to Southwest Art and never miss another story.

Growing up, Henry Bosak always knew he wanted to be an artist. “I never really had a Plan B for a career, so for the past 40-some-odd years, I’ve been working in the art field in one way or another,” he says. Much of that time has been spent as a graphic designer, which allows him to work from home as a freelancer and paint as much as possible. “In the last five years, I’ve been trying to shift more and more toward becoming a full-time painter,” he says, adding that whenever he is not in front of his computer, he’s in front of his easel.

Bosak’s photorealistic acrylic paintings often feature pure and vibrant colors—especially yellows, reds, and blues—and they depict subjects ranging from old cars and tools to flowers, cacti, and more. “I paint what catches my eye,” he says. Sometimes that has less to do with the subject itself than with the way light hits it. Other times, it’s the dents and dings on an aging car, rust on a piece of metal, or some other imperfection that signifies a story behind the object. “Lately I’ve been zooming in on my subjects, focusing on a specific spot that I find interesting,” he says. His paintings often evoke a sense of nostalgia in viewers, reminding them of the deeper meanings and connections that lie beneath the surfaces of everyday objects, like visual stories begging to be told. Find Bosak’s work at www.henrybosak.com.

Ken Requard has reinvented himself several times over the years—most recently to become a full-time artist. After a long career as a radiologist, he says, “these last few years I’ve been ramping up, and I’m now at a point where I can devote more time to my art.” His love of art, however, has been with him since childhood, and throughout his life he has worked in a variety of mediums and subjects.

Since moving from Washington to Arizona in 2005, his paintings have been focused more and more on impressionistic landscapes in oil. “I’m inspired by the natural world around me here in the Southwest,” he says, explaining that it wasn’t until about five years ago that he painted outdoors for the first time—and loved it. “When I moved here it was quite a change in terms of the landscape,” he says. Like any subject matter, he had to get to know it well, and he found the best way to do that was to paint en plein air as much as possible. “I love the western landscape, especially the unique Sonoran Desert,” he says. “From dawn to sunset, bubbling brook to soaring red cliff, scrub bush to saguaro, and aspen glow to blue spruce—there is drama everywhere in the West.”

Today, Requard continues to hone his craft, always aiming to take the viewer on an exciting visual journey through the dramatically beautiful region he calls home. “It’s that emotional experience and connection, more than anything, that drives me to keep painting,” he says. Find Requard’s work at Pitzer’s Fine Arts, Wimberley, TX; and www.kenrequard.com.

Tucson sculptor David Unger has always been captivated by the human form. “I’m constantly observing people everywhere I go,” he says. This fascination continues to permeate his daily life and  provides endless inspiration for his bronze figurative works, which he molds in clay and has cast in bronze. “I enjoy the energy and flexibility of clay—it allows me to feel the motion and fluidity, the power and sensitivity, with my hands,” he says.

Unger is especially inspired by human relationships, interactions, and movement. As a result, many of his pieces highlight two people touching or intertwining, graceful dancers, and themes of love, romance, and passion. His style is a blend of representational and abstracted forms that emphasize angles, planes, and geometric shapes. “I am very interested in the human form, but I also like to take some liberties and create a more contemporary feel to my figures—so it’s an expression or feeling of an individual or couple, rather than an exact representation,” he says.

Above all else, Unger wants his figures to express joy. “The art is to sense the way people interact with each other and then transmit this feeling from my mind to my hands, and finally, to a finished clay sculpture,” he says. “If the viewer can feel the energy I imparted through my hands when I formed the piece, then I have achieved something truly magical—I’ve created a successful work.” See Unger’s work at Mary Martin Gallery of Fine Art (Broad Street), Charleston, SC; Mary Martin Gallery (Charleston Place Hotel), Charleston, SC; The Scott Bundy Galleries, Kennebunkport, ME; and www.davidungersculptures.com.

For landscape painter Julie Gilbert Pollard, inspiration comes almost too easily. “The world is so beautiful and amazing, it’s sometimes overwhelming. I always have more scenes I want to paint, and it can be tough for me to settle down and decide which one to focus on for my next piece,” she says. “As they say, so many visions, so little time!”

The artist tries to paint en plein air as much as possible, but most of her works are created in the studio, so she relies heavily on her memories and on the hundreds of photographs she’s taken on hikes and other trips. While her work is inspired by all varieties of the landscape, she is especially drawn to scenes featuring water flowing over rocks. “And if I’m lucky enough to find flowers growing on the bank or overhanging the water and rocks, wow—that combination makes me an extremely happy painter.”

Working in the style of painterly realism allows Pollard to portray both her appreciation for the natural world and her personal, inner vision. “This world of ours is such a beautiful and mysterious place, filled with scenes and subjects that excite my eye and imagination,” she says, explaining that she hopes viewers will not only see, but also feel, the places she depicts. “The eye may see as a camera does, but the mind’s eye sees an altered, imagined picture. It’s that illusive image, along with a heightened sense of realness, that I try to express in my paintings,” she says. Find Pollard’s work at Esprit Decor Gallery, Phoenix, AZ; Raku Gallery, Jerome, AZ; Sedona Arts Center, Sedona, AZ; and www.juliegilbertpollard.com.

Contemporary figurative artist Priscilla Nelson has been painting her entire life. The primarily self-taught painter had her first art show while still in high school, and she sold every piece. “That’s how it all started, and I haven’t really stopped since,” she says. Her favorite subject matter has always been people and their clothing. “I’m intrigued by people and the statement they make with what they wear,” she says. “I love the movement of cloth and the moods that clothing can convey.”

Nelson lived in West Virginia and Atlanta before moving to Scottsdale about six years ago. The drastic change in her surroundings—particularly the lack of water—had a significant impact on her work. “When I moved to Arizona, I became obsessed with water. Something that I once took for granted was suddenly so striking in its absence,” she says. While her subject matter continues to be figures and clothing, “my poor models, rather than sitting in a studio for me, are now thrown into the pool,” she says, explaining that she jumps in with them to take copious underwater photos, which she later sorts through until she finds the inspiration for her next piece.

Adding the element of water created new challenges but also reignited Nelson’s passion for her subject matter in a new way. “I love the chaotic movement of the water—the way that it channels light and creates flowing folds in the fabric is so beautiful,” she says. Perhaps it’s precisely this attitude that viewers connect with on a visceral level, finding beauty in the chaos of life. Find Nelson’s work at www.nelsonart.com.

Barbara Mulleneaux dabbled in art throughout her life, but it wasn’t until she joined the Tucson Plein Air Painters Society in 2002 that she fell deeply in love with painting and decided to pursue her passion. “After my first plein-air painting excursion, I was hooked,” she says.

Mulleneaux’s passion for painting from life has continued ever since. Even in her studio, she prefers painting objects from life over images in photographs. Her subject matter ranges from plein-air landscapes to the barrios and other old architectural features of Tucson to still-life arrangements. No matter the subject, though, Mulleneaux aims to tell a story with her paint. “I’ve always thought of visual art as just another form of communication,” she says. “Sometimes the landscape itself is the story—what I saw and felt around me when I painted that scene. Other times, it’s an old truck, toy, or building that captures my imagination.”

This storytelling aspect is present throughout the artist’s process—she even refers to her palette knives, which she prefers over brushes, as her “handwriting” tools, allowing her to be more expressive with texture and color as she builds the story on her canvas. Ultimately, the story doesn’t end with her, but rather with the viewer or buyer of each piece. “Often the person who buys a piece will tell me how it reminds them of their own experience with the same or similar subject matter,” she says. “When someone I’ve never met can relate or connect to my work in that way, it’s like magic.” Find Mulleneaux’s work at Toscana Studio & Gallery, Tucson, AZ; Belleza Gallery, Bisbee, AZ; and www.barbaramulleneaux.com.

This story was featured in the November 2018 issue of Southwest Art magazine. Get the Southwest Art November 2018 print issue or digital download now–then subscribe to Southwest Art and never miss another story.

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