Culture

Artist: Andy Richter

Andy Richter is a photographer based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, working in documentary, non-profit and advertising photography.

His work explores identity, personal transformation, culture and the sense of self. In recent years, he has worked on international projects like “Hearing Around the World,” “Youth Culture Taipei” and “Oro Win,” photographed in the Brazilian Amazon with an indigenous tribe on the cusp of great change.

His clients include UNICEF, USAID, The Travel Channel, Time, Smithsonian, National Geographic Traveler, Discover, and Outside, among others.

Andy graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of Minnesota with degrees in Spanish and Psychology.

For more information, visit www.andyrichterphoto.com.

Artist: Devin Galaudet

Based in Los Angeles, Devin Galaudet is a videographer and gifted photographer. He is also the Editor-in-Chief of In The Know Traveler, a well-known online travel magazine.

When he is not writing or traveling, Devin enjoys spending time with his fourteen-year-old daughter and reading. He has an MFA in Creative Nonfiction.

For more information, visit www.huffingtonpost.com/devin-galaudet.

Artist: Guno Park

Guno Park is an artist living and working in Brooklyn, NY. Originally from Seoul, Korea, he grew up in Toronto, Canada, for most of his life.

After receiving his MFA from the New York Academy of Art in 2011, he has been drawing, exhibiting, illustrating and teaching drawing in New York City.

He has a strong passion for drawing and a deep interest in social realism. His work hangs in many private collections and has been widely published.

For more information, visit gunopark.com.

Kay Tung

Kay Tung graduated from Macao Polytechnic Institute, majored in graphic design. He is very fond of unrestrained imagination. He is a member of Macao Illustrators Association. In the year 2015, he was invited to participate in the Poster Image Designing of "Hangzhou International Design Week," and his works won Bronze Prize for the Branding Field of the Macau Design Biennial, Bronze Prize in the Hiiibrand Award for the Branding Field, Prize of Excellence for the Hiii Illustration International Competition. His work was being published in the "Asia-Pacific Design" and "Illustrative Branding" Graphic design book.

Artist: Ken Carl

Ken is a Chicago-based corporate, documentary and editorial photographer. His works have been seen in Chicago Tribune, TimeOut, and Chicago Magazine, among others.

An accomplished travel photographer, Ken has worked for the Kenyan Tourism Board and as the photographer of archaeological sites for De Paul University. He has photographed from the top of Kilimanjaro in Africa to the flowing lava of Hawaii.

Ken’s passion for humanitarian and social issues led him to work for the Wounded Warrior program and Helmets to Hardhats. He was selected as a finalist for the 2009 PDN “World in Focus” contest, and has won numerous awards for his work.

For more information, visit www.kencarl.com.

Artist: Mary Beth Kratsas

Mary Beth Kratsas is an award winning photographer and artist with over 25 years of experience behind the lens. Her Studio, MBK Photography, is located in Monroeville, PA but she loves to travel and is always willing to go the extra mile (quite literally) to facilitate her clients’ needs.

Her experience includes photographing the Cinema City International Film Festival with Suzanne Delaurentis and Ed McMahon, as well as photographing for the Jordan Board of Tourism.

Mary Beth began her photo education by studying at both The Ivy School of Professional Art and The Art Institute of Pittsburgh, where she acquired the principals of photography and graduated with an Associates Degree in Commercial Art.

Today, in addition to running her business, she continues to educate herself in the latest skills and photographic trends by attending classes and seminars at the Triangle Institute of Professional Photography studying with masters of photography and fellow members of the Professional Photographers of America and the National Association of Photoshop Professionals.

For more information, visit www.marybethkratsasphotography.com.

Artist: Michael Wayne Smith

Michael Wayne Smith is an artist based in New York, New York.

He received an MFA in painting from the New York Academy of Art in 2006, and also attended the Art Institute of Boston, in which he graduated with honors.

Since graduating, he has been teaching at the New York Academy of Art and at Campsite Studio in Staten Island. His work has been exhibited in several galleries throughout New York, and he has received numerous awards, including one from the Forbes Foundation.

Artist: Sean Mattison

Sean Mattison is a Brooklyn-based filmmaker, photographer, and visual artist. His pursuit of his craft has led to collaborations with some of the world’s leading companies and organizations.

In addition to his artistic and commercial work, he is committed to creating projects that advance awareness of social justice issues and activate change. He is multi-lingual and has worked in many different countries across Latin America, Asia and Africa.

As a cinematographer he has worked with acclaimed directors including Pamela Yates (Granito: How to Nail a Dictator), Lotfy Nathan (12 O'Clock Boys), Hannah Fidell (A Teacher), and Jay Bulger (Beware of Mr. Baker).

Artist: Selma Fernandez Richter

Selma Fernandez Richter was born in Oaxaca, Mexico, and is currently based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. A photographer since 2001, she works in both the United States and Mexico. Her primary focus is to photograph people, with a particular emphasis on photographing children. She is interested in exploring themes related to identity through connection with place, adaptation, and religion.

Selma spent the first 10 years of her professional career in Monterrey, Mexico’s most industrial city, where she photographed people in the business community. The assignments were varied, and she was frequently commissioned to create portraits of some of the country’s most prominent CEOs and executives.

Two years ago, Selma relocated from Mexico to Minnesota and redirected her career. She returned to film and started photographing her ongoing project “The Ache for Home” about the refugee communities in Minnesota, while experiencing her own adaptation process to a new context. She hopes to complete this work in the coming years and produce a book.

For more information, visit www.selmafernandezrichter.com.

Artist: Steve Forster

Steve Forster was born in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1983. He was educated at the Florence Academy of Art in Italy and the New York Academy of Art, where he received his MFA.

Steve’s paintings have been exhibited in several solo and group shows nationally and internationally, and he is currently represented by Island Weiss Gallery in New York, New York.

He is also a Co-Director of the Long Island Academy of Fine Art in Glen Cove, New York, and teaches painting at the New York Academy of Art.

For more information, visit steveforster.net.

Artist: Wendy Connett

Based in New York, Wendy Connett is a photographer and journalist. She travels the world to photograph people, celebrations, icons, lifestyle and culture that make each country unique. For more than a decade, her photographs have been licensed around the globe for commercial and editorial use.

Wendy’s images regularly appear in newspapers, magazines, brochures, advertisements, travel guidebooks and textbooks. Publications include National Geographic Traveler, Time, Travel & Leisure, Forbes Traveler, The Wall Street Journal, The Times, The London Guardian, The Observer, Rough Guides, Lonely Planet, Fodors, Frommers, Time Out Guides and Eyewitness Travel Guides.

For more information, visit www.wendyconnett.com.