FEATURED ARTISTS

JO TONKOVICH

Jo Tonkovich is an artist and gallery owner of TONK based in New Canaan, Connecticut. Jo specializes in oils and spray paints and at TONK she makes pieces in the storefront window creating an interactive gallery space. The majority of Jo’s pieces are made by hand – rarely using brushes. Jo mixes paints to develop abstract compositions and is known as having an eye for color. Her pieces are happy just like Jo’s personality. She is a mother of three and a lover of airedale pooches. 

Education
Jo received a BA in English and Communication at Boston College. She has studied art and sculpture at Silvermine Art School. Prior to owning TONK, Jo worked on commission helping to add sparkle to her clients’ homes.

SAM SIDNEY

Sam Sidney is originally from New York, and moved to Charleston in 2007. She studied Studio Art at Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, and earned a Masters in Art Education from NYU. For many years she was an illustrator, but it wasn’t until the quarantine that she started working with felt. She promised herself she would do an art project with her kids each day. One day, she pulled out a small box of felt and made some collages. She made a self portrait out of felt, posted it online, and the rest is history! She free hand cuts felt pieces to create protists of celebrities, pets, food and drinks. When she is not making things out of felt, you can find her at the beach with her 4 kids and 2 dogs.

JEN BADALAMENTI

Jen Badalamenti is a fine art photographer and encaustic painter. In 2003 she completed her degree in fine art photography, using film as her main medium. The inspiration for her art comes from real life and emotional connections — a moment captured or a glimpse of a reflection.

She loves to translate these things into created works that speak to the heart of a viewer. Whether she is creating a photograph or a piece of art, she’s inspired by movement, wildness and emotion. In her art she uses multi-layered wax paint over her photographs to create highly textured, three dimensional works on hardwood surfaces. This process has brought new life to her images and ignited a fire within her to continue exploring both photography and encaustic painting.

KATHLEEN PALMERI

Kathleen Palmeri, KPalm, is a nationally recognized artist who was recently featured in the Bible of Design—Architectural Digest.  KPalm Fine Art is commissioned by celebrities & tastemakers from Miami to LA and has a special place in the hearts & homes of her Jersey Shore art lovers. 

Using her unique abstract & whimsical style, Kathleen will incorporate your family into one of her highly sought after “Tiny Surfer” paintings—making this work of art truly a one of a kind! 

NANCY SHARPE

“Painting has brought an immense joy to my life, giving me the opportunity to start my own business, make my own rules, (and break them sometimes), meet so many other creatives and entrepreneurs and most important, to make people happy,” – Nancy Sharpe

Nancy considers herself a mostly self-taught, intuitive abstract artist, and is known for her playful use of color, bringing the viewer directly into her happy, sometimes whimsical and always colorful world. Her art and life are driven by wanderlust, a love of color, pattern and texture, and what she considers ‘necessities’ in life: travel, wild flower gardens, delicious food, walks on the beach and views of the wild, infinite sea.

Nancy is a Shippan-CT-based artist, with representation at Sorelle Gallery, Westport, CT. She lives with her British husband, two Australian Labradoodles and always looking forward to school breaks to see her children, Isabel and Oliver.

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