Art Speaks Universal Language

Video

Carpet Art: Coloring the Sawdust

Local artist and Guatemalan immigrant Ubaldo Sanchez worked with friends this past October on the first step in creating Alfombras-- large decorative Guatemalan sawdust carpets that are traditionally created during Holy Week before Easter.

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"We don't need to be New York. We don't need to be Boston. We don't need to be Miami," Ratinoff said, noting the growth in art initiatives along Washington's 14th and U streets.

Ratinoff said most artists get their footing in the small, alternative spaces found in neighborhoods such as Dupont Circle, Adams Morgan and Capitol Heights.

He has found major buyers after displaying his art at a restaurant, and he shows his work at the Watergate Gallery in the District. He tells upcoming artists to exhibit anywhere, even in bathrooms, if the light is good.

Anna U. Davis, a 32-year-old painter from Sweden, also has found regular clients through her shows in alternative spaces. Davis, of Takoma Park, is still establishing herself in Washington's art scene but has formed the base of experience and audience that Sanchez and other artists newer to the area work to build.

Davis developed her artistic style in Sweden. After coming to Washington in 1998 and attending classes at the University of the District of Columbia, she added other materials, such as magazine clippings, to her acrylic paintings. It is a style not often found in government buildings around Washington, and the nudity in many of her paintings keeps them from being displayed in some places.

Despite the obstacles, Davis turned the passion for art she had working at a gallery in Lund, Sweden, into full-time work in Washington. She is now putting together a solo show for May at the Hillyer Art Space near Dupont Circle.

When people think about the District, they think "the Mall, the Capitol. You think the president; you think politics and money," she said.

But opportunities for art lie in the free museums, new galleries and alternative art spaces across the city, she said. One outlet for displaying and selling artwork is the District's Eastern Market, where more than three-dozen international artists rent stalls.

Ratinoff encourages aspiring artists to apply for grants, talk to corporations and network to make a name for their art. "I never said it's easy, but you can make it happen," he said.

Sanchez said he is taking the next steps toward reaching his dream of getting a master's degree by enrolling in classes at Northern Virginia Community College. His Guatemalan carpet designs have given him a foothold in Washington's art world. But eventually he wants to focus on his painting and have an art show.

"I always have in my mind to someday become famous," Sanchez said. "Hopefully, my dreams will come true."

Tanya Ballard Brown contributed to this article.