Contemporary Franceska Gamez
Franceska Gamez is a professional muralist and fine artist who specializes in mixed media sculptures and paintings. She is currently the co-founder of 1810 Gallery and member of M5 Arts Collective in Sacramento. Franceska recently exhibited her work in the PBS KVIE Gallery. Born in Manila and raised in the Bay Area, Franceska has worked with clients including the Sacramento Region Community Foundation, California Faculty Association, Greenpeace DC, The California Auto Museum, Asian American Women Artists Association, San Francisco Arts Commission, Covered California, and The California Rice Commission.
Figurative Susan Silvester
Susan Silvester received her MA in painting from California State University in Sacramento. Her practice includes exhibiting throughout California and she has created many public art pieces, most recently five paintings for the Elk Grove Animal Shelter. Susan has also worked as a modelmaker on numerous projects that include Pee Wee’s Playhouse and the retired Back to the Future Ride at Universal Studios.
Landscapes David Lobenberg
David Lobenberg is a multi-media fine artist and is currently a full-time watercolorist who conducts workshops across the United States and Canada. David is a retired adjunct art professor from Sacramento City College and he holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in fine art from UCLA. David’s work has been published in prominent art magazines both nationally and internationally.
Still Life Natalie Nelson
Natalie Nelson is the Director/Curator of the Pence Gallery, a nonprofit art organization centering on exhibiting the work of Northern California artists. She currently curates an active calendar of changing exhibits, in addition to developing education programs for adults and children. Natalie has an MA in Art History from USC, and has worked for over 20 years in museums and nonprofit art galleries. She is also an artist and educator, who has taught classes for many years at the Crocker Art Museum.
Photography Tia Gemmell
Tia Gemmell is an accomplished professional photographer who captures images portraying action, emotion and people at their best in the Sacramento region. Tia has a BA in Art Education from Sacramento State University. She taught Art Education for 27 years for the Lodi Unified School District and she has been a professional event photographer for 21 years.
Sculpture William Ishmael
William Ishmael has been a practicing artist for the last 30 years, and has shown extensively in the Sacramento region, has received several awards for his work, and is carried by art galleries in Sacramento, Palm Springs and Lexington, Kentucky. William, the current Chair of the Speakers Committee for the Kingsley Art Club, was also been named Sacramento Art and Business Council’s “Artist of the Year” for 2011 and, in 2014, had his 9 foot by 12 foot work “Wholeness and Fragmentation” accepted by SMAC for permanent installation in the Sacramento County Administration Building.