16: Abbey Messmer

16: Abbey Messmer Abbey Messmer grew up the oldest of three girls in the suburbs of Dallas, Texas. At age five, she decided she wanted to be a Dallas Cowboys cheerleader and an artist. Her dreams were semi-realized. She admits to cheer leading in middle school and is thankfully still…

Hello My Name is Heather

heatherbailey.typepad.comEven the blog’s banner will put you in a good mood.​Heather Bailey makes pretty things, posts pretty pictures on her pretty blog, and writes about her pretty life.Oh, and she’s pretty.See for yourself on her blog, Hello My Name is Heather…

17: Randy Slack

17: Randy Slack Randy Slack tends to borrow from his upbringing during the ’70s and ’80s; he says he’s continuously inspired the time’s logos, cartoons, paint-by-numbers, hot chicks, religion … he goes on. Really, he says, “it’s a subconscious collage of nostalgia that should make you giggle — like laughing…

Cory Martinez, What Are You Wearing?

Ain’t she a doll?​Cory Martinez is 25 years old and loves vintage clothing. She and her longtime boyfriend, Ben Funke, have been busy relaunching their online vintage clothing business called Meat Market Vintage — back from a brief hiatus.She plays bass guitar for a The Ultramatics, a Tempe punk band…

18: Miro Chun

18: Miro Chun Miro Chun’s a first-generation Korean American from a seriously artistic family. Her mother’s a painter (abstract expressionist), her sister is a graphic designer, her father (a retired computer scientist) was a photographer in the Korean War, even her godparents are painters. In school, she pursued architecture and…

19: Mitch Fry

19. Mitch Fry Mitch Fry says he’s recently been released into being a sculptor. He was raised in a Chicago suburb and his father was a commercial artist. He came to Arizona and graduated from ASU’s fine art program. He says his sculpting style is constructing aesthetic larger things out…

20: Tessa Windt

20: Tessa Windt This summer marked a decade since Tessa Windt made the jump to the United States from Canada. Four states later, she’s glad to finally catch her breath in Arizona. Windt says “In some ways I’m an old-fashioned artist who needs a studio, a concrete space to move…

Antique Haven: A Store for Shopping Enthusiasts

Downtown Glendale is Greek for antique shopping (we think). So it’s no surprise that within its historic district lies the redbrick building aptly named Antique Haven. The small shop is filled with jewelry, artwork, housewares, accessories, comics, and knickknacks galore. Our advice: Pace yourself. As with any antique treasure cove,…

Yellow Canary Black Belt

We’re not really sure how he does it, but Stephen Steinbrink has made us swoon over his art as much as he does with his music…

21. James Angel

21. James Angel James Angel’s a self-taught artist and one of the founders of the artist collective 3CarPileUp. He’s a fierce supporter of the “emerging” downtown art scene and an advocate for keeping local talent local.”For me, it’s about inspiration and constant experimentation,” he writes. “I explore delineation of form,…

22. Dan Semenchuk

22. Dan Semenchuk Dan Semenchuk was born in Germany, lived his early years in New Jersey, spent his formative years in Monte Carlo, Monaco, experienced the ’70s in Denver, and settled in Phoenix in 1980. He started drawing when he was eight, inspired by his father who had drawn cartoon…

23: Tiphanie Brooke

23: Tiphanie Brooke Tiphanie Brooke’s a multidisciplinary graphic artist, who laughs while saying her career thus far has been a little unpredictable. She had her first show in Europe and her work appeared in books before newspapers and blogs. She says she’s never not working on antigirl (her own project…

Adult Swim’s Labor Day Massive: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

What do you get when you combine Pabst Blue Ribbon, cigarettes and ironic swimwear? Well, Adult Swim’s Labor Day Massive at Hotel San Carlos, of course. The hipsters were out in full force on Sunday night, celebrating the reemergence of scene-chronized swimming. We stopped by to grab a few highlights…

Sleeping with Valerianne

It was recently brought to our attention that a third of our lives are spent in bed — almost 3,000 hours each year — and yet we continue to buy cheap sheets and tell ourselves that someday we’ll get around to making our bedroom a place to enjoy that neglected…

24: Gennaro Garcia

24: Gennaro Garcia Gennaro Garcia started sketching in kindergarten and hasn’t been able to stop. He grew up in his family’s restaurants in Mexico and says he remembers drawing the senoras while they cooked. He followed the family business and opened his own restaurant when he was 23 years old…

25: Tara Logsdon

25: Tara Logsdon Tara Logsdon grew up in Arizona. She escaped to Seattle for a short time, where she owned gallery ent>tourage and discovered her love for digital animation. She returned to Phoenix in 2001 and worked as a graphic designer, photo stylist, display coordinator, curator, and as an event…

Downtown’s First Friday (Sept. 3)

Art walks are more often about people watching and shenanigans and less about the actual art. We’re here to guide you through both. Presenting our very own Field Guide — an evolving guide to art walks around town. From time to time, we’ll introduce some of our favorite spots and…

Worldly Goodness at the ASU Art Museum Store

Stepping into the ASU Art Museum Store is like taking that backpacking trip you’ve promised yourself for years. Shelves are filled with goods from Chile, Peru, Mexico, Southeast Asia, Africa and a variety of other places.The store, located within the ASU Art Museum in Tempe, is currently hosting a back-to-school…

26: Matt Dickson

26: Matt Dickson Matt Dickson’s interest in drawing started on the street. He spent a few years in the graffiti, where he says he was attracted to the creativity and camaraderie among like artists. He left the street art scene for art school in California, as he felt the importance…

Bad Art: Online Sources For Creativity Gone Wrong

We all might like to think we’re a bit creative in our own ways. And if you use said creativity in order to make a living, it probably comes with a healthy, daily dose of self-doubt.So what better way to quell your insecurities than to relish in the failure of…