We want to present some of the fabulous artists whose work currently is represented at The Barn Swallow.

Leslie Banta –painter and collage artist
Leslie enjoys pushing paint around. Adding collaged elements to the paint surface adds something different to a traditional image-making process. Leslie grew up in Alabama with an artist & art teacher mother and an architect father. Leaving Alabama after college, Leslie exhibited for nine years in the Washington, DC metro area before moving to the Shenandoah Valley in 2005. She earned a BFA in Painting from Birmingham-Southern College and completed post-graduate studies with fellow Alabama native Bill Christenberry and collage guru Mindy Weisel at the Corcoran College of Art & Design in Washington, DC. Leslie currently lives in Staunton, Virginia with her husband and their son.

Leslie Chisholm – jewelry designer
As a self-taught artist, Leslie is creating classic but unconventional jewelry. She uses organic materials such as unusual pearls, wonderful gemstones, amazing sea shells, and beautiful botanicals that she immortalizes in silver. She also loves to recycle vintage findings to use as a finishing touch to her work. Her jewelry is designed with a focus on symmetry, texture, and color. Her attention to detail assures the wearer that what they have is hand crafted and high quality; no two pieces are the same. Leslie started by stringing sea shells on silk because they were just too pretty to store in a shoe box and her designs have flourished from there. You can contact Leslie at leslie.chisholm@gmail.com or visit her website www.lesliechisholm.com.

John Grant – photographer
After a long career in graphic design and publishing, John has come full circle, back to his original interests and his instinctive love of photography. Experimenting with the latest technological tools, his work most often focuses on botanical imagery. The works of Irving Penn, Mapplethorpe and even Georgia O’keefe come to mind as inspirations. Although John has been producing his art for a relatively short time, he is honored to be represented by Getty Images worldwide, by Kathleen Ewing Gallery in Washington, D. C., Page Bond Gallery in Richmond, and of course by his favorite artisans and friends at the Barnswallow. To see more of his work or to contact John, please visit johngrantstudios.com.

Lotta Helleberg – textile artist
Intricate, resilient, coarse, bold, and delicate – leaves are the true inspiration for Lotta's work. She uses a printing technique in which impressions of actual leaves and other plant materials make up the pattern. Fabric paint is applied to the back of the leaf which then is pressed onto the fabric. Each item is made of natural linen or linen/cotton blends and are constructed in her studio, with extra attention to details and finishes. The result is a collection of lovely objects that brings the deceivingly simple beauty of nature into everyday life. You can contact Lotta at info@inleafdesign.com,
434-882-1569 or visit her website www.inleafdesign.com and blog www.inleaf.blogspot.com.

Cary Oliva – artist and photographer
Cary enjoys making all sorts of things creative: from photographs to greeting cards to marble coasters. After discovering an alternative photographic technique using Polaroids, she began looking for a new medium to transfer her images onto and discovered the wonderful texture of bottichino marble. Each tile is hand-crafted and baked to infuse the image onto the marble making it etch resistant. As a self-taught artist, Cary continually strives to learn new ways to explore her creativity and enjoys displaying her work in and around Charlottesville. To see or learn more about Cary’s art, she may be contacted at cary@bycary.com or 434-971-7765.

Misty Mawn – mixed media artist
Local artist Misty Mawn has had a strong passion to create art ever since she was just old enough to hold a pencil. As an avid doodler, collage artist, and painter she loves to gather all of these creative
outlets and infuse them in each piece of work that she creates. Her passion for art continues to bless her life with purposeful work and fulfilling adventures. She studied studio art at Moravian College, started and ran a pottery business, and has since retired from clay to focus on painting and teaching workshops around the world. You can read more about her work and life on her blog: www.mistymawn.typepad.com.

Anne Scarpa McCauley – basket weaver
Anne's honeysuckle baskets are original and unique. She has never taken lessons, studied books or contacted other basket makers for ideas. Having made honeysuckle baskets for over thirty years, she is extremely competent in her field, and can now make the baskets she once dreamed of. Anne has over the years won many awards and is also a member of Strathmore's Who's Who. She lives outside Charlottesville, Virginia with her husband and five children. You can contact Anne at anne@honeysucklebaskets.com, 434-978-4679 or visit her website www.honeysucklebaskets.com.

Tim O'Kane – painter, illustrator, and photographer
Tim O’Kane is an artist, photographer and birder who has lived in Central Virginia for thirty-five years. Locally and on journeys elsewhere, he makes quick studies of the birds he encounters, sometimes at feeders but more often in the wild. He looks for active poses that show the particular nature of each species. You can contact Tim at tim@timokane.com, 434-295-8807, or visit his website www.timokane.com where you can find portfolios showing a wide range of the fine art and photography.

Joe Sheridan – rustic furniture maker
Joe has been creating beautiful, hand-crafted, one of a kind, pieces of furniture out of sticks and branches since 1991. He uses Adirondack style mortise-and-tenon joinery with rush, splint and upholstered seating.  Using only a few basic woodworking tools, Joe purposefully turns away from the institutional and mass-produced object. He collects limbs, sticks and unique pieces of wood to create his furniture. Inspiration flows from the natural twists, and curves of these pieces bringing to mind creations far from the straight and square edge of the assembly line. You can contact Joe at rusticarts@gmail.com, or 540-942-5645.