artists who inspire.

Roots , 1943 Me and My Parrots , 1941 The Two Fridas , 1939 Portrait of Diego Rivera Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird , 1940 Frida Kahlo is a renowned artist who was born in Mexico in 1908. Much of her work is self-portraiture, because according to her, she is often alone, and knows herself better than anyone else. She also puts much of her life experience and pain into her paintings, such as the pain she felt after her divorce from husband Diego Rivera, as seen in The Two Fridas . Her honesty and vulnerability inspire me, and her persistence through adversity is admirable. Check out more of her masterpieces on this website .

Walking in Melbourne 3 ,  2018 Beach Head 14 , 2018 Paisley Dress and Red Gown , 2015 Flat Cap Man , 2016 Walking in Melbourne 6 , 2018 Julian Opie is a pop artist born in London in 1958, who has a very distinct style consisting of thick black outlines, bright flat colors, and minimalist composition. He seems to do a fair amount of people watching as he travels, which makes for intriguing narratives in his portraits. I love the simplicity of his style, and how even though the pieces bear no real resemblance to their sources, they still feel like they are depicting actual individuals. If you want to check out more of his work, visit his website .

Pilgrimage of the Chameleon , 2016 Mother and Child , 2016 Saint Woman , 2015 Boy With No Past , 2014 She Was Learning to Love Moments, to Love Moments for Themselves , 2017 Amy Sherald was born in Columbus, Georgia, and received an MFA and BA in painting from universities in Maryland and Georgia. She is known for her colorful narrative portraits of black Americans with thought-provoking titles. I love her style with her color block backgrounds and limited palettes; I am also specifically drawn to her titles, because it makes it feel like these people could be good friends or strangers, and yet you still care about their stories. She is able to create a bond between the viewer and the person in the painting that I think is beautiful. To see more of her portraits, visit her website .

Delayed , 2012 Lost Track , 2018 To the Sea , 2014 or 2015 Crossing , 2018 The Well , 2010 Aron Wiesenfeld was born in 1972 and attended art school in New York and California. His work is moody, mysterious, and it hints at narratives with serious themes; the dark eyes, elongated bodies, and muted colors add to this eerie tone. I included some of my favorites & some that most intrigue me, but he has lots of other paintings (many more off-putting than these). I can't explain it, but I am simultaneously scared of and drawn to his work. If you want to see more, check out his website .

Mousseron Midnight Of Munan Bjørgulfsson Arch Cape  - painted on the Oregon Coast Egg Sisters 3  - a project started and then abandoned Hank and Milo  - her two children, painted for her husband on his birthday Fiery Comet Carson Ellis lives in Oregon with her husband and two sons, and has illustrated several children's books. Her work is strongly narrative with a unique color theme and an illustrator's touch. I absolutely love her limited palette and the snippets of truth and fiction we can glimpse in her work. She is another artist I have fallen in love with! Check out more of her work on her website .

Moonlight , 2016 Wigmore in Leucadia , 2017 Couch Surfer , 2015 Bodner/Caivano Chess Match , 2016 Starlee Kine - Writer's Kitchen , 2016 Hope Gangloff is based in Brooklyn, NY, and the pieces I have chosen to represent her work are from her collection of vibrant narrative portraits depicting stylized scenes from daily life. I love her color palette, the way the purples and greens stand out and recur throughout her paintings. I also love how relatable her work is, how the mundane of the everyday is elevated to something special. She's one of my new faves! To see more of her work, go to her website .

Gardening in the Rain, 2007 Young Astronomer , 2017 Stop That , 2003 In the Space Between Trees, 2018 Winter Dancing , 2011 Brian Kershisnik, based in Utah, is one of my favorite artists of all time! His concepts are largely centered around family, relationships, and religion. I love the stylized way that he portrays the figure, and how the relatively simply facial expressions can hold so much emotion. These are just a few of my favorites, but you can see his other beautiful and touching paintings on his website .