Earth, Water, Air & Fire
“The Healing Power of Elements” exhibition was on view September 4 – November 4, 2023. It featured 75 artists. The superior works of art on view revealed the many physical aspects of the four elements in addition to their emotive, symbolic, and healing qualities. This important exhibition continues our series of nature-related projects that raise awareness about our need to respect and protect the natural world. Names of All Exhibiting Artists are listed on this page.
Why We Present “Nature” Theme Exhibitions
* To offer talented artists from around the world exposure and promotion to our extensive worldwide audience.
* To inspire others to achieve a more sustainable, harmonious and healing relationship with Mother Nature.
* To initiate relationships between exhibiting artists and other nature-loving individuals, organizations and businesses.
Several artists received Special Recognition Art Awards. At the end of this page you’ll links to their Featured Articles pages and more. ~ Renee Phillips, Curator, and Founder / Director of Manhattan Arts International and The Healing Power of ART & ARTISTS
Shown here is some of the art from the exhibition.
Enjoy viewing the art and reading the artists’ statements.
Please visit the artists’ websites and contact them about purchasing their art.
Poul Nielsen
My most recent work continues to take up with both an internal and external response to my unique prairie environment. The atmosphere with its inherent magical interplay of light and colour is integral to these current images. Our atmosphere is constantly changing so one has to be very attentive in transcribing the temporal into a permanent image. I view my paintings as celebratory and therapeutic in the amplification of colour and light through saturated and blended hues. psnielsen.com
Sandra Duran Wilson
I create based on the cycles of nature, letting the ebb and flow of creativity find form. Earth needs rain to produce plants and the air moves the weather, and fire is an essential element that allows transition from one state to the next. When my creativity is in balance with the elements of nature, homeostasis is achieved. This healing state is transmitted through my art by bringing awareness of the flux and transitions that the elements represent. sandraduranwilson.com
Barbara Brown
This old Grandfather stump, consumed by Fire 100 years ago, still standing with such presence. Home to mosses and lichens, worked away at by Woodpeckers & bugs, still forever giving of itself. Fire — Transformation. Sunlight. Heat. Energy. Summer. South. Spirit. Courage. Passion. Orange. Feel the warm power of FIRE in your solar plexus, as you can feel the solidity of EARTH in your flesh and bones, AIR in your breath, WATER in your blood —and feel your connectedness to all of creation. barbarabrownart.com
Bob Dooley
My art comes from a place where I grew up. We had fields behind the house and then 2-3 miles of woods. I was immersed with nature there. I played in the woods, streams, and brooks. I took walks when it snowed and heard the pft pft pft of the snowflakes hitting the ground. It was that quiet! It was a place of inner healing and a kinship with a higher power that kept me grounded. bobdooleyart.com
Mark Weller
I live in the Upper Midwest, where the earth is everything. It provides fertile soil to grow crops that feed the world. Wind batters the former prairie landscape and twirls the storm clouds in menacing and threatening ways; but ultimately brings the precious gift of life sustaining precipitation. I am drawn to the topography of my birth and the signature look of the upper Midwest, and now document the transformations brought on by climate change. time-stacking.com
Peter N. Van Giesen
My art is the result of sporadic surges of energy that percolate past my consciousness. I experience the elements of Earth, Air, Fire, Water. Light and Darkness as a unified spiritual force. For me, twilight, both dawn and dusk embraces me in the blessing of the dramatic, elemental dominion that sustains us. I reach into the fabric of the world exploring the dynamics of tension and elasticity. Using paint, I create images that capture the interplay between the interconnected aura of the natural world. peternvangiesen.com
Susan Jarecky
Being out in nature provides everything my heart desires to be creative and express the joy I feel when amongst the beauty that surrounds me. My spirit is at home in the mountains. This painting was inspired by a recent trip to Colorado where we spent several days. The Rockies is a vulnerable environment which goes back generations in my family. As a plein air painter the earth, water, and air elements always play important roles as I observe the subtle layers of warm and cool colors and mix and paint swiftly as the passing sunlight changes. susanjarecky.com
Catherine Toulsaly
The Zambezi River drops abruptly under the force of gravity from a towering height. The resounding waters rush down as if the river divinity was still angry at how the population was resettled and its stream was forcibly regulated by the construction upstream in 1950 of the Kariba Dam. Its effigy seems hidden away at the bottom of a basket or the back of a display. I created my own representation: a face with horns and a snake wrapped around. comingfullcircle.over-blog.com
David F. Burke
My artwork is primarily inspired by Nature, so the elements are an integral part of it in many ways. I paint mostly with acrylics in figurative and abstract expressionism. “Rootman” leans toward Earth. davidfburke-art.com
Beth Shadur
My National Park Project addresses the impact of the National Park designation on First Nation peoples and on local communities. These works are meant to remind us of our responsibility as global citizens to care for our planet and our sacred spaces. For many years, my work has addressed the fragility of nature, and reflected my vast love for nature — including all of the elements. It is only with strong attention to our human impact that we can reverse what are dangerous trends; we must take action now before it is too late. bethshadur.com
Edi Matsumoto
I spent thirty years in healthcare, advocating for women and minorities who suffered from mental and physical illnesses. Now as an artist, I paint female figures to empower women, representing their innate connection to the elements of the universe. These figures are reminders of our inner goodness, beauty, strength, wisdom, and life force. I encourage women to find the goddess and warrior within them and use their power to change the world around them with their love and courage. edimatsumoto.com
Emily Puetter
We mistreated the earth a lot so I leave my piece of land absolutely free to regenerate without human “help”. Nature heals herself is the main source of inspiration and we get healed when we learn to look at it. So my paintings show the dark and the light side of it, the influence of seasons and feelings that the spectator can participate in this process. emily-puetter.com
Patricia Gould
I’m drawn to a few subjects in nature that I find perpetually intriguing and my voice is whispering a tribute to the incredible beauty of nature, only touched by the hand of humans on rare occasions. Obsessively drawn to trees, rocks, all forms of water, and skies; I portray these subjects as if they were asking me to reveal their messages to the world. angelfiredesigns.com
Links to Recommended Pages
Several artists received Special Recognition Art Awards.
“Beth Shadur, Barbara Brown and Mark Weller Received Special Recognition Art Awards”
“Edi Matsumoto, David F. Burke and Marta Gonzalez Received Special Recognition Art Awards”
Also Read “The Four Elements in Art and What They Express”
Learn About All of Our Exhibitions
Find Out About Our Calls for Artists
Visit Our Online Artist Members Gallery
Visit Our Special Friends Page
Read Famous Inspirational Quotes About Nature
Some Famous Quotes about Earth, Water, Air and Fire
“Earth’s crammed with heaven… But only he who sees, takes off his shoes.” ~ Elizabeth Barrett Browning
“And forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair.” ~ Khalil Gibran
“The sea, once it casts its spell, holds one in its net of wonder forever.” ~ Jacques Cousteau
“In one drop of water are found all the secrets of all the oceans.” ~ Kahlil Gibran
“All things share the same breath – the beast, the tree, the man… the air shares its spirit with all the life it supports.” ~ Chief Seattle
“With your fragrance in the air, I give my love to the wind.” ~ Rumi
“The difference between a good life and a bad life is how well you walk through the fire.”
~ Carl Jung
“As soon go kindle fire with snow, as seek to quench the fire of love with words.” ~ William Shakespeare
The message of this exhibit is on point with heightening our awareness for the fragile beauty that surrounds and sustains us. Wonderful works of art to behold. The writing of each artist expresses a common theme and opens the door to contemplation and further thoughts about preserving our environment. Well done!
I love this exhibition. Its so cool to see how artists interpreted this theme – the digital photography is especially creative and beautiful.
This is a beautiful exhibition of very talented artists and the messages they convey about the elements and nature. I can feel the healing energy !