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Supernatural by Kathy Sayad Zatari

Welcome to the 41st online exhibition of the ArtisTTable, Break It Down: Life Abstracted. One of our favorite themed shows is when we put out the call for abstract art.

Thank you for your patience with the delayed opening of this exhibition. With changes with our host provider we were forced into redesigning the exhibition pages and reformatting the entire look of it. We hope you like the new look. And for you to know that sometime before the end of the year the look of the whole ArtisTTable web site will under go a similar facelift.

We really believe that abstract art is perhaps the most pure visual art form. It boils things down to the most basic artistic components. Whether it is totally non-representational or if there is recognizable imagery, it is much more clear that what is most important to make a piece of art successful is good solid composition. All the colors, values, textures and proportions need to play nicely with each other if success is desired.

Reviewing the submissions to any art exhibition is a task not for the faint of heart. We asked the ArtisTTable staff to join in and jury this show. Sometimes it is good to keep it in house and then share our thoughts on what has come in. We thank all the artists, that submitted their work, and thank everyone that worked on putting this show together with us.

Juror's Notes:

It was a real interesting process to review the work submitted to this show. Abstract art seems to release some inhibitions that we have within us. So it was exciting to see the energy and pizzazz that was alive and well in all the work we saw. We think you will enjoy this exhibition. - ArtisTTable Staff

First Place:

Supernatural - Kathy Sayad Zatari

Supernatural by Kathy Sayad-Zatari is a abstract painting that shows both expertise in her method of applying paint in this manner, and exhibits a superb color palette that is as luminous as it is engaging. The gestural wisps that come off the main pillar shape are so atmospheric as to give us a sense of a possible alternate reality when we look into this painting.

Second Place:

Continual Abyss - Nunzi

The word abyss is inherently ominous by nature, and to think of dealing with an abyss that is described as continual would be one that would tend to scare the life out of you. The figure in this painting is one that appears to be having a moment. And not necessarily the best one he ever had. It feels like we ought to be able make the abstract part of this composition in a new relatable way. But we can't. Not immediately anyway. The juxtapostion of figure and it's abstract surroundings serve to fully drive piece to a place of a lovely anxiety and worry.

Third Place:

Secrets of an Old Chandelier - Marina Levitan

It is a joy to see Marina's oil painting style. Her stylized realism is bent just far enough in this painting to make us wonder even though the title might lead us in one direction, the visuals she provides us with an abstract painting that makes us ask, what is real.

Honorable Mentions:

Steps 5 - D. H. Mu'Stoffa

D. H. Mu'Stoffa's work, with it's overall non-patterned field of colors rivals the wonder of being in a car in a drive through car wash. Layers of transparent colors, so jewel like create both depth and gentle wave like movements that are ultimately as calming as a meditation.

No. 4 - Amanda June

Abstraction comes in many forms in her composition No.4 we enter a dream-like version of a room in your grandmother's house. The space is filled with the mystery and wonder that grandmothers, and places they live hold for all grandchildren.

Deep In The Bottom of the Sea 2 - Xiaoqian Pan

Outer space shares a lot of similarities with the deepest parts of the sea. This painting creates an environment and space that we just believe that we can understand in some way yet at the same time, it is curious and unfamiliar.

Jazz by Gayle Printz

The graphic nature of the black marks in this piece might be gestures of musicians as the play the ethereally blue and gray tones we see in the background.

Juztaposed Paths - Byron Keener

Old school graphics, old world charm, other worldly colors come together to form a world where hues and angles could hurt you if you are not careful. Throwbacks are fun especially when they are returning from a place and time that are not really that far away when we look at the history of the world. Dynamics are dynamics and we have them in spades in this piece.

Bubbling Up - Faith Gabel-Simmons

Faith is asking a few colorful yet open ended questions with this piece. While we might wonder what the actual painting on the other side of the canvas might look like, we could just as easily feel like she decided to decorate the crate that she shipped a valuable object du'arte to us in. The reality is that she has created a serious abstract art with as much whimsy in it as it has chutzpah.

Tali's Choice:

Blue Bottle Blues - Michael Hassig

Michael's work is fascinating to me from the first time he showed in one of our exhibitions a few years ago.

His special technique of collage, shapes, colors, and texture is truly unique.

In this artwork, so much stuff is involved even though we won't understand or follow the whole image, Hassig manages to give us a generous feel of the atmosphere I can feel/see the "blues" of "Blue Bottle" in the ocean, maybe it is a very personal point of view and what I see is not what the artist meant, but it's pleasing to me to look at this collage, like in a puzzle to find all the little pieces, but also enjoy the big picture too!

Royce’s Choice:

Alialfon - Mario Atias

What abstract art gives us when it is doing its job is to invite everyone to bring their entire cumulative life experience to the game provide an all new meaning and worth to the piece of art. Mario provides us with a nearly perfect narrative template. Giving balance without repetition, texture and contrast of value without being obvious. Alialfon starts us off with a rich opener to an uber rich fill-in-the-blank sentence, and it is us to each of us to complete statement.

Break It Down: Life Abstracted People's Choice Award:

We would like to announce that Sam Merryman is the winner of the People's Choice Award for our previous show, Break It Down. You can see Sam’s winning entry, Blocks by clicking Here.

The artwork chosen to represent this exhibition is by the First Place winner, Kathy Sayad Zatari, titled, Supernatural.

If you read this far, we thank you very much, we appreciate your interest and engagement in the arts and in particular the work that has taken to put this show together. We truly appreciate all the artists in the show and the great work they do.

Now please Click Here and go enjoy “Break It Down” now.

Break It Down Life Abstracted Artists:

See all of our past exhibitions here.