Marta Sanchez,
Juror for the 2014 Junior High Show
Born and raised in San Antonio, Texas, painter Marta Sanchez is deeply inspired by traditional Mexican folk art expressions in an ever-changing world. The majority of her paintings are on metal with oils and enamels. Following in the social and cultural traditions of Mexican and Chicano/a Art, her works on paper are linocuts and monotypes.
In a series of paintings of the San Antonio train yards near her childhood home, Marta explored the role of trains in the Mexican migration. Traveling circus and vaudeville troupes that perform throughout Mexico are the inspiration for another series that has captivated her creative energies.
Marta’s work is in the collections of The Philadelphia Museum of Art, La Salle University Art Museum, The State Museum of Pennsylvania, The McNay Art Museum, The Fine Art Museum of St. Petersburg, Florida, and The National Museum of Mexican Art in Chicago. Marta’s work is in actor/director Cheech Marin’s extensive private collection of Chicano Art. She participated in “Chicano Visions: American Painters on the Verge” which traveled throughout the United States, from 2001 to 2006. Recently Marta participated in two traveling exhibits: “Chicanitas/Size Does Not Matter,” and an international traveling exhibition reflecting the life of Latino/as in America titled “WE ARE YOU.”
Marta earned a MFA in Painting from the Tyler School of Art, Temple University and a BFA in Painting from the University of Texas at Austin. She taught at The Philadelphia Museum of Art for over seventeen years. Currently, she teaches at St. Joseph University and Springside Chestnut Hill Academy. She is the co-founder of the grassroots organization “Cascarones Por La Vida” an organization that assists families affected by HIV/AIDS. Her work is currently archived at the Benson Latin American Collection at the University of Texas at Austin.
Susan D. Savage,
Juror for the 2013 Junior High Show
For the past twenty years Susan has been a faculty member of the Westmont College Department of Art. From 1998-2008 she served as chair of the Art Department and now teaches Beginning Drawing, Interpretive Crafts, Advanced Painting. Before coming to Westmont, Susan taught art full time at the Santa Barbara public school system, and taught fabric arts part time through Santa Barbara City College Continuing Education. In her academic vocation as an artist and educator, one of her appointed tasks has been to see and respond to what others might overlook, to magnify what others might not notice. As a painter she is attracted to common objects and the stories their visual relationships can tell. For the past 10 years her energies have been focused on the visual metaphor of a singular object, a simple silver bowl and the meditative qualities its attributes bring. As a source of contemplation, the act of painting has brought her to a place of intriguing calm, quiet devotion, and reflective worship.
Amy Schneider,
Juror for the 2012 Junior High Show
Mixed media Artist, Amy Schneider, received her BFA from Massachusetts college of Art where she was awarded an Art School Associates Award. A graphic designer and visual artist, she finds the interplay between the two an exciting mix and thoroughly enjoys sharing all she discovers with her students at Vita Art Center in Ventura. Amy has always had a love of creating, especially from used and about-to-be discarded junk. After taking a collage workshop in 1999, Amy’s painting process grew to include a variety of media such as acrylic paints, oil pastels, found papers and her own photography. Amy’s work can be seen in a variety of shows in Southern California and in private collections.
“My art is a personal exploration of the subject and the materials I use to create the work. regardless of whether the subject matter is my own personal fact or fiction, my mixed media paintings evolve from what I see and feel around me in everyday life. I let the process of making each piece guide me to it’s conclusion. each layer determines and guides the next. My paintings are a conversation between giving and taking in which I hope, you, the viewer will find a bit of mystery upon careful observation.” — Amy Schneider
Lance Eagen,
Juror for the 2011 Junior High Show
“I have taught art at the secondary level for 19 years. For the last 15 years I have taught graphic design at Churchill High School in Eugene, Oregon although occasionally I have taught sculpture and drawing. I have done freelance graphic design on and off for the past 20 years. Recently, my own personal artistic outlet has taken an odd turn. I have been designing and constructing novelty cereal boxes for customers throughout the United States. Each project is highly customized for the clients who have wanted boxes for wedding proposals, coach appreciation gifts, baby announcements, etc. My most recent box was commissioned by New Jersey rapper C-PO and will be featured in his next music video.” — Lance Eagen
