J a r o s l a v B r a n d y s
I enjoy every aspect of nature; from tiny blooming weeds to 100 year old oaks, pebbles to mountains, coral to crocodiles. Every chance I get, I pause to see what is around me, appreciating our world, learning something new about the relationships of all things. With my stone work I like to create pieces that show off the elements of nature keeping the lines pure or with a minimalist approach to conveying a mood or concept. My bonsai work is similar. With a great respect for the traditional Japanese art-form, I hold rather close to recognized styles but combine styles or add personality. Even though dwarfing a plant to live it's life as a bonsai is a tradition of man, the process only works because it is in fact natural for the plant to respond to harsh, adverse stimuli by adapting to live strong. I like to carry the nature of bonsai through to the pot with one of my stone designs that rings more of nature's harmony and less of man.
A c i e B r o o k s
I like to work with many artistic mediums and a variety of scales. I enjoy photography, sculpture, painting (watercolor and acrylic) as well as designing and building functional pieces such as lamps and furniture. As you'll notice, third dimension plays a key role in my work. I generally find my sense of style teetering somewhere between an attraction to things clean and defined and things that are natural and rough around the edges-- a little worn-- a little tattered . I create because it's fulfilling as a process... for me, a non linear version of soul poetry. I make things that I think are beautiful because I hunger for beauty in my world-- I want to contribute.
