Auguster is a US Navy veteran who found his talent as an artist while participating in Veterans Administration’s Art Therapy Programs. His first work won the 2018 National Veterans Art Award in the collage section. A member of the Peekskill Arts Alliance, he has exhibited as part of the 2019 Peekskill Open Studios event, Newburgh open studios and Gritworks Gallery.
Auguster likes to work with found materials: paper, cardboard, cord, fabric, trims, glass, mirrors, wood – with reflection and sparkle.
His works follow the light and change in different settings. He seeks to create beauty of form, colour and context in the items that might normally be discarded for landfill. His idea is that beauty is resilient and can be found in unusual materials when they are repurposed and used in different ways.
Check out his Orange County Arts Council Virtual Studio Visit here:
Formerly known as Combat Paper NJ, this unique community-oriented Veterans’ papermaking program teaches Veterans of all service eras and branches the transformational practice of making handmade paper from military uniforms. Through a process of Deconstruction, Reclamation, and Communication, Veterans connect with each other and different communities, sharing their personal stories with the world through handmade paper, printmaking, and participatory artmaking.
Elize McKelvey graduated in 2012 with her BFA in illustration, but to understand how she ended up an artist in the Marine Corps, we need to rewind a few years to where that origin story begins. In 2010 she was taking a class called “the history of illustration,” and in that course, the professor mentioned something called combat art for a brief moment. Before sitting down in class that day, Elize assumed she would graduate college and join the art industry as a concept artist, as one would. However…what she didn’t know was that those 10 minutes would drastically change her art path. She was instantly hooked; never hearing of the Marine Corps combat art program before, she began almost immediately calling people she found online associated with the program, hoping to find out more about this world somehow that she was experiencing through these amazing illustrations online. The individuals that she was cold calling would later become some of her biggest art mentors over the years. For the remaining two years of college, Elize would heed the advice of her mentors and make sure that she was joining for the right reasons. To be a Marine first and an artist second (a common quote for combat artists). The mission? Share stories of Marines through art. So on May 20th, 2012, just one day after graduating college, she left for Bootcamp, thus beginning her unpredictable eight-and-a-half-year journey as an active duty Marine.
Today, Elize is actively pushing her career as a freelance artist with storyboarding, animating, traditional fine art, and digital illustration techniques. Her efforts have landed her with sponsorships and jobs from companies like VETtv, Wacom, Michaels Art Craft Store, and Pilot pen, to name a few. You can find Elize online posting under the pseudonym of “inkstickart,” primarily on Instagram and tik-tok (garnishing a combined total of over 250,000 followers and counting!) She actively shares stories and experiences that she has and will encounter as her art journey continues in the civilian sector.
Follow her on LinkedIn, or any of her other social media.
Angelo T. Robinson is an interdisciplinary artist who lives and works out of Senoia, GA. A self-taught artist, he joined the US Navy in 1992, where he served ten years active duty and four years in the Naval Reserves as a Seabee. Traveling to locales such as Italy, Spain, Turkey, Greece, Africa, France, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Egypt, the Virgin Islands, Israel and the United Arab Emirates greatly influenced Angelo’s approach to art. The vibrancy, diverse richness and simple beauty of the cultures he experienced are shown throughout his work.
He is an 80% disabled veteran. His work was forever changed by a car accident that he experienced 1994. He was left completely blind for a week. His vision returned over the next six months. Angelo has residual photophobia in his right eye and a crease in his left eye from the accident. Over the last few years, Angelo discovered that he had to further simplify his process and his work to accommodate some depth perception and visual field loss. This led him to focus on a process of simplifying beauty to basic line and color where negative space is as important has the image itself.
His work exudes a level spirituality and an organic connection with the human condition. This reflects his experiences growing up as the son and grandson of preachers. Angelo’s creations invite the viewer to participate in a physical, mental or spiritual dialogue with what they experience. Deep vibrant abstracts, joyous colorful mixed-media portraits, and majestic sports pieces are brought to life using vivid colors and bold compositions.
The artist has participated in juried group shows such as Art San Diego Contemporary Art Fair, as well as solo shows in Charleston, SC; Burlington, NC; San Bruno, CA: and many cities across his home state of Georgia. Angelo received his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration/Marketing from Liberty University. Angelo continues to participate in select exhibitions as well as producing his own shows each year. He creates commissioned pieces for residential and corporate clients.
Angelo currently lives and works from his studio in Senoia, GA. He is married and the father of four beautiful girls and two handsome boys. He is one of the founders and the Vice-President of the Senoia Arts Collective. Angelo enjoys working with and helping young artists discover their hidden potential.
Follow Angelo on Instagram here.