Chasing Ghosts 9 Artists share the inspiration behind their haunting expressions
- Jennifer Gillia Cutshall
- 2 days ago
- 4 min read
Updated: 4 hours ago
"This photographic work "I'm Still Here" reflects a period of profound loss—
of home, community, and many years' worth of artistic labor/original painted works—alongside the disorienting effects of aging and society’s quiet erasure of relevance. It is a visual manifestation on grief, resilience, and the search for identity amid impermanence."
Shannon Hunter
"Al Capone's cell at Eastern State Penitentiary. Doesn't look like a cell of a ruthless gangster. I found that ray of light almost spiritual or angelic. The flowers, though, maybe a bit much? I am sure Mr. Capone was full of repentance and atonement and never committed crime again.
We love to preserve our criminals and their legacies."
Alina Dolitsky
"I was drawn to “Chasing Ghosts” because much of my work lives between grief and mutation — the moment when beauty and terror blur. In my series Nuclear Waste: Mutant Creatures, I explore humanity’s fear of the unseen — radiation, contamination, and the silent decay that follows. These invisible forces, like ghosts, drift across species and generations, altering life at the molecular level. I use textile techniques such as crochet, knitting, and 3D printing to materialize what cannot be seen — the distorted, luminous remnants of what was once natural. Through these hybrid forms, I reflect on how memory mutates under trauma and how melancholy can coexist with fragile hope. The act of stitching becomes both mourning and reconstruction — a way to honor what is lost while imagining what might still survive."
Peiyang Li
"Currently I'm finding I'm being called to stop telling stories with pictures and to let the art materials and my physical and spiritual energy of making tell the story. In the case of "My Memories", a tangle of hand-torn canvas strips and sewn words becomes a tangible holder of presence and the past."
Sam Yamauchi
"Our environment reflects our hidden thoughts, ideas, and emotions. I want to express action and transformation as if nature were the setting for creation, bringing things to the surface and giving rise to new species. What is inside
must come out to heal. Nature does it in every cycle, in every season, in every storm, in us too."
Maria Botti Villegas
"I was attracted to Verum's theme "Chasing Ghosts" because, for me, it represents seeking help in coping with the loss I have experienced. I believe there is no definitive way to get over the loss of a loved one; rather, we continually find ways to see, feel, or hear that person in our everyday lives. This artwork reflects that ongoing process."
Tarja J. Harney
"What you see and what you don't see. Reflection...Refraction...the real deal! A spirit when needed!"
Harry Longstreet
"The theme of ghosts fascinates me because it suggests there may be something beyond our ordinary existence. Ghosts also embody memories or emotions that linger after loss. For me, One Lost Ember captures the memory of the devastating wildfires that ravaged Los Angeles on January 7, 2025. As I watched the destruction unfold, the painting became a cathartic way to process the tragedy. Despite the flames, the tree embodies majesty, resilience, and hope. The profits from this work will be donated to support victims of the LA fires."
Janet Antepara
"My artwork stems from my access to the unconscious. My anxieties, hopes, fears, and memories are all essential components of my artistic process. Sometimes the images have a certain dreamlike quality to them."
Richard Cutshall
"During my last visit to Boston for my older niece’s wedding, my sister and I were relaxing and catching our breath after the big event. I was in the dining room and kept hearing the crinkle of wrapping paper from the living room. I got up and peaked around the corner and caught my sister rifling through some late wedding gifts for her daughter. I shouted, “Hey, I now have photographic evidence to show Karen that you were peeking at HER presents.” We both started laughing like we were kids again! This visit was the last time we saw each other.
Later that same year, as the sun rose on the last day I was in my sister's home after her funeral, I snapped photos of spaces I had known for 40 years but would never see again. The rooms were empty without her and yet I felt the warm glow of her presence."
Ruth A. Keitz
"My artwork explores the powerful forces of nature and biology in real and imaginary compositions. A consistent thread in my work is the idea of change and evolution. Nature exists as an ultimate force. These forces can be subtle or overt and exist as both scientific and phenomenological in my work. I attempt to capture the magic of these forces and the relationship of the human condition to these ever-changing environments. Many of my subjects are often meant as historical symbols of the eroding relationship between humans and nature."
Matteo Neivert
"The haunting expression of the nude woman in the window is enough..."
George Krause
"She sweeps with many-colored brooms". -- Emily Dickinson
Quote shared by Rhonda Urdang