Alyssa Lizzini

Remembered visions Across landscapes of color Shifting, expanding.

Alyssa Lizzini is an artist from Cleveland, Ohio whose work explores concepts of social geography and community engagement through on-location drawing. Lizzini's layered images are inspired by her own archival, ethnographic, and visual research of city spaces. In the studio, she utilizes drawing, painting, and printmaking techniques to create visually complex, layered images that mirror the complexity of our social and spatial world. Lizzini graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Cleveland Institute of Art in 2022.

Scattered beams of light vividly sentimental searching for answers

Julissa Bruno is a Dominican-American Artist currently based in Cleveland. Her work dances through time, exploring her childhood history, as well as the history of her family on either of her parents' sides. She depicts the memories of her maternal grandmother's home in Santo Domingo in vibrant pinks, adorned with stars and sparkles, and making intuitive marks. In contrast, Bruno uses photo references of her paternal family’s archived photographs, focusing on the topic of their migrancy to New York City in the 1960s and 70s.​​ The recurring character is herself at a young age, often sporting pigtails with bobble hair ties. Her childhood image is a time traveler throughout her ancestry, infantry, and present life. Bruno’s work has been exhibited in Cleveland and New York. Her most recent exhibition was a solo show titled Que Lindos Recuerdos, displayed at Case Western Reserve University in September of 2024. She is currently pursuing a BFA from the Cleveland Institute of Art.

Danielle Mužina

meet me at dream forge hands braid home hot rose futures care kindling the dusk

Danielle Mužina is an artist and educator from Cleveland, Ohio. As an artist, she makes paintings that explore place, identity and crisis, inspired by her experiences as a member of a family that immigrated from Croatia. She received her B.F.A at Ohio Wesleyan University, her M.A. at Eastern Illinois University, and her M.F.A. at Miami University. Mužina also studied at the Jerusalem Studio School in Civita Castellana, Italy, and completed residencies at Chautauqua School of Art, the Vermont Studio Center, and The Sam and Adele Golden Foundation. Her paintings have been shown at numerous galleries nationally including juried exhibitions at First Street Gallery, Blue Mountain Gallery, Bowery Gallery, The Untitled Space, and Prince Street Gallery in New York, NY, Buckham Gallery in Flint, MI, the Gertrude Herbert Institute of Art in Augusta, GA, and Verum Ultimum Gallery in Portland, OR. Her current Pink Apocalypse series was recognized with an Artist Enrichment Grant from the Kentucky Foundation for Women and national scholarly organization SECAC’s Outstanding Artistic Achievement Award in 2021. Her artwork is included in John Seed’s 2023 book More Disruption: Representational Art in Flux, and she is represented by Bruno David Gallery in St. Louis, MO.

Glistening gems aglow Quiet strength, a hidden flame Futures gentle light

Crystal Miller is an interdisciplinary mixed-media artist based in Cleveland, Ohio. She holds an Associate degree in Graphic Design and a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting and Sculpture and Expanded Media (SEM) from the Cleveland Institute of Art in 2023. Crystal's work is deeply inspired by Afro-futurism, blending African traditions with futuristic visions to challenge Eurocentric aesthetics. Her art celebrates the strength and beauty of African American women, using unconventional materials such as beads, glitter, rhinestones, and foam. These elements are combined with organic patterns and exaggerated undertones of Black skin to create dynamic paintings and sculptures that envision a future where Black identity is celebrated and empowered. Crystal’s recent exhibitions include Queens & Shiny Things, at Akron Soul Train in Akron, OH, and Adornment at the Solomon Gallery in Youngstown, OH. In addition to her exhibitions, she has been featured in several Cleveland magazines, including the CAN Journal Fall 2023 cover and CanvasCle Winter 2023. She recently finished a mural titled “Until the Time Comes, We Bloom” in Public Square, Cleveland, OH.

Memory recalls With whimsy lucidity Au fait with amends

Jules Briggs is a Detroit-based painter and sculptor. She holds an MA in Philosophy & The Arts from University of Warwick, England, and a BA in Studio Art from DePauw University, Indiana. ​ Following her undergraduate career, Jules worked for two years as a bronze foundry artist at Odiyan Copper Mandala, a small Buddhist monastic community in Northern California. Her countless life-size and miniature sculptures contributed to the revitalization of Tibetan art and have been donated to monasteries abroad. Jules’ time spent at Odiyan influenced her decision to study eastern philosophy for her master’s degree in the context of sacred art creation. ​ Jules' personal paintings and sculptures have appeared in galleries both nationally and internationally. Notable exhibitions include the Ohio Artist Registry Exhibit (Columbus, OH), and a solo exhibition at 6 Spin Street Gallery (Cape Town, South Africa) during an artist residency with renowned apartheid photographer and activist, Jenny Altschuler. ​ Jules recently completed a three-month residency with Feverdream in Tremont, Cleveland, OH this last fall before settling permanently in Detroit, MI.

seeking refuge, I gaze beyond the distant peak— my song finds its way

Jihad Dennis is an artist, designer, photographer, writer, and videographer based in Akron OH. A graduate of Pratt Institute Jihad has produced work for SLAM Magazine, Milk Studios, and Redscout Agency. Jihad started Jihad Paints in 2019 as a painting studio but quickly expanded its reach to web shows, music collaborations, and animation. His artwork combines mixed media, photoshop, and photography to create memorable energized images of celebrities, friends, and family. He continually paints as a gesture for continued exploration and refinement of craft, viewing fellow creatives as friends, and encouraging their continued creat

Jump Until Sleepy Walk Into Cold And Hot Sand Keyboard Music Tapes

Jon is an artist and designer from Los Angeles, CA, whose work stems from a love of open spaces, folklore and the unknown. In all of his creative work, Jon is most focused on space, color and scale. Creating imagery that tells a story and engages viewers brings him joy. Jon has a BFA in Illustration from Art Center College of Design. He currently works and lives in Old Brooklyn, Ohio, where he hikes, jogs and naps with his wife Katy and dog Boomer.

Faceless people seek A mirror bathed in sunlight Reflections bring warmth

Nick Lee (b. 1996) is a painter and 2021 Kent State University graduate. Lee’s work is inspired by the diversity of the human experience. As a Japanese-American, Lee’s visual art strives to better represent minorities like himself in American portraiture and western art. Another motivation for Lee is self discovery. Lee uses symbolic Japanese objects in his paintings to connect with a culture that was never taught to him growing up. Lee is the 2023 recipient of the Distinguished Citizen for Art Education for the Northeast Ohio region by the OAEA. Lee is also the recipient of the 2024 Arts Alive Emerging Artist award by Summit Artspace.

Sakurako Reed

Here is my bio But it’s a different bio This is a haiku.

Sakurako Reed is a multimedia artist residing in Cleveland, OH. Her work examines the intersection of being something, not being something, and how those somethings are defined. Through the use of various mediums and reoccurring motifs, her work is characterized by humor, play, language, and some potentially sad scenarios. Ultimately, she seeks to create work that resonates with audiences on a visceral level, evoking emotions and sparking conversations about what it means to exist as a human. She received her BFA in both Painting and Drawing from the Cleveland Institute of Art in 2021, alongside a concentration in Creative Writing. In 2023, she received her MFA in Print Media from the Cranbrook Academy of Art. Her work has been exhibited at Parsons School of Design in New York (NY), the Rhodes Tower in Columbus, OH, the Cranbrook Museum of Art, as well as the Osaka University of Arts in Osaka, Japan, where she spent a semester studying traditional Japanese painting. Reed’s honors include the George Clements Memorial Scholarship for Study Abroad, as well as a National Silver Portfolio with Distinction from the National Scholastic Art and Writing Awards.

We rush to our death A feeling of emptiness It is darker still

Cleveland based oil painter, Elizabeth Lax, focuses primarily on human form. After being raised in a restrictive environment, painting has become a way for her to express what has been silenced. Her subjects typically have obscured identities or are presented without clothing. She aims to expose the subjects while keeping them hidden. The content of these paintings are a way of rebelling against the puritanical beliefs she was raised with. In 2019 she received her BA in Studio Arts from Kent State University with a primary focus on painting. She continues her practice with a focus on cults and their affects on members.

Nolan Meyer

An Infinite room Walls, floor, and ceiling unclear This place is unknown

Nolan Meyer (1998) is an artist from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. He lives and works in Cleveland, Ohio and graduated from the Cleveland Institute of Art’s painting program in 2020. He mainly works in various forms of painting but also works in digital video and digital photography. His work revolves around painting’s history and the creation of paintings through cultural and art historical references. Most of these cultural references are bound to the internet and other forms of digital culture such as video games.