Every year, the Zodiac Membership Committee invites 12 local emerging artists to exhibit at the Museum during The Dalí Dozen, a special one-night event. The Zodiacs are an all-volunteer group that supports the mission of The Dalí Museum by building meaningful relationships with members and helping to strengthen the ties between the Museum and the arts community. For more information about the Zodiacs, please contact membership@thedali.org.
This year, The Dalí Dozen are:
Allison Hilgert
Sponsored by Dalí Museum Zodiac Member Laura Bethea
Allison Hilgert was born a nature lover in the small town of Crystal River, Florida. She grew up playing among cypress trees, weaving crowns and scepters from palmetto branches. When she wasn’t outside, she was either dreaming or painting with her mother, a local artist. After graduating from Ringling College of Art and Design with a BFA, she worked as a graphic designer until her love of painting returned her to the wilderness of Florida. Inspired by the intriguing shadows, textures, and overlooked found things, she manipulates human form into magical, somber and sometimes terrifying dream-like elements.
Carlos Pons
Sponsored by Dalí Museum Zodiac Member Jessica Hall
Carlos Pons Paz, a Guatemalan-born painter and multimedia artist, found his artistic calling early in life. His move to America in 2000 sparked a profound cultural shift that now influences his work. With a unique style characterized by vibrant colors and enigmatic figures, Carlos explores themes of identity and displacement. After teaching art to adults with special needs for five years, he pursued art full-time in 2018. Today, he creates conceptual paintings and striking murals, bridging cultures and emotions through his art.
Colin Ward
Sponsored by Dalí Museum Zodiac Member Harvey Drouillard
Colin Ward is a beauty photographer born in England where his parents gave him a camera at an early age. After he failed to excel at cricket and soccer, his family moved to Ohio where he turned to music and photography. Colin is based in St. Petersburg, Florida and travels to beautiful photographic destinations frequently. His photography is focused on the beauty of the world as he attempts to offset the prevalent negativity and bad news that is thrown our way daily. Colin photographs people, portraits, fine art nudes, figures in the landscape and creative studio photos, as well as wall art and photo books.
Emily Stehle
Sponsored by Dalí Museum Zodiac Member Brett Holden
Emily Stehle is a mixed media 3-D artist who has been designated an “Emerging Artist” three times. First in 2017 for Florida CraftArt, in 2018 for Gasparilla Festival of the Arts and 2020-21 for Creative Pinellas. Emily has been known for weaving baskets for more than 30 years but in the last decade started using non-conventional materials taken from the trash can or found in the street. Her vision: Discards could become transformative art. Budget-minded, Emily decided to show that one needn’t spend a lot of money to create art. She collects and is provided her art materials from friends who mail packages of “stuff.”
Erik Hesson
Sponsored by Dalí Museum Zodiac Member Patti Siltala
Erik Hesson is a self-taught artist who has been developing his style and mastering his craft for decades. Feeling confident after a few years of developing his style and skill, which includes a unique texture and shading technique that introduces a new way of capturing light, he created an innovative new art style called Linear Perspectivism. A scene is represented from a single perspective, using basic geometric forms, dynamic texture and vibrant colors to create an idealized three-dimensional abstract composition. Erik has since founded the new art website UniqueModernArt.com in January 2022, and he is currently participating in multiple exhibits across the Tampa Bay area.
Jessica Oxner
Sponsored by Dalí Museum Zodiac Member Pamela Joy Trow
Jessica Oxner is the founder and inventor of Divergent Swimwear, a brand of uniquely convertible and reversible swimwear for jetsetting babes and the swimwear obsessed. Oxner launched the brand in 2020 to help women stay on top of yearly swimwear trends, and travel more stylishly and conveniently while reducing fast fashion waste.Jessica Oxner is the founder and inventor of Divergent Swimwear, a brand of uniquely convertible and reversible swimwear for jetsetting babes and the swimwear obsessed. Oxner launched the brand in 2020 to help women stay on top of yearly swimwear trends, and travel more stylishly and conveniently while reducing fast fashion waste.
Kamysha Martin
Sponsored by Dalí Museum Zodiac Member Kisha Linebaugh
Kamysha Martin is a Metalsmith & Owner of lolahSoul Jewelry. “lolah” is named after Kamysha’s fearless side who leaps unafraid and courageously steps outside her comfort zone to grow. She stands up for what she believes in and stands firm in knowing she is enough. In Kamysha’s studio, The House of lolahSoul, she creates “organized chaos,” often letting the metal and stones lead the way. She believes every piece she makes already belongs to someone if only they listen for the call.
Mark Rodriguez
Sponsored by Dalí Museum Zodiac Member Dacota Maphis
Mark Rodriguez (aka, Godriguez) is an award-winning artist from Tampa, Florida whose work spans many genres including photography, graphic design, illustration and animation. His studies include the Art institute of Atlanta where he earned a BFA in Graphic Design with minor studies in Animation. Mark owns and operates his freelance design company, Godriguezart, as well as animates and does character voiceover work for the non-profit group www.whyu.org.
Nicholas Ribera
Sponsored by Dalí Museum Zodiac Member Pamela Joy Trow
Nicholas Ribera started creating art under the name Chain Assembly in 2016, beginning as a project for graphic design and illustration. He considers himself an illustrator above an artist. Each project he endeavors on stems from a story or a problem that needs to be solved by illustration. Nicholas imagines Chain Assembly acting as a sort of tattoo shop for custom illustration. Potential customers come in, and based on their specific project, they’re directed toward an artist whose work specializes in their needs. Everything from the imagery, writing, packaging, and most importantly, mood, is a curated and bespoke experience.
Nick Reale
Sponsored by Dalí Museum Zodiac Member Janna Kennedy Hyten
Nick Reale’s work consists of art created from wood either harvested from local, fallen or removed trees, or from reclaimed wood that has a unique history or backstory. The hardware and embellishments used are collected from my travels abroad including Italy, France, Germany and Austria. To compliment the wood, the hardware used is often collected from antique and architectural salvage shops, some being many centuries old. Nick’s work includes wood turning, box making, furniture and toys. Taking the living form of wood and turning into functional art has always appealed to him. The end result is a lasting item that will hopefully be cherished forever.
Shelly Steck Reale
Sponsored by Dalí Museum Zodiac Member Janna Kennedy Hyten
Shelly Steck Reale is a sculpture artist based in St. Petersburg, Florida. Her work examines social and environmental issues through the use of art, creating a unique understanding in a way that words fail to express. Shelly believes that art has a unique ability to leads its viewer to examine and question our cultural, political, gender and societal norms in hopes that one sees the world around them differently. Shelly’s work has earned numerous awards and is represented in several galleries in the Tampa Bay area.
Whitney Lynch
Sponsored by Dalí Museum Zodiac Member Harvey Drouillard
Whitney Lynch’s pursuit of a life in art began at The Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), where she earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Sculpture and Extended Media. It was at VCU that Whitney fell in love with mixed media—this passion to dive in and get her hands dirty and create continues to this day. Whitney’s new work reflects her migration south to Florida. A refined and fulgent expression in mixed media, painting is a return to form for her, having picked up painting as early as she could hold a brush. It has been through this series that Whitney has realized the deep meditative benefits of the art form, and it shows in the serenity and quality of the work.