MARCH 15 - 17, 2024

WINTER PARK, FLORIDA

2024 Emerging Artists

The Winter Park Sidewalk Art Festival’s Emerging Artist Program was founded in 1977 and encourages new artists to participate in the world of outdoor festivals at no cost to the selectees. Emerging Artists, who are determined through the same juried process as all of the event’s participating artists, will have the opportunity to make sales and get feedback from art patrons and judges. While Emerging Artists are not eligible for prizes, the exposure and the experience is invaluable. This year three artists were chosen for the program.


Roland

Roland Cruise
St. Cloud, FL • roland@rolandcruse.com
Booth Number: EA3

Roland Cruse grew up in Miami, and is currently living in St. Cloud, Florida, where a large part of his artistic output comes from painting in oils en plein air. "l learn so much so quickly every time I paint outdoors, and on top of that, I have a finished painting," says Cruse. His works include still life oil paintings, abstracts, and figurative works from live models.  He was a 2023 - 2024 Studio Artist in Painting and Drawing at Crealde School of Art and a 2022 Fellow in Painting and Drawing at Crealde School of Art.


 

Vandana GulatiVandana Gulati
Orlando, FL • vandanagulati13@gmail.com
Booth Number: EA1

Vandana Gulati is a self-taught artist and a mother of two, currently living in Orlando, Florida. She has a bachelor’s degree in psychology, followed by a master’s in human resource management. Since childhood, drawing and painting have been her cherished hobbies and now she finally has time to dedicate to these passions. Her art serves as a means to convey her perception of the world’s beauty and its enchantment while maintaining a touch of realism. Vandana explores various themes, including landscapes, wildlife, and the vastness of nature, employing mediums like graphite, charcoal, and pastel pencils. Beyond the confines of the canvas, here purpose transcends mere artistic expression; it involves creating awareness and fostering empathy and responsibility toward endangered species and their diminishing habitats. The animals she brings to life in her creations aren’t mere subjects—they serve as ambassadors for a delicate ecosystem on the verge of collapse.


 

Molly

Mallory Nagler
Winter Park, FL mforrestn@gmail.com
Booth Number: EA2

Mallory Nagler grew up in Winter Park, Florida. Her father had a passion for photography and her mother is an artist. She attended Winter Park High School where she enrolled in her first photography course in her senior year. She used her family’s Olympus 35mm film camera to learn the basics and complete various projects in and out of the dark room. She received her first digital camera, a Nikon D60, in 2009 and used it to explore travel photography, portrait photography, and many other subjects. In 2020, she switched to a mirrorless Nikon Z 6II and enrolled in an online photography course in the spring of 2023 to continue learning. She enjoys taking photos of people, places, things, and a lot of books, but more recently has loved experimenting with motion blur and multiple exposures.