musetouch_issue_13

musetouch 

Visual Arts Magazine 

Jamie Baldridge 

Nothing less than 

Wonder 

Cris Ortega 

A Special Love 

Nate Frizzell 

Self Discovery 

Stories 

September 2011 

Happy Birthday Musetouch 

Rob Hefferan 

Vadim Stein 

Eric Fortune 

Adele Elisabeth 

Annie Stegg 

Marco Rea 

Marmite Sue 

Virginie Ropars 

Lana and Katya Popova 

Eric Van Straaten 

musetouch.org

Dear readers, 

It is hard to write anything today because I am too excited to do that. A 

year has passed by, a wonderful year of creation, passion, sadness and 

agony, but also enormous joy and happiness. Today is the first birthday 

of Musetouch. 

I want to thank to people who are always with me on this incredible 

journey, no matter how hard it gets. To Ljiljana Bursac, Jelena Grujic, 

my Nini Baseema, Kiyo Murakami, Murielle Mirabelle Velay, Ian Furniss, 

Gines Serran and my dear old friend, my kindred spirit Mark Sadan. 

I also want to thank to all amazing artist who I had an honor to present, 

and to all of you for being there for me and this amazing magazine 

which I love deeply. For supporting me and being the best readers and 

friends in the world. 

Maia Sylba

Like MUSETOUCH MAGAZINE 

and become part of it 

Join our creative FB fan page and stay updated! 

www.facebook.com/musetouchvisualartsmagazine

Layer Studios is offering beautiful web sites, online galleries and 

presentations, blogs and FB fan page designs, at affordable 

prices, uniquely designed by Maia Sylba 

contact: maiasylba@gmail.com 

skype: maiasylba 

www.layerstudios.net

THE FORM OF 

BEAUTY 

blog 

by Nini Baseema 

theformofbeauty.tumblr.com 

KIYO MURAKAMI 

photography 

www.kiyomurakami.com

www.theunbearablebeautyofexistence.com

MUSETOUCH MAGAZINE September 2011 

Editor 

Maia Sylba 

Graphic designer 

Dejan Silbaski 

Contributors 

Nini Baseema 

Ian Furniss 

Cover 

Kiyo Murakami 

MUSETOUCH is a magazine about visual arts. It has been created by Maia Sylba out of a love and passion for 

art with the hope that people will be able to use the publication and website as a platform to showcase their 

skills and gain recognition. 

Facebook 

facebook.com/musetouchvisualartsmagazine 

Twitter 

Linkedin 

Mail 

twitter.com/musetouchmag 

linkedin.com/in/maiasylba 

maiasylba@gmail.com 

Submission Guideline 

If you want to contribute to the next edition, you can send us an email with your data and a PDF file that 

shows your works, also a link of your website if you have any. 

We would love to see your art so don’t hesitate to contact us and welcome. 

All artwork in this magazine is copyright protected under the MUSETOUCH Magazine brand or remains 

property of the individual artists who have kindly granted us permission to use their work. 

musetouch 8

Vadim Stein 

An Invented Reality 


The Scope of the Mind 

010 

Rob Hefferan 

The Breathing Essence of the 

Individual 

160 

Eric Fortune 

A Powerful Artistic Voice 

044 


Nothing less than Wonder 

Annie Stegg 

The Story 

188 

Cris Ortega 

A Special Love 

074 

Marco Rea 

Altered Visions 

210 

Nate Frizzell 

Self Discovery Stories 

106 

Strychnin Gallery 

Valley of Dolls 

234 

138 

258 


Vadim Stein An Inven 

Vadim Stein is a professional photographer based in St. Petersburg, Russia. Most of his works 

are in black and white, but all of them are eye-catching and visually strong with some erotic 

traces surrounding solid and sober atmospheres. 

“The images created by me are an invented reality and have not something in common with the 

validity surrounding me!” 

Vadim Stein 

musetouch 10 

14991.portfolio.artlimited.net

ted Reality 



musetouch 13































Rob Hefferan The 

Born in 1968 in Warrington, Cheshire, Rob Hefferan is an exceptionally talented figurative 

artist. His work not only captures the unique character and warmth of each subject, but transcends 

form to suggest the living, breathing essence of the individual. 

Working predominately with oils and acrylics, Rob’s work is both eminently understandable 

and intensely familiar. Colour, light and texture harmonise intelligently and with stunning 

candour to produce works that resonate with vibrant life. 

Rob’s figurative pieces are beautifully balanced. Each of his works bears witness to his unerring 

ability to create an atmospheric backdrop, brushstroke by brushstroke. Art lovers will 

immediately respond to the luminosity and poignant intricacy of each portrait, where the 

presence of the subject provokes a deep reaction. 

The pinnacle of figurative realism is to elicit the animating force that resides behind the density 

and delicacy of human form and structure. Working with the living architecture of the 

human body, Rob recreates the poetry of the skin’s tone and structure and pays homage to the 

complex interaction of musculature, tissue and bone. 

His varied body of work celebrates the joyous and multifaceted forms that human beings express 

with limitless imagination and wit. Rob captures the personality of each of his subjects 

with honesty, integrity and above all, a sacred appreciation for the unique spirit embodied 

within us all. His heartfelt response to humanity is woven into the very fabric of each outstanding 

portrait, earning him the reputation of one of the finest contemporary realists of his 

generation. 

As life is in a constant state of flux and renewal, so this universal law is reflected in the changing 

temper of Rob’s work. Brave, forward thinking and alv/ays challenging, Rob experiments 

with themes, moods and styles to create thought provoking visual statements that inspire us 

to see beyond our limited and cultural frames of reference. 

Whether working with chalk pastels, oils or acrylics, Rob’s ability and innate flair see him capture 

life as it is lived. His sensitive capacity to see beyond our masks and reveal the touching 

truth of who we really are is a testament to his deep insight. This ability animates and imbues 

every brushstroke with palpable verve and originality that reach out from the canvas to embrace 

our senses in a delightful interplay that is the hallmark of the truly talented artist. 

Although every painting Rob creates is individual, each one shares the same inner radiance 

and startling realism that tricks the eye into looking twice to see if the painting is in actual 


Breathing Essence of the Individual 


fact a beautifully composed photograph. With a joyous originality, Rob draws in the observer, 

immersing us in his world and mesmerising us with his joie de vivre. With effortless grace, 

Rob gently references the abundant beauty that surrounds us if only we v/ould take a moment 

to stop and truly see. 

Rob’s studio is his sanctuary. With an unwavering dedication to his craft, he works with passion 

and inner focus for much of the day. Rob rises with the sun and works until the light 

fades from the sky. He works with total absorption, entering the personal space of his subjects 

to create works of outstanding accuracy and realism. Rob’s meditative approach to his art enables 

him to produce painstakingly intricate works that have gained credence on a worldwide 

stage. 

Outside the studio, Rob’s passion for running enables him to enjoy the wide open spaces and 

liberating horizons of the Lancashire landscape where he has made his home. This unspoilt 

environment provides the perfect cathartic experience for Rob to release himself from the 

relationship of painter and subject. Inspirational, as well as physically demanding, Rob enjoys 

the uncomplicated joy of allowing his mind to relax as his body loses itself in the action of 

dynamically pure movement. 

As a young boy growing up in Warrington, Rob was the only member of his family with artistic 

talent. With a single mindedness rare in one so young, Rob was always convinced that his 

path in life would lead towards artistic fulfilment. The prehistoric magnificence of dinosaurs 

became an absorbing fascination for Rob, appealing to his boyish sense of drama and excitement. 

Capturing the awesome presence of these larger than life creatures gave Rob hours of 

pleasure and allowed him to practice and hone his developing skills. 

As his passion for drawing and painting intensified, he spent many fulfilling hours on family 

holidays in Cornwall, nourishing his love of art as so captured the changing seascapes of Bude 

and the surrounding area. His memories of this time, conjure up feelings of completeness, 

both within the landscape working as a budding artist and as a valued member of a closely 

knit family. 

School however, was somewhat of an anathema to Rob. Feeling himself displaced in an alien 

environment, he felt at odds with his fellow students and longed to be amongst like minded 

people whose hearts and minds where stirred by the Old Masters and who saw beauty and 

inspiration in the world that surrounded them. With the exception of an extraordinary art 

teacher, school did little to support Rob’s ambition of becoming an artist. 

From 1985-89, Rob studied art at Padgate Art School. It was horn that he discovered acceptance 

and felt he was understood for the first time in his life by his contemporaries. He thrived 

in this stimulating environment where freedom of thought and expression were encouraged. 

Mixing with other free spirited individuals in pursuit of pure artistic expression was a liberating 

and expansive experience. It was here that he vanquished the sense of isolation he had 

endured throughout his unsupportive years of traditional education. 



In 1990, Rob gained a place at university to study towards a degree in illustration. But after a 

year, he decided to go it alone. A challenging year followed, whore Rob worked hard to put 

together a portfolio. His exceptional versatility as a designer and illustrator won him a number 

of prestigious contracts, ranging from high profile advertising campaigns to providing 

artwork for children’s books. 

Although he gained considerable success in the commercial field, he never let this deter him 

from his original aim and lifelong ambition of becoming a full-time artist. In 2003, Rob’s first 

exhibition of work was greeted with wide critical acclaim, so much so that every painting was 

sold during the course of the exhibition. His work is now in demand and sold globally to art 

collectors and private individuals who appreciate his unique style. 

Although a truly modern artist who continually explores creative themes and boundaries, 

Rob draws much of his inspiration from the Pre-Raphaelite movement. 

Manchester Art Gallery provides an oasis for Rob, where he spends deliciously long hours reflecting 

on the work of some of the world’s most revered artists. With an insatiable passion to 

learn new techniques, evaluate a range of eclectic styles and study all the great art movements, 

he finds much to feed his unquenchable hunger to grow and evolve. 

Today, Rob Hefferan is at the forefront of contemporary figurative art. His art is sought after 

by collectors from around the world earning him the reputation of one of the most celebrated 

and collectable artists. 


robhefferan.net



























“My love of stories goes all the way back to childhood when I discovered a book entitled 101 

Fairy Tales in an old steamer trunk in my grandmother’s attic. The pale blue cover was nibbled 

with flaking and tarnished gold leaf, and had on its cover a picture of a turbaned boy on a magic 

carpet. I sat in dusty, humid silence, amongst the jaundiced communion gowns and mildewed 

lettres d’amour, reading by the second hand light of the attic window, enchanted by the riotous 

jewel-like illustrations of the foxed and dog-eared pages. I suppose I became an artist on that 

boring Saturday afternoon in that attic, and have sought ever since to evince in the viewer that 

same sense of wonder and adventure that I felt when looking in that book, albeit tempered by the 

lusts and losses of adulthood. 

The images I create, and the stories I write to accompany them, are my own interpretations of 

the fables and tales I have devoured throughout my life from The Little Matchstick Girl to the 

Epic of Gilgamesh. This world which I have wrought is inhabited by the same archetypical characters 

that writers and philosophers have engaged for centuries in their attempts to illuminate 

the human experience; all at once profane, tragi-comical, and dogged by existential dread. My 

heroes and heroines go about their often futile tasks in analog of our own modern lives, mired in 

tedium and mendacity, symbolically mocking our own real world endeavors but acting with an 

enviable perseverance. Implicit in my work is an invitation to the viewer to experience nothing 

less than wonder, awe, or a vaudevillian transcendence above the tedium of daily life, and yes, it 

would be nice if they got a little bruised along the way. 

The nature of my work, though primarily photographic, is heavily composed and manipulated 

digitally. This method of working, of having art exist in aether of binary numbers, is complementary 

to the ephemeral nature of the images themselves. I am sill enchanted by the idea that my 

bijou fictions exist in potentia, swirling somewhere in a sparkling electric reservoir, waiting to be 

brought into the light of day.” 



jamiebaldridge.com

Nothing less than Wonder 
































Cris Ortega A Special 

Cris Ortega was born in Valladolid (Spain) in 1980, and took interest in art and literature 

since she was a child, with special love for the horror genre. Although it was a great hobby for 

her, she wanted to study aeronautics or astronomy as a career. It was on 1999 when she draw 

her first comic about one of the short stories that she had written before, and from that moment 

on she began to work seriously on this profession. 

While she was studying as Superior Technician on Illustration in the Art School of Valladolid, 

she began to publish her work on fanzines, magazines and publishers out of Spain, working at 

the same time as a draw teacher and exposing her work on several exhibitions. When she finished 

her studies of art, she worked for several years as Art Director on the advertising agency 

Sm2, spending her free time making commissions, book covers and the edition of the comic 

anthology Shade. 

At the end of 2005 she began to work as illustrator for Norma Editorial, publishing with them 

-one and a half year later- her first artbook with written stories, Forgotten, artbook series 

with several volumes -three of them already published- that had been translated to several 

languages. 

During all her years of profession, she worked on several fields of activity, from graphic design 

and advertising to design of figures and games, concept art, roleplaying and videogames, 

comic, photography, cover design and logos. In her free time she likes to travel, read, write, to 

photograph landscapes and also to study archeology, history and astronomy. 

Her most recent artworks had been published on well known artbooks, like several issues of 

Exotique and Spectrum, in a lot of merchandising products and games and exposed in a good 

amount of exhibitions. 

She recently published a new artbook, Nocturna, with a compilation of old and new works. At 

the moment she’s working at the fourth and last volume of her Forgotten series, and in several 

commission works for book covers, magazines and games. 


crisortega.com 

facebook.com/crisortega

Love 







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Nate Frizzell Self D 

Nathan Frizzell is a Southern Californian through and through. Raised in Riverside, Nate 

took up residence in Los Angeles to pursue a professional art career, all the while the golden 

state’s influence can be seen reverberating through his work. 

Using bold and colourful images of children at play-and in turmoil-Frizzell creates intimate 

stories that mask his own feelings of immaturity. Using both highly rendered images and 

softer graphic design elements, Frizzell weaves stories into his paintings that we can all see 

ourselves being a part of. 

Who are you Nate? 

I’m 27 years old. I was born in Oakland but spent most of my life in Riverside, California. I 

came out to LA in ’02 for school and I’ve been here ever since. It’s been quite the party. 

How did you decide that art was your path in life? 

I feel like that’s the only path there was…I just kept blindly following it. I’ve been drawing 

since as far back as I can remember and my family always encouraged it. I graduated from 

Otis College of Art and Design after high school and after about a year or so trying to figure 

out how I was going to survive I was very lucky to have a gallery show interest in my work. 

The owner was very patient with me and kept me busy with shows while I practiced and grew 

and began to find my style. I’ve been with LeBasse Projects ever since. 

Could you tell us some more about your art? 

My work is mostly stories of self discovery. I tell these stories using masks…more recently, 

animal masks. I’ve always been interested in the symbology different cultures have for all 

kinds of animals. But it’s a little more than that. I don’t think you need to know anything 

about that when you see animals in the wild or watch them on the screen. They have basic 

needs and wants and characteristics and you can see it in the way they look and in the way 

they move. People are constantly putting on masks to hide what they are really thinking or 

feeling. I use the animals in the paintings to show what the subject might strive to be more 

like or sometimes what they may want to overcome. 


iscovery Stories 


What are your inspirations? 

The simple answer would be, ‘everything’. Other artists, music, nature, this city, people, life…I 

can’t think of one thing being more important than the other. 

What’s the best and worst parts of being an artist? 

The best and worst parts of being an artist, for me, are the same. It is an amazing thing having 

the freedom to do what I love. It’s a struggle, though. Things change a bit, I think, when you 

go from a place of making something because you love it, to making something to put food 

on the table. 

What has been your most exciting moment as an artist? 

Every show is an adventure. I never know how I’m going to finish or how people will view the 

work. But when it all comes together and everything looks great on the walls and everything 

sells, I couldn’t be happier. 

How do you see yourself in the future? 

I hope to see my career and my paintings themselves keep growing and reaching new heights. 

If I’m still doing this until the day I die, I’d have lived my dream. 

MS 


natefrizzell.com





















Adele Elizabeth is an English artist based in London. Like a modern day Dr. Frankenstein, 

she merges human anatomy with animals, birds and inanimate objects to create ‘characters’ 

for her surreal art worlds. She is fascinated by Old Hollywood, Silent Film and the creative 

minds of people such as Franz Kafka, Georges Méliès, David Lynch, René Magritte, Charles 

Bukowski, John Waters, Tom Waits and a fictional character named Sherlock Holmes. 

“I’m an Artist, Filmmaker and Player who grew up in the world of theatre where the art of imagination 

knows no bounds. 

My Nanna always said I was born in the wrong era. I guess that is partially true. Most of my 

inspiration comes from the past, from those who walked before me. The pioneers of film making, 

the actors of ‘yesteryear’, the Blues men and their sonic storytelling and the performance artists 

who long ago figured out how to create spectacular art from nothing. 

BUT I am a product of Now. 

I was born in a digital world, and I love the potential modern day multimedia technology has 

to offer me as an artist. Years of being confined to theatres and concrete structures are gone. The 

street becomes the stage and the audience is everywhere. 

Anything is possible to achieve with imagination. 

Art is not about the money behind BUT the scope of the mind in front.” 



analogueheart.com

The Scope of the Mind 




























Eric Fortune A Pow 

Lyrical, haunting, yet poignant at the same time, Eric Fortune’s paintings make lasting impressions. 

These are characters who are neither out of place in the world, nor at home in it 

— they are characters wrapped in their own worlds. The emotionally complex metaphors Fortune 

paints are richly evocative. His imagery is quiet yet dynamic, and seasoned with a touch 

of surrealism that takes us to captivating places, beyond our everyday experience but filled 

with truth. 

Packed with emotional nuances he creates soft yet riveting lighting and atmosphere. With 

uncompromising patience and discipline he slowly builds up his luminous characters and 

worlds until they radiate life. 

And so what sometimes seems to be a simple image to the viewer becomes richer and richer 

as he or she becomes increasingly entranced by the emotional presences within the art. A true 

original, Fortune is emerging as a subtle yet powerful artistic voice. 

Eric is an artist based out of Columbus, Ohio. He received his BFA from Columbus College 

of Art and Design where he was honored with the Outstanding Senior Award upon graduation. 

His work continued to garner acclaim with the acceptance into such prestigious annual 

competitions as The Society of Illustrators NY and LA as well as Spectrum and others. He was 

the Artist Guest of Honor for ConGlomeration and was recently awarded the Jack Gaughan 

Award for Best Emerging Artist of 2009. 

Currently Eric is focusing his efforts on personal paintings and upcoming gallery shows. He 

has shown or will be showing at the Jonathan LeVine Gallery(NY) , LeBasse Projects (LA), 

Copro Nason Gallery (LA), Roq La Rue Gallery (Seattle), Gallery 1988 (LA), and many others. 


ericfortune.com 

ericfortuneart.blogspot.com

erful Artistic Voice 






















Annie Stegg The Stor 

Annie Stegg has been painting whimsical illustrations from early childhood, though her professional 

career did not start until 2004 when she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in art. 

Her works encompass a wide variety of mediums, including both two and three dimensional 

forms. Specializing in character design and development, her goal is to create unique images 

that tell a story. 

Her illustrations have been featured in various game and publishing clients including Ballistic 

Publishing, Apple, Android, Hi-Rez Studios, Tiki Games, Addicting Games, and SPIL 

Games. In addition to these commissioned projects, she spends most of her time creating 

her own personal body of work which is inspired from folklore, mythology, and nature. Her 

signature works include fanciful depictions of women and animals. Annie strives to create 

images that will evoke emotion and imagination in the viewer. She believes that in order to 

gain a better understanding of oneself, it is important to be open to others’ perceptions. Art 

is just another way to express an emotion or ideal; a visual method of communication that 

depicts things that words cannot express and connects people through insight. 

Most of Annie’s work is done in acrylics, but she also works in oils, color pencils, and watercolor. 

She currently resides in Northern Georgia. 


anniestegg.com

y 



musetouch 213





















Marco Rea Altered Visi 

Marco Rea’s work strives to depict altered psychological states, radical deformations of one’s 

perceptions, new sensorial realities resembling dreams, memories, visions taking shape during 

a state of trance. 

Acting upon the surface of pre-existing images, generally pertaining to a serial production 

(billboards, ads, etc). 

Marco reinvents both bodies and faces bringing them out of context, in his world of comatose 

allegories. With the technique normally pertaining to writers, street artists and other creative 

entities active in the cityscape, Rea tries to transform the faces invading his daily life into the 

protagonists of an imagined world. 

“What I represent is not a real physical deformation or violent expressions but rather psychological 

States of alteration. Mental projections of the figure. Representations of a deformed perception 

factors which alter the reality. The new reality that appears in a dream or in moments of 

doze, that feel our body or other body during orgasm. Altered visions that can appear in trance 


ons 


states, coma, or simply by clouded memories. 

Eros, restlessness, memories off (lived or dreamed), alterations. These are the themes of my research. 

“ 

Marco Rea 

He has exhibited at : 

Strychnin Gallery (Berlin). Mondo Bizzarro Gallery (Rome). Cell63 Art Gallery (Berlin). 

L’Art de rien Gallery (Paris). Mondo Pop Gallery (Rome). Genuine Artikle Gallery (California). 

Kaneko’s Gallery (New York). Bongiovanni Gallerie (Bologna). Galleria Famiglia Margini 

(Milan). Galleria Degli Zingari (Rome). RGB46 Gallery (Rome). Atelier777 Art Gallery 

(Pescara). Galleria Studio Soligo (Rome). Auditorium Parco della Musica (Roma) ecc... 


marcorea.carbonmade.com






















Valley of Dolls 

Marmite Sue 

Marmite Sue is Israel based artist. She finds it easiest to describe herself as a “Doll Artist”, 

since the concept of a doll has long been her biggest inspiration, and guiding line in all the 

many mediums of her creation. 


Virginie Ropars was born in Brittany (France) in 1976. She still lives and works in that 

place surrounded by nature, legends and superstitions, that feed her mind since she was a 

child,building up visions sometimes full of wonders, other times strange and gloomy where 

feminity took a large place. An inner world she primary expressed in drawings 

After a master degree in graphic art, she worked as a 2D/3D graphic artist for computer 

games and TV cartoon industry. From “virtuality” to “reality”, working with her hands became 

vital in order to be connected with what she had in mind. Her works are in between 

sculpture, doll making, fashion design and illustration. Different materials areused to build a 

kind of dreamed reality. Her figures are reminiscent of queer women with unbroken mind, a 

vision of a human nature bent on reaching a bright absolute and at the same time capriciously 

settled in a dark ground. Virginie’s work is shown throughout Europe at doll shows or exhibitions 

and also in United States and Russia. 

Lena and Katya Popova 

Lena and Katya Popova are two russian sisters who are considered promising young creators 

of artistic dolls. They use airdry clay and paper mainly, other materials can be add, depending 

on different models. Their dolls represent a cold beauty, a misterious and never outspoken 

sensuality, and are inspired by african warriors, geishas and french ladies of the eighteenth 

century. Popova sisters’ energy come from their land, their “magical place” and it isn’t difficult 

to understand why if we watch some pictures of their places. 


Eric van Straaten is an independent artist, specialized in rapid manufactured sculpture. After 

working for years in wax and resin, for the last year he has been working extensively on digital 

sculptures which are then ‘materialized’ with the technique called ‘rapid manufacturing’. 

For him, the 3D-printing technique gives him a limitless freedom in almost instantly composing 

the images he has in his mind. 


Powered by Strychnin Gallery 

























Strychnin Gallery 

Boxhagenerstrasse 36 

Berlin 10245 

Germany 

strychnin.com 

Marmite Sue 

pickled.free.fr 


vropars.free.fr/mainENG.htm 

Lena and Katya Popova 

popova-dolls.com 


ericvanstraaten.com

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