oil on canvas, 36 x 36, sold

6 x 36, oil on canvas

6 x 36, oil on canvas, sold

6 x 36, oil on canvas, sold

oil on canvas, 24" x 36" sold

60 x 48, oil on canvas

oil on canvas, 36x36

48 x 60, oil on canvas

oil on canvas, 48" x 24" sold

oil on 4 canvas, 36"x12" each

oil on canvas, 60 x 48, sold

30 x 40, oil on paper, sold

oil on masonite, 48" x 24", sold

oil on masonite, 48" x 24"

oil on masonite, 48" x 24"

oil on masonite, 48" x 24", sold

oil on canvas, 36" x 24", donated

oil on board, 36" x 48", sold

oil on paper, 30" x 24"

oil on paper, 48" x 36", sold

oil on board, 48" x 36"

36" x 24", oil canvas

oil on canvas, 36" x 24", sold

oil on canvas, 48" x 36"

oil on canvas, 24" x 36"

oil on canvas, 12 x 12

oil on canvas, 12x12

12" x 8", oil on canvas

oil on paper, 20 x 30, detail - Love Landscapes, sold

oil on canvas, 20 x 24, donated

oil on canvas, 30x40

oil on canvas, 24 x 48

oil on canvas, 60" x 60"

oil on canvas, 36 x 48

oil on canvas, 30 x 40

“Birth Memory Cycle” was conceived when I was particularly troubled in my life.  A dear healer suggested I rest inside the womb of a golden egg.  The imagery of this was calming, warm, safe, yet full of a certain tremor, an edge, pregnant with possibilities.  

The egg; its perfect shape, narrow at one end gracefully widening to its base, holds compatible polarities. It holds the female energy of fertility and the male energy of procreation, becoming a symbolic container of all that is. –– rebirth, ever-shifting, new possibilities. The opaque yolk cradled by the clear glutinous sac surrounding it, is the fetus luxuriating in its amniotic fluid; a planet gently suspended by the universe or the human soul, walking this earth, surrounded by the ever-present divine atmosphere, all waiting for the inevitable shift.  

“Birth Memory Cycle” are paintings based on memories from long ago –– to visually untangle the message being conveyed to me.

oil on doors, 36" x 80" each

2nd place winner, Art of Darkness, oil on door, 30" x 80", sold

oil on door, 28" x 80"

oil on door, 30" x 80"

Veiled Existence (oil on doors, 3 panels, 36 x 80 each)      Upon observing the monumentality of a woman’s potential, “Veiled Existence” came into being.  Each door is a portal into the wonder, power, and mystique of her place in existing.

Johanna Furst - Art in Camillo’s Cafe - by Gregory PerkelFrom the primordial time, human life started with the comfort and beauty of a mother’s body and the gourmet taste of her milk. This brought us joy and calm, and this gift of nature was given equally to all her offspring, from the King’s palaces to the poor dwellings. Nature has embedded these feelings, deep within our unconscious, which will stay with us to the day we die. As soon as we begin to walk, speak and think, gradually we are separated from nature and lodged into the maze of rules, laws, hypocrisy, prudishness, greed, lies, and commercialism. Over time we are then forced and have become accustomed to, eating food which is mediocre and unhealthy. 

However, since primordial time, there has always existed a small group of people which refuse to be embedded in that maze. These are dedicated soldiers defending their most precious possessions: compassion, harmony and the sense of beauty. They create myths, build temples, write books, compose music, paint pictures and of course, they cook great food and make enjoyable wine. They are artists, and on our way to the cemetery, have always made us happy giving us a sense of immortality. That was in the past and remains in the present. 

Today at Camillo’s Cafe we can witness how two ancient professions, artist, and cook, have collaborated in their desire to create a hospitable, inviting space, for wanderers of our polluted human schism. 

Camillo’s Cafe has a nice, warm, rustic, Italian atmosphere which is disturbed by the industrial style windows with an unpleasant view of the shopping mall. This prompted them to offer the space to the Artist. The offer was a strange, difficult task, if not cruel. For centuries the artist has created paintings as windows on walls, but to create windows as art was only done in temples, as stained glass, allowing the outer light to transform them into pictures. In Camillo’s Cafe, the Artist created paintings where their inner soul emanates an aura of their own light. Nothing can disturb that sacred light; not chairs, not tables and not customers eating, drinking, and having a good time. On the contrary, the paintings of beautifully executed nudes, depicting innocence, light, and mystery of expectation, have become a blessed presence which makes the atmosphere more profound, sophisticated and enjoyable. 

It is now time to wake up our unconscious senses of the mother’s beautiful body and her gourmet milk. 

Hats off and a low bow to the Artist, Johanna Furst.

Buon appetito! ~ Gregory Perkel

Veiled Existence

Camillo’s Cafe

Camillo Tortola, Roberta Pughe, Johanna Furst/March 2011

oil on panel, 30" x 80"

oil on door panel, 30 x 80

oil on door panal, 28" x 80"

oil on door, 30" x 78"