XIII was interested the drawing and fashion since she was in grade school. She attended the Buffalo Academy for Visual and Performing Arts as a visual arts major  and Daemen College, majoring in Illustration. Her work is inspired by relationships between the human experience, futurism spirituality and tradition. XIII uses rich and vibrant colors in both her physical and digital work to depict ideas through a mystical and/or supernatural lens. Her work has been seen at Hallwalls and Burchfield Penney Art Centers.

David Scott Myers — known as Red Wizard is a contemporary surreal collage artist and NYS certified teacher from Buffalo, New York. Throughout his career, Myers has excelled in photography, mural painting, and collage. His distinctive surrealist style holds a dream-like fusion of science fiction, fantasy, spirituality, and ecology. This unique worldview can be attributed to a diverse background in the arts. In 2007, Myers graduated from Rochester Institute of Technology with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Photographic Illustration. He went on to earn a master’s degree in landscape architecture from SUNY Environmental Science and Forestry, which included a stint at Harvard’s Graduate School of Design. Myers lives in Buffalo with his wife and three children.

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Blaine Danger Benzin He is originally from Grand Junction CO. He took some art classes in school but by 12 years old he already wanted to break the boundaries both socially and artistically. He would sneak out at night, walk the train yards, and paint trains. He was inspired by other artists and work that he would see on box cars. “I knew all the risks, but the feeling of risking everything to put art out in the world that I’d probably never see again was quite freeing.” He has been able to take his experience in an illegal world of fringe art into something that is accessible to everyone. In 2001 he started the “Art in the Alley program in Grand Junction. Since then, he has done murals for businesses and residential homes. He currently resides in West Seneca.

Quote from Facebook: “I'm a Buffalo, NY based freelance artist specializing in murals and graphic art.”

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Chuck is originally from Tonawanda and currently maintains a studio in Buffalo’s Clinton/Bailey neighborhood. He combines abstract and realism in his art works with a very contemporary look. He also got his BFA from Buffalo State (There will be further description once I see the artwork).

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Jay Hawkins Sr. (aka Cashis Green) is a Buffalo-based artist and hip-hop emcee. Taking up painting and drawing from the age of two, art has been a way of life for Hawkins. In addition to the visual arts, he has channeled his creative energies into barbering, clothing design, and working as an emcee, rapper, and event coordinator in Buffalo’s hip-hop scene. He shares his gift and enthusiasm for art at community events and through a wide range of involvements in youth education, mentoring, and public speaking. He is the head of his own artistic brand, Revolutionary Strokes, LLC, youth director for the WNY Urban Arts Collective, and Director for Buffalo's Own, Inc. Hawkins is also co-founder of The Dopeness Project, which supports artist development by cultivating opportunities for collaboration and connection through events and art presentations.

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  Scar Markham: A trans artist that works under the name of Flour Pail Kids. He is a multimedia creator that does wood working with recycled skateboard wood, paints murals and images in acrylic. He created a mural for the Rochester Roc Skate Park highlighting the city’s diversity.
"I'm grateful that the city is working with artists to support their creative expression," said Scar Markham, an artist. "I hope these public works will break down barriers and uplift the voices of marginalized peoples."

Tattoo artist from Niagara Falls NY.

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Danielle Saeva is a painter and art educator based in Buffalo, NY who works for Locust Street Art, a nonprofit which provides free art lessons for the community located in the Fruit belt district, Human connection and experience, mental health, and spirituality are all significant themes in her work. Through bright colors and high contrast, Danielle interprets the magic in the world around her. She emphasizes the artistic process and is currently working toward creating large scale collages which she hopes will allow the viewer to not just view the presented narrative, but to experience it themselves step by step.

A muralist from Oklahoma City, Haley Spadlin has a graphic design studio that produces beautiful, effective, and completely customized branding and logo solutions for passionate people.

Saira Siddiqui is Social Practice Artist, Urban Planner, Community Organizer, Creative Facilitator. working in the Western New York region. “I love the puzzle of problem solving, coordinating on shared visions, and creativity.” She Received a degree in Urban Planning - Environmental Design from UB, and minors in the Fine Arts and English. She earned a master’s degree  from Buff State in Creative & change leadership and Fine Arts. She has her own company called the Cosmic Wanderer Collective where she creates henna tattoos, hair shimmers and jewelry.

Bree Gilliam is a Buffalo-based artist whose work primarily focuses on social issues and daily experiences. Her work incorporates bold color and expressive brushwork to provoke emotion from her audience. Working predominantly in oils, Gilliam primarily paints portraits of celebrities, friends, and family. Her goal is to always relate, inform, and spark conversation. She believes that conversations are the first step to making solutions to the problems in this world.

When discussing her artistic inspiration for her portrait work, Gilliam stated: "there’s so much emotion in people’s faces – people typically see faces, and just walk by. I enjoy looking at and studying the faces – they tell so much about the person. The humanity. Especially their eyes."

Gilliam is a native of Williamsville, NY. She is the owner and founder of Paintphoria, Buffalo’s first open studio splatter room. She graduated from SUNY Buffalo State in 2022 with a BFA degree in painting and a minor in art therapy. Gilliam has received over ten awards and scholarships during her time at Buffalo State. Her work has been featured in several art shows in the Buffalo area.

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Princessa S. Williams is an Afro-Latina artist best known for her murals in the Buffalo and Niagara region and her exhilarating canvas artwork. Based out of Buffalo, New York, Williams enjoys using different media, such as spray paint, acrylics, and modeling paste gel to express her art. She has been known to describe the style of her artwork as colorful, emotional, and exotic.

Williams is the owner of Princessa's Studio & Art Gallery, located at 1271 Hertel Ave. in Buffalo. It is the region's first and only art gallery owned by a female Afro-Latina millennial. For nearly 30 years it’s been her dream to have a gallery of her own, and now this 2,200 square foot gallery is plastered with her acrylic art, which is one of her favorite mediums. Ranging from abstraction and realism to spirituality and cubism, you'll find a plethora of different genres depending on her collections.

Through partnerships with the Buffalo Public School (BPS) and People Inc., Williams now offers private instruction courses to children, the elderly, and individuals with special needs. Her public services include but are not limited to, couples' painting, teambuilding, therapeutic arts, jewelry making, and Resin work. Since 2022, she has served as an art professor for Villa Maria College.

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Justin Suarez was 17 when he began painting graffiti around the Albany area. Though it was 2000 and by then graffiti was considered an art form, it was still illegal. Artists used tag names to conceal their identity. Suarez’s moniker was Mr. Prvrt (short for “pervert”). Provocative, yes, but Suarez explains: “I always have referred to the dictionary definition of the verb “to pervert” meaning to alter or change the meaning or course.”

Suarez is now a mural artist living in Rochester. He finally dropped Mr. Prvrt and signs his actual name. His works are branded under Aerosol Kingdom, which aptly describes his love of using aerosol paint to depict the animal kingdom in urban environments. Suarez’s finely detailed outdoor murals are mainly created freehand with spray paint and can be found all over Rochester, other U.S. cities and abroad.

Animals were always a big part of his life. Suarez grew up on a farm in Nassau, near Albany. His parents were animal behaviorists and Suarez spent time with primates. His family even visited Kenya when he was six. Later, he would volunteer at a local zoo.

Suarez takes a picture of the wall before beginning the design process. Then, using Photoshop, he creates and lays his images directly onto the wall photo. This helps him to plan better and gives building owners and clients a way to envision how the final mural will look.

When ready to paint the mural, Suarez physically “sketches” the design on the wall using transparent black and white spray paints. “The sprays have more solvent than pigment, which means that the paint does not come out opaque,” he explains. “The feel of this could easily be compared to using a black or white charcoal pencil.”

The sketch is key. “Dialing that in before you start to paint is a huge part of setting yourself up for success,” says Suarez. Next up: the basic fill to get everything covered quickly as possible with base colors. “Then comes the fun part, the details!” he says.

The spray paints Suarez primarily uses are a brand called MTN 94. This paint is specifically designed for outdoor mural use and holds up well to the elements. When he works on very large surfaces, Suarez occasionally uses an industrial sprayer and house paint to fill in the largest areas. Since he primarily paints animals, a lot of his color palette involves earth tones.

 Edreys Wajed is a Buffalo based creative entrepreneur. He has transitioned through several crafts and artistic media throughout his life, working as a visual artist, jewelry maker, craftsman, musician, graphic designer, and educator.

Wajed was born and raised in Buffalo, NY, coming from a family of multifaceted artisans. His father was a jeweler and craftsman, and his mother would hand sew the family’s clothing. It wasn’t long before Wajed began to develop his own creative talents. At a young age he taught himself how to cut hair and quickly built his clientele as a barber. He would soon begin to develop his voice as a musician and writer, creating rhymes, hip-hop beats and spoken word poetry. He would also venture into his other creative pursuits, including customizing hats, clothes and designing logos. He took these skills and further developed them in college, graduating with a bachelor’s in graphic design from SUNY Buffalo State

In collaboration with the Albright Knox Art Gallery and NFTA Metro, Wajed participated in the completion of the Freedom Wall at the corner of Michigan Ave. and East Ferry St. with fellow artists Julia Bottoms, Chuck Tingley and John Baker in 2017.

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Markenzy Cesar is a painter who was born in Haiti. After the coup d’etat in Haiti in 1987 he and his mother moved to Long Island and joined his father who went there some years earlier. In 1993 he came to Buffalo to pursue a  BFA from Buff State. He came to feel a connection to the region has lived in the United States since 1987. In 1993, he moved from Long Island, New York, to Buffalo to pursue a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Buff State. Cesar felt  a connection to the region and lives here now with wife and 2 daughters.

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 Teouria Morris is an artist, animator, and a visual development artist. She was born in Buffalo and earned a BA in Animation from Villa Maria College. Her ultimate goal would be to live in a world filled with free Hamilton tickets, swarms of puppies, and lakes full of chocolate. Originally wanting to pursue only Animation, she was eventually won over by the beauty of environments such as Tarzan and Big Hero 6 (American computer-generated superhero films) . When she’s not drawing or creating interesting characters, she can be found eating or dancing around the classroom, usually on a sugar-rush.

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Quote from Facebook: “Independent female artist from Buffalo, NY. Artist of many mediums. Freedom to self-expression!”

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Courtney Haeick is from Buffalo, New York, and is an artist and educator. She is a multidisciplinary artist that creates paintings, sculptures, jewelry, graphic designs, and murals. She received her BFA in Art Education from Buffalo State College and graduated with her MFA in Sculpture from SUNY New Paltz.

Courtney is currently a 3D art teacher at Allen D. Nease High School in Ponte Vedra, Florida. She teaches intro Ceramics, Sculpture, AP, and Portfolio art. Throughout the summer she works as a teaching artist for Young Audiences of Western New York.

During her MFA program at SUNY New Paltz, she created art about human connection and vulnerability through performative sculptures and videos. Much of her interest comes from the instability of our current structural system and the way people are affected by feeling self-conscious of themselves. Her goal is to reach out to others that are struggling with isolation and make it known that being vulnerable strengthens our emotional well-being.

She has exhibited her work at several galleries in WNY. She is a professional chalk artist who has been commissioned to do chalk murals around Buffalo and Lockport areas. She has participated and won many awards at the Buffalo Chalk Festival and the Lockport Sweet Chalk Festival. She has also coordinated two charity chalk festivals to raise money for Alzheimer’s and the Teachers Desk organization. Courtney also works as a freelance artist selling her drawings, paintings, and mural work. Many of her paintings are associated with movement and emotion that is associated with her passion for dance. During her senior year in college, she was honored to be a choreographer for the spring dance concert Movers and Shakers: Dance as Activism at Buffalo State. Her ideas focused around anti-bullying and how her dancers’ movement could impact the viewers to make a change in society’s actions when bullying is detected. She also created sculptures that the dancers interacted with during the performance that combined the two art-forms into one.

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