Mario Wagner

I always pay attention to the shows that Spoke Art and their sister gallery, Hashimoto Contemporary in San Francisco, put on. And one recent show at the latter gallery was "A Glow That Transfers Creativity", a solo show by artist and illustrator, Mario Wagner. The exhibition contained technicolour paintings and installations including collage work and TVs.

German born and based in Berkeley, California, Wagner's work effortlessly combines minimalism, sci-fi, hope, despair and nostalgia.

Saul Leiter (1923-2013)

"In order to build a career and to be successful, one has to be determined. One has to be ambitious. I much prefer to drink coffee, listen to music and to paint when I feel like it."

- Saul Leiter (1923-2013)

Françoise Gilot: Artist

Françoise Gilot (b.1921) is well known for being the lover and muse of Pablo Picasso from 1944 to 1953, and the mother of his children, Claude and Paloma. However, fewer people realise that she is also an artist in her own right.

The work below shows her development from cubism through to her own style of abstract painting, a visually cleaner and brighter collection of work when compared to Picasso. Currently living in New York City and Paris, she continues to exhibit her work internationally, having exhibited at the Gagosian Gallery as recently as May 2012.