An invitation to come and SEE.
The challenge of an artist is to move the viewer from a casual (seeing) to the deeper and more profound experience of (SEEING). I employ the use of rich color and deep texture to create works of art that draw the viewer into a deeper aesthetic experience brimming with beauty, wonder, and on occasion, mystery. I invite you to come and SEE a collection of art featuring paintings, raku-fired pottery, kintsugi bowls, and live-edge furniture.

My new collection is about artistic styling. I have no point to make. Perhaps I revisited past travels and
recreated some earlier pieces…My focus this time was simple. Alone in my studio, I work and pursue
and discover the encaustic medium. Its organic nature continues to excite me. The way one color
bleeds into the next, or a previous layer rises to the surface and shines through is captivating. This
collection is a bit more colorful. I truly enjoyed creating these pieces because the process provided
relief to me, a much needed distraction from this chaotic world. I have so many personal opinions and
fatigue with our social climate. I chose not to show my feelings here. These works have no agenda and
no message…they are just art.

My relationship with abstract art is derived from a creative ability to see a finished product in my head before paint touches canvas. The visions I put to canvas are spontaneous and often don’t fall into a defined theme, although they may have a slight likeness that can be observed in them. Because art can mean or represent so many different things to so many different people, my goal above anything is to create conversational pieces that not only warm a room but inspire positivity and imagination as well.

Searching for order during times of chaos provides solace for the human experience.
The unexplainable can be processed through personal routines and rituals that lead us to a higher order of thinking. Something divine can be achieved from the counting of 108 Mala beads while repeating prayers for peace. Prayer beads have been used for centuries by a range of religions, from Hinduism to Catholicism. In the series, “108” I have explored the enlightenment that can be achieved through the counting of 108 Mala beads. I have studied personal photographs and photographs taken by friends of auspicious places. Within each photograph, I identified 8 colors and then represented those colors in 108 circles. Each painting is meant to provide a visual harmony that can be found through repetition and order. Every painting is a prayer for peace and security through the expression of color inspired by our connections to nature and those places of serenity.

I am irresistibly drawn to painting as a means of expressing my deep admiration for and connection to nature. When I am in nature, I become part of it with no separation. Painting, is a visual language that is capable of conveying ideas, emotions and complexity as powerfully as the written or spoken ones. In this showing I have assembled both decorative, landscape and still life pieces. There is a story behind each one.

After a storm, it’s peaceful again.

A 2014 spring tornado struck my small town. Many homes and businesses were destroyed. I was more fortunate; I only lost my art studio. Although years of work and a large (probably too large) collection of books, tools, and equipment was blown away in an instant; my most important treasures were spared- family, friends, pets, and my home. As I witness a community recover, I realize what remains is the instinct to begin again. Like nature perseveres.

This collection of paintings was inspired by the peace and beauty that still exists after a storm.

Painting based on color and composition captivates my creativity, and painting in this abstract or non-objective way frees my mind. I do enjoy painting realism, but my freedom in the abstract grabs my attention to create new and visually exciting spaces on my surface. It's an escape through creativity; I'm able to let go of my current reality and enter my own abstract reality.

This collection of art aspires to be anything but the literal in a world full of sensibilities. Uniquely crafted to inspire those young at heart that maintain their sense of wonder. These works include mixed media materials combining the old and the new in a whimsical manner.

Journeying through life, I am seeking a greater understanding of the human condition and experience by responding through the creation of my art. The power to create, express and empathize is what makes us human. In this exhibit, “Balance”, the study of ancient symbols and cultural systems for balance and order has shaped my art while I respond to my presence in this world; within this moment.

Maintaining ancient painting materials of beeswax, damar resin and the element of heat, I’m creating a symbiosis of past processes with immediate expression. Producing colors, lines and textures that provoke an innate feeling of harmony within the viewer the moment they stand before my work, is my purpose. Just as the warm analogous colors of the setting sun create a slow moving horizontal line over the cool hues of the ocean waters, I seek perfect balance within as I send perfect “Balance” out.

My goal for Barriers and Brushes is to show the light and dark side of each piece. Separated by a barrier, each half has its own character and flow, but at the same time a likeness to each other that brings it all together.

Art has been my major passion and pursuit throughout my adult life. After graduating with a Master’s of Fine Arts from California College of the Arts in San Francisco, I returned to Springfield in the fall of 2018. I currently teach at OTC, and sometimes at MSU and the Springfield Art Museum. In Bathymetry I took water and its movement as inspiration. I looked at bathymetric maps and aerial views of various bodies of water around the world. The aqueous nature of the paint became my partner in exploring the rhythms and undulations of water and the topographies it sculpts. Although the resulting paintings are fictitious, each one is inspired by a real place and by the behavior and impact of water.

Stephanie’s newest collection, “Bend”, reflects a previous claim by a Boston Globe critic: “Cramer’s work has a dark sensibility occasionally struck by light, like the glory of an electrical storm.” Untethered, while painting, Stephanie loses herself to an imaginary world. She starts with a gesture and leans into the process using only her instinct—looking to the past but moving forward, allowing herself to bend. These latest works reveal new glimpses into her dynamic and entrancing mind.

Start with color,
Move with the mark,
Complete the gesture.

I see painting as a journey, taking expected and unexpected directions along the route. The unanticipated I value most –
finding answers to questions not yet formulated, questions formulated not yet answered.

Why would we continue the quest if we knew all the answers?

Inspiration drawn from railroad car graffiti is the foundation for my show, “Boxcar”. I’ve never minded being stopped by a train that was loaded down with Graffiti art—seeing the different colors, techniques and styles zooming by. Each car different but similar bounded by the capacity of technique you get with spray paint. I challenged myself to come up with pieces that not only reflected graffiti but pieces that ease the mind with the use of the cool colors and relaxed shapes. You won’t find spray paint in this collection, but hopefully you will catch the essence of that old train car clinking by.

Creating a fluid art piece is always like an experiment and also a challenge. A balance between “Chaos and Control” and the anticipation of what is to be.

Some of us look back with a sense of longing for simpler times of nostalgia and excitement… Others look forward with awe and wonderment of a future of technology and anticipation with our heads in the clouds. Who we were, who we are and where we will go. This body of work attempts to capture those moments as we travel through our lives.

I love color. I am moved and transfixed by COLOR.

I can still smell wood chips, sawdust, and the huge green machine that cut wood with a loud whirring sound. Quickly turning the corner in my Dad’s lumber yard, past a green peanut dispenser and red soda machine, I walked softly on the old slats and looked up. My eyes filled with excitement and desire to touch what they saw: THE DUTCH BOY PAINT SAMPLES. Oh my goodness…what a beautiful sight. They gleamed in intensity with a color spectrum from bright to subtle. They rimmed the tops of the wall around the store as they occupied my sight and spirit for hours. Since then, flowers of all colors, shapes, and textures have replaced memories of the little Dutch Boy with painter’s hat and overalls.

Not that long ago I took a risk. I bought paint, brushes, and a palette knife. Dabbling in the paint, utilizing hands, tools, and brushes created a rumbling of change deep within. My world took on a different lens through which I would view all things. I painted. Each painting is unique with every stroke, swipe, and drip being its own adventure.

COLOR. I LOVE COLOR.