2024 Emerging Artist Exhibition

By David McCauley

David McCauley is an interdisciplinary artist based in St Petersburg, FL. Since 2012, he has founded multiple 501c3 organizations such as the Rise Up Gallery, Laundromat Art Space, Artillery Residency and The Wynwood Tour Guide App. Each of these entities have been awarded numerous accolades for their programs which encompass art therapy workshops in the community, studio/exhibition space for artists, a live/work artist in residency, and a smartphone based walking tour of the Wynwood Arts District in Miami. McCauley’s artwork…… Read More

By Fran Failla

Born in Brooklyn, New York, Fran’s personal artistic journey began at a very early age. Given the opportunity in elementary school to take up painting, she quickly showed a special aptitude for the medium. Her teacher recognized this and encouraged her mother to nurture her talent. Her mother wasted no time purchasing oil paints, canvas and easel for her to use. With this, she later went on to win several local and national art competitions for her work. In high…… Read More

By Thomas Sayers Ellis

Poet, photographer, and bandleader Thomas Sayers Ellis is the author of The Maverick Room and Skin, Inc,: Identity Repair Poems, He co-founded The Dark Room Collective and The Dark Room Reading Series in 1989 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. His poems and photographs have appeared in numerous journals, including The Paris Review, Poetry, The Nation, and Best American Poetry (1997, 2001, 2010, 2015). In 2015, he co-founded Heroes Are Gang Leaders, a literary Free Jazz band of artists who were awarded the…… Read More

By Antonia Lewandowski

A New York City native, Antonia Lewandowski moved to Florida in 1989. She is a poet and essayist. Her most recent project, featured at Creative Pinellas, was the spoken word exhibition, “A Walk among Words.” Antonia has published poetry since 1978, receiving two Pushcart Prize nominations and grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, National Endowment for the Humanities, and other creative achievement awards. Her poetry collection, Tangled, was published in 2023. Antonia holds a doctorate in education from…… Read More

By Tyler Gillespie

Tyler Gillespie is an award-winning writer and educator. He’s written for Rolling Stone, GQ, The Washington Post, The Nation, Salon, and Playboy. His poetry appears in anthologies such as In Absentia: Reflections on the Pandemic and Let Me Say This: A Dolly Parton Poetry Anthology while his humor writing can be found in the New Yorker, McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, and LGBTQ Comedic Monologues That Are Actually Funny. He’s the author of a nonfiction collection The Thing about Florida: Exploring a…… Read More

By Gabriela Rosa

For the past five years, Gaby Rosa has blazed a trail as a full-time, professional fire and circus performer. Her journey commenced with fire dancing, a mesmerizing art form that kindled her creative spirit and ignited her passion for the liberating beauty of performance art. From that moment, she delved into the captivating world of circus, ultimately discovering her love for the Cyr wheel. Gaby’s performances are a captivating blend of fire arts and circus spectacle, showcasing her profound connection…… Read More

By Kaitlin Crockett

Kaitlin Crockett is a printmaker, writer, book artist, educator, librarian, and owner of Print St. Pete. Primarily using analog methods like Letterpress and Risograph printmaking, she creates zines, publications, broadsides, and other printed ephemera. Since 2013 Kaitlin has provided hands-on education and affordable access at Print St. Pete Community Letterpress, founded with Bridget Elmer. She has taught letterpress and book arts at Penland School of Craft, and Ringling College. Her work has been exhibited at Ringling College, Dunedin Fine Arts…… Read More

By Vanessa Cunto

Vanessa is a Florida native and local artist here in the city of St. Petersburg. She has always placed creativity at the core of her  life, from her formative years through her education and into her personal and professional endeavors. Vanessa holds a Fine Arts degree from the University of Florida, with a specialized focus on painting; and in her professional career, she has worked as an Art Director. Her current body of work consists of intricate graphite drawings inspired…… Read More

By Luci Westphal

Luci Westphal is a St. Petersburg photographer, filmmaker, writer, and mixed-media artist with a focus on social and biophilic art projects. Originally from Hamburg, Germany, she has lived and created in Brooklyn, Berlin, Colorado, and Florida – from the countryside to the city, from the mountains to the sea. She is an FSU film school graduate and resident of the Historic Kenwood Artist Enclave. Her studio is at the ArtsXchange in the Warehouse Arts District. She likes birds. Three of…… Read More

By Harriet Monzon-Aguirre

Harriet Monzon-Aguirre is an oil painter creating out of Bahia Studios in Safety Harbor. ​​She spent her early childhood and formative years on the Caribbean island of Barbados. Harriet earned scholarships to study at the United World College (UWC-USA) in New Mexico, then Earlham College, Indiana, before completing her Master of Fine Art from the University of Newcastle upon Tyne in the UK in 2011. Her international background and education has greatly influenced her artistic practice and left a colorful…… Read More