Our artists don’t stop at our gallery walls—and we love to brag about it! From solo and group shows to commissions, talks, and creative milestones, Art League members have been making waves. Here’s a look at what they’ve been up to beyond The Art League.

We are thrilled to announce that  Brent Erickson’s painting The Phone Prayer has been  selected for the ArtFields 2025 Competition and Festival! Now in its twelfth year, Artfields honors artists of the Southeast with a week’s worth of celebration and over 400 works of art displayed in locally-owned venues throughout Lake City, South Carolina, where the event is held. 

“I am honored to be accepted the first time I entered,” says Erickson. “The quality of artists who compete is exceptional and this is a chance to showcase my work to a broader audience.”

If The Phone Prayer looks familiar, that’s because it received best-in-show honors in our November 2024 Open Exhibit. In describing the inspiration for his painting Erickson says, “The model was taking a break and looking at her phone and I realized this is so prevalent in our society now. In a way it looked like she was bowing her head in prayer–thus the title The Phone Prayer. I also used a dramatic frame for the work to convey a quasi religious feel to it.”

The ArtFields 2025 Competition and Festival opens April 25 and runs through May 5 when winners will be announced. Good luck, Brent!

A big congratulations to League member and instructor Chris Malone for winning two awards at the 35th Biennial Creative Crafts Council (CCC) Exhibition, on view through May 24 at the Mansion at Strathmore in Rockville, Maryland!

Malone earned the CCC Award – Ceramic (2nd Place) for his sculpture Bendo, praised by jurors as a “tour de force” and “sensory overload in the best possible way.” His art doll Babuka—hailed as “a showstopper”—was awarded Best in Show. Bravo, Chris!

Abol Bahadori is experiencing a vibrant period, with his work featured in multiple exhibitions over the last few months. His painting Winter Refuge was featured on the cover of the March 2025 issue of HillRag magazine (his second time as their cover artist), and also on view in the Hill Center Galleries 2025 Regional Juried Exhibition that is on vier through May 3.

Artwork by Bahadori also appeared in The Art League’s January 2025 Open Exhibit; The District 51 Art Show at Touchstone Gallery; Hill Center Galleries 2025 Regional Juried Exhibition; and Full Circle: Strathmore’s 33rd Annual Juried Exhibition.

Sweta Shah exhibited three painting in Art de Triomphe, a member artists exhibition held at the Farmington Country Club in Charlottesville, Virginia, this past February.

“I was inspired by beautiful, mysterious black cats in my life, and to those lovingly called ‘voidlings’ for their ability to disappear in darkness,” said Messina Cathy Messina about her painting A-Void-Ance. It was one of many feline-inspired artworks showcased in MeWOW: Fabulous Felines at Del Ray Artisans Gallery in Alexandria, Virginia, in March.

Abol Bahadori, Rachel Collins, Jimmy James Greene, and Rashad Ali Muhammad were among The Art League members whose work was selected and exhibited at the 33rd Annual Strathmore Juried Exhibition Full Circle at Strathmore Mansion in North Bethesda, Maryland. It was on view from January 25–March 1.

Congratulations to Nancy Patrick for receiving the Third Place People’s Choice Award for her painting Butterfly in the Franconia Government Center Art Show! It was given by the Springfield Art Guild, and was on view February 2–April 4.

Andrea Cybyk exhibited her signature plant paintings and prints in Field Notes, a solo exhibition at 868 Estate Vineyards in Hillsboro,Virginia, this past January.

Alyse Radenovic‘s painting, Psalms 29, featured on the cover of the Shofar journal (Volume 42, Number 2, 2024). Shofar, established in 1981, is a respected peer-reviewed journal published quarterly by Purdue University Press, offering original scholarly work and book reviews in Judaica.

Do you have an upcoming show, media mention, award, or other good news that you would like to share about your artistry? We want to know about it! Email specifics to our Communications Specialist Julia Chance, juliac@theartleague.org.