Saiman Li is a visual artist currently lives & works in San Francisco. He received a BFA from the San Francisco Art Institue in 1993. His work has been exhibited nationally in the U.S. including New Langton Arts, SF Camerawork, Bronx Museum of the Arts & Alternative Museum in New York.
In addition to his visual works, which encompass photography and installation, Li is a working dj. In the past, Li had participated for special events at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, SF Asian Arts Museum as well as SFMOMA.

Hi - I started painting again as an adult when I was pregnant with my son, Zane. Since Zane was born with a rare syndrome, Emanuel's Syndrome, I left teaching to become a stay at home mom. I found myself at home with time on my hands and the need to express myself. Due to my background as a teacher and my new career as a full time mommy of a special child, my subject matter revolved around subjects that appealed to children and adults who are young at heart. My first painting was an elephant – elefante original – 2001.

Elefante original is the most abstract of all my elephant paintings, but one of my personal favorites. I went on to paint several more: elefante anaranjado, elefante feliz, etc., I also started to paint plants, owls, birds, whales, and insects. I like this subject matter, because it's whimsical and works well with my primitive and child-like style. I enjoy starting with a simple subject, like a flower or a giraffe, and then experimenting with the texture and color to create something playful and yummy, but also substantial.

Since then I have branched out to paint some abstracts and to do some collages. I have shown my work locally, nationally, and internationally at various Cafes, Art shows, Galleries, and Art Auctions. My style reflects my personality in that it is eclectic, fun, whimsical, and complex. Life can be daunting at times, but I am still able to find humor and beauty in the most painful of times. I want my artwork to achieve the same effect – to be able to bring joy where maybe there was none before – to transform the darkness into something light and beautiful. My work appeals to art lovers who appreciate the sheer simplicity of my subject matter, and the joy that my work evokes in the viewer.

Also - I do commissions, so if you would like something specific that you do not see, but you think it would work well with my style, then please ask, and I bet we can work something out – many of my paintings have come from ideas from patrons such as yourself -

Thank you for taking the time to read this and to view my work – cheers!!
Kelli Robinson – 415.525.0530
http://www.kellirobinson.com

I studied architecture at UC Berkeley and graduated with a BA in Environmental Design. Since then I've practiced architecture, interior and graphic design and fine art in the bay area.

My subjects include portraits, landscapes, pets and male figurative images. I express the passion I find in my subjects with color and texture and render shade and shadow to emphasize light. I think of shapes as topography, irrespective of the subject.

Several years ago I adopted a mixed breed dog and named her Kama. As a result I embarked on my pet portrait business, PetPicasso.Net with Karma as the CEO (Canine Executive Officer) I’ve included many of the commissions on this site.

In 2008 David Leddick published three of my figurative paintings in two of his pictorial anthologies, “The Nude Male 21st Century Visions” and “Gorgeous Gallery.” David included the following with the paintings:

“Boldly impressionist and highly charged with color, David Barnett is the 21st century’s connection back to artists of the turn of the last century like Renoir. The human form is his subject but he finds shapes and colors there through his artist’s eye that reveal to us things not seen or noticed before.”

Cheers,

 David

Telling Tales:
For as long as humans have wandered the earth, there have been stories: tales told, tales heard.
Stories teach us, stories ward off the dark, stories bind us together...so many people, so much time, so many stories.
Today stories are told in pictures, in words, in code flying through the air. They differ from teller to teller. Who listens and what's heard differ too.

I paint primarily figurative paintings and portraits to express the world around me and within me often using images taken from both personal and found photographs as well as mass media.   I attempt to subvert the technical portrait and let what is truly strange and engaging to emerge, creating moments of abstraction with the paint, and provoking a narrative and mystery in the composition.  

I feel moved when sunlight touches an object in the afternoon and visualize the space around me. I walk out and wander around to observe shapes of shadows. I realize that shadows make spaces visible. I find myself in the spaces enjoying architecture delineated by sunlight. Buildings and their shadows are layered and blended together creating momentary beauty of colors and shapes. These scenes are temporary, and will change or disappear in the next moment. They are very precious because their occurrence is the unique combination of a place, sunlight, and the precise moment I happen upon the scene – like an eclipse. I spontaneously use photography to capture visual information like quick sketches. Camera documents specific moment of ever changing shapes and spaces. Although capturing the moment is quick, when I create works of art, I choose time-consuming autographical method in transferring information from the photograph. During the process of depicting information, I become involved deeply and identifying myself as a part of the space. I note that nothing is permanent and everything is constantly changing: light, cityscape and myself. I worked on printmaking for a long time. The printmaking process is reminiscent of the relationship between light and shadow. Etching and aquatint help me express my interest towards light and shadow by using rich tones of black and white. The graphic nature of black and white leads me to lines and shapes found in architectural elements. Once I eliminated color from my work, I found myself drawn to the exploration of space itself. My work became about the physicality of three-dimensional space.

I am primarily a landscape painter. I specialize in trying to paint reality; painting what I see as accurately as possible and trying to capture a real moment.

Last November, I took a plein air painting trip to the suburbs of Vegas thinking I would capture some great housing subdivisions. After a lot of hard-work and travel (and some enjoyable sight-seeing), the paintings did not turn out as well as expected. Disappointing.

Back at home, I decided to paint fruit and veg in the studio. Generally I paint still lifes every year for auctions or whatever, but this turned into a whole series.

My sister was always telling me to get rid of stuff. "Take a picture of it and then get rid of it." I added some objects to the pictures but I did not get rid of the objects.

I am pleased with the results. It is still painting reality, but easier--much easier. And you can eat some of the stuff when you are done.