Artist Statement & Biography
How to communicate the subdued pleasantness of a perfect summer day, the internal quiet of a sunset, or the sound of leaves crackling underfoot? These are experiences that we take for granted, the essence of which, if distilled, should impart the essential pleasure of that perfect light, a scent in the air, the sound of silence. I strive to push the boundaries between photography and other art forms to communicate the inherent vibrance of the world around us.
An award-winning artist and owner of Ghostwolf Gallery, Amy’s artistic process is a fusion of original photography and digital techniques to create playful, iconic images from the imagination. Her bold, vibrant, fantastical, and undeniably fun digital collages evoke a sense of wonder and irreverence and have been displayed widely around the state of New Mexico. Best known for her “After Oz” series, Amy’s new media collages depict scenes and tell stories with a distinctive vision and quirky sense of humor.
Amy’s career has followed a circuitous route. Beginning with the gift of an SLR camera on her 18th birthday and subsequent training in Fine Art Photography at the University of New Mexico, she went on to earn a BA in Psychology and ultimately a PhD in Ecology. Seeking a change of direction in 2010, she and her husband Stefan founded Aperture Photography, which provides commercial photography services.
Her artistic career since that time has been extraordinary in its trajectory. Within a year of taking a beginning Photoshop course aimed at basic editing for portraiture and event photography, she was entering her Fine Art in juried shows and winning awards from jurors the likes of Patrick Nagatani and Regina Held. Since that time her work has been featured at the Hubbard Museum of the American West, the UNM Popejoy Hall Benefactor’s Lounge, and has been the feature art for the Placitas Artists’ Series and the 27th Annual Rio Grande Arts & Crafts Festival. (The festival won an honorable mention in Sunshine Artist Magazine for the poster created utilizing her image “Dia de Los Moo-uertos” in a national competition against other high-end juried shows.) She has been named a “Local Treasure” bv the Albuquerque Art Business Association, and has work installed in public buildings around the state of New Mexico. Her work has also been featured in a variety of publications including Shadow & Light and Diffusion, has donned book covers, and just made people laugh.
Skilled in graphic design and post-production, Amy now works and teaches as an artist full-time. As an extension of her love of Fine Art she opened Ghostwolf Gallery in Albuquerque Old Town, a contemporary gallery focused on highlighting the work of local artists with a truly unique vision. Amy is actively involved in promoting the arts, having served as Vice President of the Corrales Society of Artists and currently serving as their Social Media Manager. Additionally, she volunteers her skills to several prominent shows and galleries in central NM.
You can purchase of her work via this website or call 505.286.1127
Curriculum vitae
professional
2016-present Owner/Curator Ghostwolf Gallery
2020-present Board of Directors Albuquerque Art Business Association
2015-2017 Vice President CSA/New Mexico Artists’ Market
2013-present Social Media Manager CSA/New Mexico Artists’ Market
2016-2019 Santa Fe Artists Market
2010-present Co-owner Aperture Photography
awards
2019 2019 “Local Treasure” award from the Albuquerque Art Business Association
2016 Winner’s Showcase, “Red Head #2: The Flapper”, Color it Red 2016, Red Dog News
2016 Winner’s Showcase, “Immaculate Perception”, Color it Red 2016, Red Dog News
2016-2017 Branding artist for the Placitas Artists’ Series
2016 Branding artist for the Corrales Art & Studio Tour
2016 Best Digital Artist, New Mexico Arts & Crafts Festival
2015 Honorable mention, Rio Grande Arts & Crafts Festival Poster Art, Sunshine Artist Magazine
2015 Poster & T-shirt Artist, 27th Annual Balloon Fiesta Show, Rio Grande Arts & Crafts Festival
2015 Best Digital Artist, New Mexico Arts & Crafts Festival
2015 First Place “Dia de los Moo-uertos”; “Temptation” & “Local Geometry” winner’s showcase gallery- Color it Red, Red Dog News
2014 Best Booth New Mexico Wine Festival at Bernalillo
2014 Juror’s Choice “Meanwhile, Back in Kansas” & winner’s circle “Dead Head”- Color it Red, Red Dog News & Matrix Fine Art
2013 Honorable mention “Intensity”- Color it Red, (Red Dog News)
2013 Honorable mention “Solace” abq ARTS 6th Annual Editor’s Choice Photo Contest
2012 Honorable mention “Straw Horse”- 21st Annual Fall American Photography Competition at the Hubbard Museum of the American West
2011 Second Place “Where There’s Smoke”- IMAGE New Mexico
one-man shows
2017 March-May: Popejoy Hall Benefactor’s Lounge, Albuquerque, NM
2016 June/July: “On & Around The Route” (Recognizing 90th Anniversary of the Mother Road), Loma Colorado Main Library, Rio Rancho, NM
2016 March: Popejoy Hall Benefactor’s Lounge, Albuquerque, NM
2013 December 2013: O’Niell’s Irish Pub– Artist of the Month
select juried exhibitions
2019 “Movers & Shakers: Artists Who Teach, Lead, & Inspire”- NM Cancer Center
2015 March/April: Black & White Group Exhibition- New Mexico Art League
2014-2016 Placitas Artists’ Series
2011; 2014 IMAGE NM
2013-2019 Corrales Art & Studio Tour
2012; 2013; 2014 In Sight NM
2012 In the Mind’s Eye: Albuquerque Photographers Gallery
2011-2014; 2017 December: Annual New Mexico Photographic Art Show
2012-2013 Fall/Spring: 21st Annual Fall American Photography Exhibition at the Hubbard Museum of the American West
published work
2017 March/April edition Shadow & Light Magazine, Showcase Portfolio
2015 Spring edition Malpais Review, front & back cover art “San Francisco Skyline” & “Meanwhile, Back in Kansas”
2015 Local Flavor Magazine “Winter on Canvas” featuring “Solace”
2015 May/June edition Shadow & Light Magazine , “Local Geometry”, showcase image
2014 September/October edition Shadow & Light Magazine “Meanwhile, Back in Kansas”, showcase image
2014 2014 Calendar CSA/New Mexico Artists’ Market. Featured artist “Dark & Stormy Night”- June. “Solace” honorable mention, back cover
2013 July/August edition abq Arts 6th Annual Editor’s Choice Photo Contest: “Solace”, honorable mention
2012 Volume IV: Diffusion Magazine, Muse Showcase, “Blue Chamisa #5”
public collections
Fred Luna Multi-generational Center, Los Lunas, New Mexico
Tularosa Senior Center, Tularosa, New Mexico
private collections
Works held in private collections across the United States & Europe.
judging experience & mentoring:
2019 Judge, Pictures of the Year, Enchanted Lens Camera Club
2019 Judge, Encantada Annual Juried Exhibition Sponsored by the Rio Grande Art Association
2017 Student Mentor, Albuquerque Public Schools
2015 Juror, ANMPAS
2015 Judge, Patterns & Textures for the Enchanted Lens Camera Club
2013-2015;2017 Juror, Annual METRO Photography Competition for Albuquerque High School Students
2013 Juror, The Way I See It, Annual Juried Show at The Albuquerque Photographers’ Gallery