Lakefront Festival of Art: Artists I loved

Some of my faves from Milwaukee's LFOA 2016

There's so much to love about the Lakefront Festival of Art. It's held on the grounds of the Milwaukee Art Museum each year, typically on a hot summery weekend. 2016 was no different. The sun was beating down on festival-goers, but luckily most of the artwork is housed inside white tents that remain surprisingly cool. 

This is just a sampling of some of the artists who really caught my eye this year. Some were repeats (I remember seeing them last year, too) and others were new to me. Of course there are many more worthy creatives I could blog about, but these arty folks actually post or sell their work online. I didn't want to share any work that I couldn't include a direct link to. Now let's get to it!

#1 Kenneth Kudulis
This was the first booth that caught my eye, and not surprisingly once you check out the artist's website. That is some large-scale, vibrant, pop art eye candy! Here's a statement from Kenneth's site: "Kenneth often uses found imagery from the past two decades as source material for his work. He deconstructs and simplifies these found images down to their outline. Thus, creating a new life for an image that had become lost and forgotten."

#2 Gena Ollendieck
I remember Gena's work from last year and was so excited to see it again. I love the dimension of her pieces — the way she layers odds and ends in shadowboxes or memory albums. In one of her largest works, there's a mirrored ship's porthole in the middle that you can lift up to reveal even more treasures hidden beneath. 

She says "I have always found inspiration in old discarded objects, nature, and vintage black and white family snap shots. The beauty and mystery inherent in old and forgotten objects offers me the opportunity to transform the ordinary into something new."

#3 Clare Malloy
Don't take this the wrong way, but I'm surprised at how much I love Clare's work. Her technique is beautiful — the strong lines, the crisp colors — but I'd never peg myself as a lover of a simple farmhouse. When you walk past her booth though, you're drawn in. I could stare into these landscapes for much longer than a moment. They offer a lovely sense of stillness and calm. 

#4 Mick Whitcomb, Artifacts by Nomad
Oh my god this booth. Imagine a hundred Edison bulbs crammed into one tiny booth — that's what beckoned. What kept me marveling was that the bulbs were all affixed to various antique artifacts: fans, cameras, typewriters, movie reels, sewing machines, and the list goes on. Mick's work is utterly mesmerizing. Though he and his wife don't sell the light fixtures online (inventory is ever-changing and pieces are one-of-a-kind), you can email him to inquire.

#5 Andrew Kosten, Gum Pal Press
There's almost always something a little bizarre about Andrew's work — that's what makes it so great! I'll let Andrew use his appropriate big words to tell you a bit more: "The idiosyncratic nature of the individual has always been a fixation of mine and I seek to encapsulate that with the characters I create. My work exhibits a satirical fascination with the comically bizarre and often dabbles in sociopolitical and historical contexts." Whew! Just check out Andrew's stuff on his site or on Etsy — it's such fun.

#6 Mark & Carol Reynolds, Kaleidovisions 
Imagine you're at the Lakefront Festival of Art in a sea of works rendered in more traditional ways — when suddenly you stumble upon hand-made kaleidoscopes. I mean really, these bring out the childlike wonder in all of us. "Let me look!" "I have to try them all!" And let me tell you — each one made me say "Oooh!" 

#7 Jeff Condon
I was about to say "I don't know what it is about Jeff Condon's work..." — but I do know. It's the sheer size the pieces, the colors and color-blocking, the sort-of primitive style. See his work in person and you can't look away. The colors are too vibrant and varied, the lines so curious that you just have to sit, stare, and figure them out. Jeff's work gives me all kinds of heart eyes.