The St. Paul Art Crawl in downtown St. Paul started with a flourish and ended in a bang. Excited art crawlers marauded the streets of the city and wandered through the participating buildings, anxious to bask in the excitement of seeing the work of new and established artists alike. AIMCLEAR was thrilled to contribute to the event by hosting the work of several artists in our St. Paul office. Read on for more!
On Friday, April 29th, the event kicked off with eager art crawlers coming and going, asking questions of the artists and perusing the art on display, until 9 P.M. Day Two began promptly at noon and lasted until early evening, with featured artists on hand to mingle with and chat up interested attendees. The final day of the crawl, Sunday, May 1st, followed Saturday’s schedule and culminated in a successful weekend for all. AIMCLEAR was proud to feature the artwork of three talented artists, Kyron Robinson, Steve Berger and Brian Netten, and sit down with each artist individually to ask them about their work.
Kyron Robinson, known for his bold color choices and broad brush strokes, featured six pieces of art during the weekend, with two of his pieces in our space. His affinity for painting wildlife spurs from his passion for life and his fear that endangered wildlife will soon become extinct. Originally from Freeport, Bahamas, Kyron got his start painting portraits of people on the beaches of the Bahamian islands. As time wore on, he dabbled in painting old, Cuban cars that were forbidden to be imported into the country once Castro came into power – he loved the big, bright style the Cuban artists embodied and cherished, and he still holds this style of painting today. With such a robust spectrum of talents and interests, Kyron’s artistic style and subjects continue to evolve as he explores his own mind and tests his limits.
One blustery winter not too long ago, Kyron was forced to decide whether to pay for his rent or his electricity: he opted for rent. He recalls that the frigid nights and below zero temperatures fostered some of his best art work to date; he holds this period in his life close to his heart, saying it allowed him to reach an unchartered level of spirituality that he strives to achieve every day. If Kyron could be granted one wish, he would feverishly rub the genie’s lamp and request two more hands to help him work on his large, recycled canvases such as the giant lion below:
The next artist whose work was displayed throughout our space was Brian Netten, impasto extraordinaire and creator of “La Forêt Enchantée,” an exquisite work of art through which Brian hopes to garner a sponsor. The term “impasto” refers to a thick, textured application of paint that almost appears to be three-dimensional, a characteristic of a large majority of Brian’s artwork. As a child, Brian always loved art class, inspiring him to take several art classes throughout his adolescence. He aspired to a career where he could use his creativity and get paid for it. Brian graduated with a degree in graphic design from Iowa State, moved to St. Paul and immersed himself in its thriving art community. He has participated in the St. Paul Art Crawl every year since 2003 when a friend suggested he showcase some of his work.
With subjects ranging from the human form to the Virgin Mary to abstract work, Brian paints it all—his “La Forêt Enchantée,” featured below, was an exercise in perfection. Making the human form look realistic and proportionate is one of the greatest challenges artists face, and Brian hopes to make a series of paintings of this nature and size.
In an effort to unite the art community in St. Paul and to create a forum for discussion, Brian is in the process of creating a website that will allow artists to showcase their work, advertise upcoming events within the art community, and discuss and support the work of artists in St. Paul.
The final artist featured in AIMCLEAR office space was Steve Berger. Steve studied under the late Reverend Edward M. Catich, a well-known artist and author of, “The Origin of the Serif: Brush Writing and Roman Letters.” A unique artist who covers a wide range of subjects, Steve believes it is important to be a well-rounded person: a reader, writer, and former illustrator and creative director in the corporate world, he paints everything from famous Minnesota landmarks, presidents, variations of the American flag throughout history, Minnesota baseball, and celebrities. All Steve needs to create a piece of art is inspiration, and a unique quote or well-written piece of American history such as the preamble to the Constitution can be found in various pieces of his work.
Steve is motivated by the desire to portray everyday scenes in a unique way; whether it be to paint the Wayzata depot at night, to capture a different angle of the state capitol, or to present a scene as it was before the landscape was developed, you can be sure his paintings will make you think of ordinary subjects in a new light. With over twenty pieces of his work on display at this event, Steve looks forward to participating in more art crawls and showcasing his work in the future.
St. Paul is a Mecca for artistry and creativity. Artists travel to St. Paul for the sole purpose of meeting other artists and getting the opportunity to break into the art scene. The St. Paul Art Crawl was started in 1991 by the St. Paul Art Collective as an avenue for artists in the area to show their work in a public forum, and it has become one of the largest and most successful of its kind. AIMCLEAR is proud to support the art community in St. Paul, and we look forward to showcasing more art work later this year during the St. Paul Art Crawl’s Fall event.
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For more photos from this past weekend’s St. Paul Art Crawl, check out  the
