Grey Cube Gallery proudly presents the third Painting & Photography online art show for the month of January 2024. The show encompassed a range of artistic styles and mediums (oil on canvas, acrylic, watercolor, pastel, gouache, ink, photography, digital). Each submission has been judged based on the following elements of artistic expression: orginality and quality of art, overall design, creativity, interpretation of the theme, demonstration of artistic ability and usage of medium. Out of all entries, 64 artworks were shortlisted for inclusion in the show. The competition attracted entries from many countries across the world: USA, Hong Kong, China, Taiwan, Australia, Italy, Canada, France, Spain and Ukraine. Enjoy the show and thank you for expressing an interest in our competition.

Xiong Yanteng is a member of the Professional League of American Artists and a member of the Portrait Society of America. He graduated from the Oil Painting Department of the Academy of Fine Arts of Central University for Nationalities. His works have been shown in group and solo exhibitions in New York and other places, and he has received several honors such as the First Prize of International Portrait. His portraits have been published in several artist magazines. His works have also received attention on several social media platforms and news media.

"To take my inner visions with my hands and create a work of art for you the viewer .... That is the ultimate in self expression." I am very drawn to shiny surfaces as well as transparent objects, especially when the lighting brings them to life. I look for beauty in everyday objects that most people take for granted or just don’t truly see them as they are. The seemingly boring and mundane subjects can truly be like magnets if portrayed in the right light. Shiny metal is one of those materials that can host endless visions….the light hits it and the reflections are captured on the smooth, sleek surface…an artists dream!

I came of age during the 1960s. As a lawyer and citizen I was and am a champion for gender equality. I paint the female figure in sometimes absurd, sometimes haunting locations. Far from creating emotionless family portraits, I blend color and imagery to explore themes of mythology, literature and philosophy and emotion. Here and there I will do a floral or landscapes and faces too. I studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. My work has been shown in Galleries across the nation. I am a signature member of the Baltimore, Delaware, Pennsylvania and Philadelphia watercolor societies. I choose watercolor as a medium because it is fluid and sometimes serendipitous. I also do woodcut prints and carvings in wood. Thirty years ago, I was diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder. In addition to painting, I am highly visible in the community providing support and advocacy for all those who suffer from

These photographic art images were developed by Garret Demarest of Palm Springs, CA. Garret's work has evolved over time. His initial interest was in capturing images of objects but soon turned to people, animals, plants, and flowers as he grew in his studies in psychology and human development that included emotional reactions to color and color psychology. Garret’s later career as an organizational development consultant, took him around the world and provided the opportunity to photograph people and places that captured something unique and spontaneous. Now retired, he spends his free time immersed in his hobby of photographic art where he manipulates original photographs into abstract images resembling paintings of the “Color Field School” brought to life by Mark Rothko and other abstract impression artists in the Mid-20th Century, thus creatively blurring the lines between photography and painting. In his work, he has taken original photos of a variety of different things – flowers, water scenes, sunrises, sunsets - and re-envisioned them through his manipulation creating abstract images using specific colors from the original photograph. His images have inspired mood elevation, re-energizing, dreams, memories, and music compositions. His focus on balance and partnership of colors, helps him select images that move through the visual and emotional excitement of both bold color and muted tones while expressing the emotion of abstract impressionism and “Color Field” art.