Artists Talk with LVA: July 3, 2025

Artistas Cubanos Chévere opens at Louisville Visual Art on July 11th. Two of the artists, Carlos Gamez De Francisco & Julio Cesar joined us in the studio this week. Tune in to WXOX 97.1 FM/Artxfm.com each Thursday at 10 am to hear Artists Talk with LVA.

Carlos Gamez de Francisco was born in post-revolutionary Cuba in 1987, to a Cuban-Spanish mother and a Cuban-American father. He grew up in Cuba and was educated in an academic style heavily influenced by the Russian Academy. At age five, he determined, with absolute certainty, that he would be an artist. By the time he was fifteen, Gamez de Francisco was diligently painting 8 hours a day, every day. Today, he often spends 15 hours a day painting and feels “very blessed to do what I love.”His exceptional talent, hard work, and perseverance led him to earn artistic commissions and recognition.

Julio Cesar Rodríguez Aguilar was born in 1976 in Holguin, Cuba. From a very early age, he was enthusiastic about drawing. As an adolescent, he entered the Vocational School of Art Raúl Gómez Garcia, and later he entered the Professional Academy of Visual Arts in his city, graduating in the specialty of Painting, Drawing, Photography, and Artistic Weaving in 1995. Julio also went on to be a professor of the arts and involved himself in book illustration, stage and costume design, muralism, and more. 

He specifically found fascination in surrealism, which provided him with the necessary vision of what he most identified with: the mystical, the surreal, and the poetic.

Artists Talk with LVA: March 6, 2025

Jamarr Cox opens an exhibit at Kore Gallery on March 7 & Suzanne Sidebottom opens one at Pyro on March 8. Both will join us this week. Tune in to WXOX 97.1 FM/Artxfm.com each Thursday at 10 am to hear Artists Talk with LVA.

Dreaming in the Dark and Beyond by Jamarr Cox, opens Friday from 6 - 8:30 pm at Kore Gallery.

Jamarr Cox was one of the artists in the 2023 Art in City Hall exhibit. Cox is a Louisville native who has been creating art as far back as he can remember. He holds a degree in Commercial Art and is currently a web / UI developer by day. 

Pyro Gallery opens Just Imagine, from Suzanne Sidebottom &. Beth Sharpe. There will be a reception Friday from 5:30-8:30 pm, and an Artist Talk Saturday, March 8, from 2-3 pm.

Suzanne Sidebottom is a trompe l’oeil clay artist. The artworks are not real, yet they still evoke a memory of time and place for the viewer. Everyday objects are realistically crafted from clay and printed with underglazes using antique and artist-designed printing blocks and artist-made decals. These objects are rich with texture and make the viewer want to reach out and touch them as if they are real. She has exhibited across the U.S. over the past seven years in over 60 juried and invitational exhibitions; had two solo exhibitions; and was published in “500 Prints on Clay: An inspiring Collection of Image Transfer Work.” Her sculptures are in numerous public and private collections.

Artists Talk with LVA: November 21, 2024

Cédric Ballarati's exhibit, "Vibrant Journey Around My World" is at Capacity Contemporary Exchange extended through December 5, and he has organized an Art Book Sale at Kore Gallery for November 24. Tune in to WXOX 97.1 FM/Artxfm.com each Thursday at 10 am to hear Artists Talk with LVA.

Cédric Ballarati believes Photography is about writing with light. His photography depicts the complexities of life. In every picture the intricacies of our planet are unveiled. Even if it looks harder and harder to live with those layers of complexity. 

Cédric studied Architecture at Belgium Liege University and photography at Belgium Liege Art Academy. His work has been exhibited in group and solo shows beginning in  2007 and his first photography book “Terre de chiens” was released in 2019. He is currently living and working in Louisville, Kentucky.

Vibrant Journey Around My World : Selected Work by Cèdric Ballarati
At Capacity Contemporary Exchange extended through December 5

There will be an Art Book Sale in Kore Gallery today from 12 to 4pm. Organized by Cédric Ballarati & Tom Coash, several vendors will be selling books.

Artists Talk with LVA: August 15, 2024

Connor Stephenson & Allie Jensen joined us this week to discuss their concurrent solo exhibits at Kore Gallery. Tune in to 97.1 FM/Artxfm.com each Thursday at 10 am to hear Artists Talk with LVA.

Kore Gallery is exhibiting Time is a Mother by Allie Jensen and The Table by Connor Stephenson through September 1, 2024. A closing reception will be on Saturday, August 24, from 1- 3 pm.

Allie Jensen (they/them) is a Louisville-based artist practicing meditative mark-making techniques using repetitive line-work and dot-work. Like an emotional muscle, their patience and ability to live in the moment are strengthened by their regular use of these methods.

Primarily working in ink and acrylic, Jensen stacks and layers small components such as lines, dots, and circles, to create organic masses that reflect common design elements observed across diverse

natural, technological, and social complex systems.

Jensen’s art practice highlights the universe's astounding interconnectedness and allows them to participate as a co-creator within it. 

Born in 1995 in Monterey, CA, Connor Stephenson is a self-taught artist currently working and living in Louisville, KY. 

Stephenson’s practice imaginatively explores drawing and painting while using a primitive method of mark-making and paint application. His oeuvre consists of separate works such as his cityscape drawings, dinosaur paintings, and still lifes.  

This will be the second solo exhibition of the artist’s career.

Artebella On The Radio: August 19

Geoff Crowe is a painter of what might be described as abstract expression. He works in a variety of mediums including, acrylic, watercolor, dip ink pens, charcoal, and sometimes a mix of these. 

“I began my formal training as a visual artist in Puerto Rico. My first exhibition, En Accion (2004), featured a series of paintings capturing the movement and enthusiasm of children playing soccer. The Latin influence of my early training continues in the often dramatic use of color and light.

My exploration into how to express my art began with impression-like paintings. Most recently I have begun exploring abstract expressionism.  Over the years my subjects have included figures, ballet dancers, horses, pets and other animals, cityscapes, and children’s book illustrations.

I have had the luck of painting and sculpting while living in multiple countries. I grew up in California and have lived in Indiana, Puerto Rico, Ireland, and most recently Louisville, Kentucky”.

Crowe’s new exhibit "STONE & CANVAS--In Abstract" is at Kore Gallery. The reception for this exhibit, which also features the work of sculptor Mike McCarthy will be August 21, 6-9 PM