Artist Registry

The natural beauty of Raven Run Sanctuary in Central Kentucky has had a lasting influence on my photography. I was brought to my knees, not to pray, but to look at the tiny things growing out of the dirt. I made a lot of belly flop photographs in those days. I attempt to give voice to a planet we have forgotten how to love. Photographing land, water and sky seems like small potatoes compared to what needs to be done. Nonetheless, in rare moments time and space dissolve and brief contact is made with the Infinite. Hunched over the tripod, in a wild and remote place, a shaft of light moves, a shutter fires, a moment of time is borrowed for an instant of salvation.

Tom and Kathy Arnold met at a music festival in 1995, married in 1997, and the combination of love and talent from these visually impaired musicians has blossomed into many entertaining and inspirational appearances. Tom is a talented guitarist and singer who blends well with Kathy, whose beautiful voice has been featured in many festivals and recording projects. These accomplished musicians play and sing for a wide variety of audiences, primarily in the Louisville area, which include nursing homes, bookstores, weddings, parties and coffee houses. Tom and Kathy have both been praised and acclaimed for their versatility in musical talent, style and interpretation of songs, which include country, gospel, folk, blues and old-time sing along.

Tom and Kathy Arnold met at a music festival in 1995, married in 1997, and the combination of love and talent from these visually impaired musicians has blossomed into many entertaining and inspirational appearances. Tom is a talented guitarist and singer who blends well with Kathy, whose beautiful voice has been featured in many festivals and recording projects. These accomplished musicians play and sing for a wide variety of audiences, primarily in the Louisville area, which include nursing homes, bookstores, weddings, parties and coffee houses. Tom and Kathy have both been praised and acclaimed for their versatility in musical talent, style and interpretation of songs, which include country, gospel, folk, blues and old-time sing along.

Pat works primarily in watercolor. Her fascination with the medium, combined with her studies and travels, has given her a unique lens to interpret the world, especially Eastern Kentucky, her home. Pat works from her studio in Northern Madison County. She is a member of the Kentucky Guild of Artists and Craftsmen, veteran teaching artist for the Kentucky Arts Council, and a founding member of Richmond Community Galleries.

Communicating through art allows me to know myself and reveal myself to others. I had always been drawn to art, and through various challenges in my life (double vision, severe to profound congenital hearing loss and a serious accident), I discovered that making art was very therapeutic. I have a Master of Art Education degree from Eastern Kentucky University and graduate certifications to teach deaf and hard of hearing students. I love to help others express themselves through art.

Melody is a recipient of the VSA Ron Billings Emerging Artist Award.

Inspirations in my art come from everything from Bach to bugs, which led to my evolution and fascination with the found object, utilizing refuse, debris and recycled materials. I fuse my art with my personal story. I have a BFA in Fine Arts (painting and drawing) and a minor in art history from Western Kentucky University.

Teri is a recipient of the VSA Kentucky Ron Billings Emerging Artist Award.

With one hand on the keyboard and the other playing his trumpet, Harley Cannon brings a unique variety, some would say a one-man-band, anywhere he plays and sings. Blind virtually from birth, he grew up in Maryland where he took to music at an early age. For over 30 years he’s made music in Lexington , Kentucky . He plays at private parties, restaurants, weddings, churches, and special events. He also writes poetry. He is a member of Toastmasters and does public speaking: motivational and on blindness awareness issues. He enjoys encouraging others and spreading the joy of life wherever he goes.

Deanna Christian has worked with colored pencil for over 50 years and says she learns something new with each piece she creates. She studied with colored pencil artist, Ann Kullberg and at Daniel Smith Artist Workshops in Washington state. There Deanna also learned to appreciate the art forms of the Pacific Northwest people-the Haida and Lummi. “I love the brilliance and transparency that can be create with colored pencil. Like light through stained glass the colors glow. I enjoy hearing people say, “THAT’s colored pencil?!”

A three-time recipient of the International Bluegrass Association’s Fiddle Player of the Year Award, Michael has performed with Bluegrass legends Bill Monroe, Ralph Stanley, Doc Watson, and J.D. Crowe. At age four, Michael picked up the fiddle. At age 12, he made his Grand Ole Opry debut as a guest of Allison Krauss. Currently Michael and his band, Flamekeeper Band featuring Audie Blaylock, play sizzling bluegrass and are much in demand.

I am inspired to draw people. I am a portrait artist, and I like to show happiness in the smiles of the people I draw. Worries and disappointment can also be expressed. I am mostly a self-taught artist, but I have been able to take private art lessons at VSA Kentucky.

Patrick has received the VSA Kentucky Young Soloists Award each year from 2001 to 2005. He has performed throughout the country and has appeared on national television. People Magazine did a feature story on him. He has received the Presidential Award for Outstanding Academic Achievement from both President Clinton and President Bush. Patrick’s fascination with the piano began at the age of nine months when his father began teaching him how to play. He played trumpet in the University of Louisville Marching Band and has studied piano with Julliard graduate Hinda Ordman.

Before I was an artist, I was a backpacker, and the heart of my artistic practice remains my backcountry adventures. From the first time I walked along a wooded path to stand atop a rocky summit, I knew there was something magical about hiking. While civilization wears down my mind and body, a summer spent on the trail, sleeping in a tent, drinking from mountain streams, observing wildlife, and hiking through all kinds of weather restores me. I create art inspired by my time in the backcountry. With wool from my family’s pet sheep, photographs from my hikes, I create two-dimensional wool images using the felting techniques. My hope is to share with others the wild places I love.

Kyrie-Inn is a classically trained performing artist in music, theatre, and dance who began performing at the age of nine years old. She is the Development Director at Barn Lot Theatre and performs with her service dogs Deja Blue and Tao Blue (Team Blue). “I turned to service dogs for my best form of assistance. There aren’t many teams out there who actively practice their skills onstage, nor are there many disabled dance or theater companies. I intend to continue working for as long as my disabilities allow. I encourage anyone to never say never and work into saying Yes! because doors do open.”

Tasha McGee received her BFA in Fiber Art from the University of Louisville in 2009. Tasha’s Untitled Series were created through a layering process involving wax and linen on canvas to build up a relief surface. “It’s all about creating a detailed/multi-layer surface to peer into.” Tasha is inspired by dreamlike painting and watercolor; especially Chagall. Since being diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder 1, Tasha says her art “attempts to show how I view my mind; come to terms with and learn to celebrate it too!”

“I had to fall into the darkness to see the light, and from the light came my art,” says Jimmie. He’s written poetry since the age of 12, but it wasn’t until he was 49, after a breakdown, that he discovered his gifts in visual arts. Dealing with chronic depression, he finds joy in his art and in his country living. “When the worries of today or tomorrow begin to weigh upon my soul, I drift to the places of my heart. I close my eyes and I am amidst the hills, cliffs, and hollows that have molded me into a man, I am at peace.”

Precious aims to be the first blind Latina artist at the forefront of the Latin music industry. Precious Perez is a classically trained pop, R&B and Latin singer/songwriter, music educator, and disability advocate. With a double Bachelor’s in music education and vocal performance from Berklee College of Music, she is also an actress, author and activist. Currently serving as Vice President of RAMPD–the premiere global network of music professionals with disabilities—Precious is a leading voice working to crush stereotypes by sharing her experiences across cultures while advocating for all of the communities she represents. With features and mentions in Grammy.com and Telemundo, Precious Perez continues to break barriers through her words and music, altering the way people see.

I travel all over Kentucky looking for unique areas to photograph. I take them home, blow them up and either use that photo for a painting or composites of several photos to create a painting. I like to evoke an emotion or mood with my work. I use mist and smoke, strong light, and reflection to achieve these feelings. I am inspired by nature and the environment. If I thought I could save the world by capturing it on canvas, I’d be painting day and night!

“My art is an expression of how I feel toward nature, a higher power, and my place in the world. If there is anything unique about the way I create it, it’s that I use the remaining vision I have, technology that is right for m and past art education that i use instinctively.”

Art has been a dominant factor in my life since childhood. I discovered as a child the great communicative potential of art and actively pursued perfecting various media from pencil drawing to painting to poetry to the study of violin to say what I could not with regular language. My heroes were DaVinci, Degas, Picasso and Mozart. Through observation of their work, I could see reflections of myself, my dreams and my aspirations. In 1985, I professed to be a visual artist and taught myself how to draw and paint. My chosen media are graphite, oil and photography.

What attracts my artist’s eye is what I draw. My subjects are trying to express themselves like I do; they call my attention. The artwork and colors express how I feel inside. I hope people will find their emotions and the way life really is here on Earth when they look at my artwork. I like the texture of oil pastels and colored pencils, and big sheets of paper because my drawings need space.

I was born clubfooted, and at the age of 18 my left leg was severely damaged from an accident. At first I tired to put up a wall. Embracing my story brought out other stories. A whole new world opened. Book arts help me to live with my story and hopefully will help others embrace and communicate their stories. . . I have studied at Penland School of Craft in North Carolina and Arrowmont School of Arts and Craft in Tennessee. I have taken many workshops with several well-known mentor book artists like, Daniel Essig, Dolph Smith, Jana Pullman and Carol Barton.

Lanny Taulbee began his artistic endeavors as a child after he was diagnosed with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis at the age of seven. This condition severely limited his physical activity, causing him to rely on the less strenuous pursuits of drawing, coloring, and painting. His talents include working in the mediums of oils, watercolor, acrylics, pencil, and ink. Nature is the primary subject of Lanny’s artwork. “Capturing the spirit of an animal through its eyes,” he states, “or drawing a tree to reveal its spirit beneath a rugged exterior, to me that’s what art is all about. Every plant, animal, stone, or mountain has something to say if we only listen. To me that’s what artists do; they listen to their subjects and translate their voices into a visual language.”

Hanna Wright is a self taught artist residing in Keavy, Kentucky. She uses her experiences from growing up in rural South-Eastern Kentucky, teaching special education classes, and living with OCD to inspire her unique works of art. Hanna graduated form the University of the Cumberlands with degrees in Special Education Behavioral Disabilities and Elementary Education.