Toni Peers

One of ShopKeepArty's early featured artists, Toni teaches specialist crafts to adults, including Enamelling, Encaustic art, Silver Clay jewellery, Felt making and Flamework. She runs small classes from her Colchester workshop, as well as other venues in the UK.

Vanidas Mangathil

Vanillas is from India, currently based in Bangalore. He first picked up a paintbrush in 2015 whilst taking a break from a software job. He has since then been pursuing his art.

He is a self taught watercolorist who loves a loose approach with impressionistic details.

Vicente Garcia Fuentes

The most important thing for Vicente is the atmosphere in the painting, characterised by his wet work. Especially landscapes, skies and Nordic scenes.

Currently a member of the IWS Spain team, Vicente has participated in many international selections and exhibitions, including Iceland, USA, China, Italy, India, France, Vietnam and the Czech Republic

Vladislav Yeliseyev

The Russian émigré came to the Unites States in the 1980s equipped with a classical art education from the Moscow School of Art and a Master’s Degree in architecture. Now a renowned watercolour and plein air artist, Vladislav has become a popular speaker and demonstrator at conventions in the United States, as well as a jury member and a judge of many national and regional watercolour and plein air competitions. His work has won numerous prominent awards including Best of Show, First Place, Collector’s Choice, The BoldBrush Awards and more. Visit his website here.

Vladislav is an exhibiting member of many art societies nationwide, and a Signature member of prestigious American Impressionist Society, National Watercolor Society, and Florida Watercolor Society. His work has been widely represented in print media in the USA and Europe, including but not limited to the 2016 February issue of Watercolor Artist magazine (USA) which featured his painting “Royal Opera” on the front cover, the 2017 June/July issue of PleinAir Magazine (USA) and the 2018 March issue of Art of Watercolour (France).

Willie Schlechter

Willie Schlechter was born in 1982 in Joubertina, South Africa and attended the Department of Fine Arts at the University of Stellenbosch. In 2004 he received a BA FA (Fine Art) degree and subsequently an MPhil VA (Illustration) degree in 2008. At this time, he started teaching Visual Art and Design at Stellenberg High School in the northern suburbs of Cape Town. At the end of 2016 he resigned in order to focus on his career as a visual artist.

During the course of his studies Willie worked in various mediums and techniques, from painting and printmaking to photography and film. However, his love for painting and realism was most encouraged while doing a watercolour course in botanical illustration by Vicki Thomas as part of his postgraduate studies. Since then he has worked mainly in watercolour within the genre of botanical art, and have received awards at various events, including the Kirstenbosch Botanical biennale, Cape Town (2010 - bronze, 2013 - bronze); World Orchid Conference, Pretoria (2015 - merit) and Botalia, Painted Flora, Lucca (2010 - silver).

In March 2019, Willie had his first botanical art solo at the Woordfees festival in Stellenbosch, titled Uproot. The works explored some of the plants that played a role in (mis)shaping the socio-political and cultural landscape of the Cape.

Willie depicts plants as "portraits". He approaches the subject matter as he does the human figure, with a definite, yet delicate analytical investigation, while at the same time aiming to capture the personality and essence of the plan.

His botanical paintings are digitally reproduced and manufactured into a collection of interior products that include fabrics, scatter cushions, tablecloths, wallpapers, ceramics and art prints. His work is included in the Grootbos Florilegium, and he is a committee member of BAASA (Botanical Artists Association of South Africa).

Willie is currently teaching Visual Art at the PJ Olivier Art Centre in Stellenbosch.