Strings of Diplomacy

Artist Mr. Richard R. Hsieh graduated from the Taiwan Normal College and taught painting in Taiwanese high schools and colleges for 25 years. In total, he has more than 40 years of experience. He has more than 30 honors at numerous Chinese national art exhibits and has held dozens of one-person exhibitions in Taiwan. Salt Lake City, and Park City. He was presented an ultimate honor when his paintings were collected by the National Arts Museum in Taiwan as national treasures.

Artist Ms. Lenka Konopasek is a 1994 graduate of the University of Utah with a Bachelor of Fine Arts, and a 2001 graduate from Maine College of Art in Portland with a Master of Fine Arts degree. She also completed three Artist Residencies. Ms. Konopasek has participated in many national and international solo exhibitions and has also participated in more than a dozen group exhibitions. She has also received numerous awards and been featured in at least ten significant publications.

Artist Mr. Darryl Erdmann has participated in one-person shows since 1988 and has been shown most recently at Creekside Gallery in Scottsdale, Arizona. Darryl has won numerous awards, including first-place from the La Jolla Arts Competition in 1996, as well as the Eccles Art Center Open Competition in1997. He has multiple commissions and collected works on display in both private and corporate collections throughout the Southwest.

Artist Ms. Vatsala Naagesh showed an early interest and talent in art, resulting in her participating in a special art program for gifted individuals in India, where she received a Bachelor in Biology degree. She received a scholarship to Mt. Holyoke College, where she completed a Master's degree before returning to India to study art and music. Upon returning to the United States, she has been exhibiting her skill in the art of Tanjore painting at various cultural events.

Artist Agung Gunawan shared, "Transforming the bow into a violin represents several things: the integration between eastern and western culture, and my desire to end the rising violence in the world. Through my work of art, I would like to promote world peace as well as to show our precious Javanese wayang (puppetry), which is a blend of complex art, from painting and music to theater and philosophical values."

Artist Ms. Mary Wright Straight was educated in the Utah public schools and graduated from the University of Utah with a Bachelor in Fine Art. Mary was very fortunate to be taught by several remarkable instructors, including LeConte Stewart, Alvin Cittlns, Doug Snow, Ed Maryon, George Dibble, Dale Bryner, and Earl Jones. She taught art at Granite High School for three years and has raised four sons. She has recently returned to art classes and workshops, as well as the renewed association with fellow artists.

Artist Liucija Vrubliauskiene graduated from Vilnius Art Academy in textiles. Since 1978, she has been the principal of Art School in Druskininkai, a beautiful resort south of Lithuania. As an accredited teacher, she has devoted most of her life to teaching others and thus has had only two personal exhibitions in 1976 and 1996. Ms. Vrubliauskiene is well-known for her distinctive style in painting on silk and textiles.

Art did not enter the life of Ms. Ruby Chacon through schools or extracurricular activities - it came from her uncle Covito. Ruby is deeply committed to the Latino culture and created Mestizo Gallery, followed by the Mestizo Institute of Culture and Arts (MICA), the first Art Institute of the Americas in the state of Utah, to bring Latino artwork to the local art scene. In 1998 she received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in painting and drawing at the University of Utah.

Artist Ms. Stephanie Michelle Saint-Thomas debuted with oil paintings at the age of two and is a self-taught artist who had her first professional exhibit at the Fransche Molen, a 13th-century watermill converted to an art gallery, at the tender age of 12. In the early '80s, Stephanie designed a collection of wearable art jewelry that was bought by several major department chains, including Saks Fifth Avenue, followed in1993 by invitation to partner in a company creating a line of artist gifts representing the Mayan culture.

Artist Ms. Suzanne Tornquist studied with Robert Rumel and received a degree in graphic design from the University of Utah. Suzanne worked as a commercial artist for 12 years before deciding to devote herself to painting. Her art has been shown in the Springville Art Museum, and in 1998 "The Prayer Shawls" won the "Louie Award" for best Jewish Image. Her works are published by the greeting card companies, Caravan Press Inc. and EthnoGraphics Corp.

Artist Ernesto Apomayta-Chambi was identified as an artistic prodigy at the tender age of five. At 17, he won the opportunity to study at the prestigious Carlos Baca Flor Regional School of Fine Arts in Arequipa. Peru, and was later offered a scholarship to study art among the Chinese masters in Beijing and pursued his advanced art studies at the distinguished Autonomous National University of Mexico in Mexico City. He speaks eight languages, holds a doctorate In pre-Columbian art history, and is an internationally recognized authority of Chinese art.

Artist Ms. Willamarie Huelskamp graduated in 1990 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in painting and drawing. Her paintings have been exhibited and won awards in many national and local juried shows. She won "Best of Show" three times in the Utah watercolor society's annual show. Her paintings have been reproduced in six books, and she has more than 1000 works hanging in private and corporate collections. In addition, she teaches watercolor painting and experimental water media painting at the University of Utah.

Ms. Pilar Pobil spent much of her childhood sketching scenes and playing with color and design in any medium available to her. For several years, she focused on sculpting, later branching out to watercolor and oils. She is a self-educated artist who has always worked alone. In the thirty years she has been sculpting and painting, her work has won innumerable awards, and she has exhibited in galleries and museums throughout the Western States, Chicago, Spain, and Mexico.

Patricia Cay attended the University of New Mexico, receiving a Bachelor of Art in Art Education, K-12, and a Master of Arts in Special Education and Counseling. Honored with several art awards during high school and college, she has had several art shows and has also sold paintings during these times. Combining her educational and artistic interests, she has taught elementary to college levels, in the areas of special education, art, and counseling.

Patricia Owen, a Fine Arts Graduate from Southern Methodist University, is acclaimed as an exemplary veteran middle school Art Teacher. At Clayton Middle School, Patricia inspires her students to create artwork that fills them with pride. Each year, student artwork is displayed at The City-County Building and The City Library. Three students, Rebecca Brown. Heather Church and Kristen Scheil accepted Ms. Owen's challenge to paint a violin with the United States depiction for the Strings of Diplomacy display.