Dama Gallery presents VARIDO, a group exhibition of works in Ventura, California. An impending convergence of artistic virtuosity is poised to unfold at VARIADO featuring an illustrious cadre of artists, each distinguished by their idiosyncratic aesthetics and profound intellectual exploration. This prodigious exhibition will unveil an eclectic pantheon of artworks encompassing stone sculpture, abstract painting, large-scale triptychs, ceramic wall installations, photo-transfers, and 35mm film photography, invoking a profound intellectual dialogue within the echelons of the art world.

Featured Artists:

Duane Dammeyer - Hailing from Ventura, CA, Dammeyer emerges as an auteur of the sculptural realm, demonstrating a profound adeptness in handling a diverse range of stone mediums, including marble, onyx, brucite, and alabaster. His oeuvre bears the imprints of a multifarious journey, marked by an engineering degree from the University of Cincinnati, legal scholarship at the Ventura College of Law, and artistic tutelage. Dammeyer's compositions effuse geometric forms reminiscent of triangles, cubes, and spheres, a testament to his formative engineering influences. Furthermore, his mastery in construction and stone masonry imbues his works with an exquisite sense of design and composition, evident in his harmonious amalgamation of disparate stone elements. Ribbons, with their sinuous undulations, serve as perennial muses, eliciting a harmonious synthesis of fluidity and form in his sculptures. Nature, as a catalyst, imparts an organic vitality to his creations, culminating in a diverse body of work that straddles the realms of abstraction and stylized representation.

Mila Vovk - A ceramist par excellence, Vovk's domicile and creative milieu are anchored in Los Angeles / OC, CA, U.S. Born in Dresden, Germany, and nurtured in Kazakhstan, her journey through academia led to the attainment of a Master of Fine Arts degree from the State University in Veliky Novgorod, Russia, complemented by a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Art College in Pskov, Russia. Vovk's magnum opus orchestrates a profound engagement with the dialectics of order, mathematical precision, and the chaotic tapestry of nature. Her sculptures transmute the ephemeral essence of existence and the relentless cadence of our ever-transforming world into tangible ceramic manifestations. Her "Entropy" series delves into the emotional gamut evoked by the contemplation of disintegrated objects, beckoning observers to navigate the labyrinthine corridors of change, resilience, and the poignant inability to restore erstwhile entities. In the "Petrified Impressions" series, Vovk probes the transitory core of sentiment, encapsulating inner emotions, anxieties, and disquietude. The sculptures, evanescent and dynamic, serve as testaments to the inexorable velocity of life in the modern epoch.

Linda Kunik - A maven originally versed in plein-air watercolorism, Kunik's artistic trajectory assumed an intriguing shift toward conceptual profundity. An alumna of Otis College of Art and Design with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, Kunik, in tandem with her environmental and global predilections, has orchestrated a visual discourse that encapsulates these issues. Her abstract paintings traverse a gamut of environmental concerns, initiating a four-year odyssey into community gardening, photography, and perception. This transformative phase catalyzed her foray into the interplay between photography and painting, leveraging a distinctive emulsion process for photographs. The oeuvre on display under the "Raw Beauty" aegis chronicles the aftermath of a forest conflagration in Sequoia National Forest in October 2021. Kunik's discerning lens captures the stark, dystopian landscapes, underscoring the mutable boundary between representation and abstraction. Her works stand as testimonials to the dynamic transmutations that suffuse contemporary society, mirroring the relentless pace of modern existence.

Jennifer Roberts - An emerging mixed-heritage Latina artist, Roberts emerges as an amalgamator of watercolor, mixed media, and muralism. Her cosmopolitan roots, with roots tracing back to Costa Rica and linguistic fluency spanning Spanish, English, Portuguese, and Turkish, punctuate her creative identity. The crucible of her artistic evolution culminated in the crucible of Yale Law School, which serendipitously unfurled her passion for Argentine tango, an odyssey that found her dwelling in Buenos Aires for four years and subsequently in Turkey for two. Informal pedagogy under the tutelage of Buenos Aires' venerable painters, including Juan Devoto and Alejandra Nuñez Berté, emboldened her artistic journey. Her triptych opus, "Tempest," constitutes an exploration of the classical alchemical elements, foregrounding the elements of water and air, which previously eluded her spiritual compass. In "Iglesia Tropical," the vibrant tapestry of tropical existence collides with the looming specter of the Catholic Church in Latin America, a juxtaposition that celebrates the irrepressible vitality of Latinoamerica in the face of centuries-old ecclesiastical dominion. "What It Costs to Love Me" culminates as a paean to the fervor of ardor and intellectual stimulation, an exploration of intense connections and delight.

Anne B Schwartz - Anne Schwartz emerges as an unwavering abstractionist whose artistic conceptions remain inexorably tethered to the terrestrial plane. While pursuing a Graphic Design degree from the University of Oregon, her creative spirit persisted through an exuberant dalliance with painting, a passion that she dutifully nurtured over her illustrious career as a renowned couture jewelry designer. The vestiges of her jewelry design expertise indelibly manifest in her abstract paintings, with their meticulous attention to detail, design principles, color palette, textural intricacies, and refracted luminosity. In a significant rekindling of her artistic fervor, Schwartz's canvases emerge as paragons of prismatic narratives, brought to life through the alchemy of impasto oil painting. The "Crystal Auras" series assumes an opulent poise, manifesting as mixed-media expositions endowed with layers of acrylic infused with mica, interference pigment, and natural minerals. "Ricordi d'Italia," her magnum opus, seamlessly amalgamates her explorations in color, light, and surface with her visceral recollections of Italy. These evocative paintings transcend the realm of mere abstraction, veering toward an architectural sensibility, derived from photographic sketches that immortalize geometric intricacies culled from vistas and ruins. Simultaneously, memory, deconstruction, and fantasy are masterfully employed to etch these works in an abstract lexicon, yielding palimpsests and scenic impressions of profound evocative resonance. In the "Burst" collection, Schwartz magnifies intimate facets of works from "Ricordi d'Italia," unveiling gestural compositions intrinsically tethered to her studies in Asian Sumi-e ink painting, rendering the essence of her compositions within their multifaceted depths. The outcome is an exotic symphony of form and rhythm that navigates the intersection of art and design.

Edgar Takoyaki - A contemporary photographer domiciled in Ventura, California, Takoyaki stands as a sentinel of the photographic realm. His decade-long sojourn through Japan is encapsulated in the "Analog Japan Project," an ambitious artistic expedition documented through the prism of 35mm film photography. Takoyaki's oeuvre unfurls as an artistic attempt to decipher the density and stratified essence of metropolises such as Tokyo and Osaka. Employing techniques ranging from in-camera double exposures to long exposures and contemplative reflections, his work reflects a tapestry of influences, including Japanese culture and the mesmerizing allure of science fiction. The dark, atmospheric aura suffusing his compositions weaves a cryptic narrative that beckons viewers to unravel the hidden stories concealed within.