At a first glance, the artwork is beautiful, romantic, and even sensual. Then one looks closer at Vicki Visconti-Tilley's Art of Enchantment, Faery, & Myth and a forgotten ancient world is discovered. We see glimpses of our past, born from Vicki's European ancestry. Her images are filled with wondrous visions of chivalry, light as air nymphs skipping through mist infused forests, or ethereal fairies floating on gossamer wings. Dragons with brilliant purple and gold wings swooping over stark cliffs filled with dark gnarled trees that seem to be born, not of earth, but of man. Other images include the pillars of a Mayan ruin mysteriously covered in Celtic knots that form the backdrop for a wayward siren. Where did she come from? What is she thinking? Some paintings have faeries that hold keys seemingly to nothing, while others hide women in the shape of a tree or a faery mermaid rides a sea horse stallion on a stormy sea, under a Celtic moon. Her work flows with mystical beauty. By working in rich jeweled colors and earth tones, Vicki adds to the timelessness of the paintings, making them not about a single story, but more of universal emotion, such as joy, contentment, or satisfaction. These images come to Vicki through memories that have been passed down through her very soul for centuries.

It is one thing to dream of magical realms of old, another to translate them into masterpieces of watercolor and oil, or sometimes pen & ink and colored pencil. Ms. Visconti-Tilley does it, if not effortlessly, at least relatively so. She is a master illustrator with many book credits. The rich colors she uses in her paintings vibrate with emotion and are achieved by layering color, whatever medium she is using. A glazing effect is achieved by placing color upon color, upon color, until one can see down into the work. This layering is also representational of the connectivity we all share, and reminds us of a time when all living things were more intertwined. One can see the influences of her love of ancient history in all of her work. Although Vicki's style is completely her own, she has been influenced by, the Pre-Raphaelites, Arthur Rackham, and modern day fantasy masters including Brian Froud and Alan Lee.

By winning the first historic Muse Award for Drawing at the ARTV Premier Fine Arts Award show, Vicki certainly has arrived, and with a style quite unique. Spectators were enthralled when she emerged from the limo at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas, where the Awards were televised on October 29, 2005, wearing shimmering faerie wings and a gown that looked as if it was spun from silver and amber, with crystals flowing around her. Accompanied by her family, friends and licensing agent Carol Perciavalle, from Land of Myth & Not, Vicki seemed to float down the red carpet. Could it be that she knows more about faeries than she tells? How did she get to be on that red carpet? "Hard work and believing in your dreams!" says the artist. "But mostly hard work." Starting her career at the age of three in the "Land of Enchantment", New Mexico, she credits much of her success to her parents. "My mother taught me to color outside the lines and my dad drove me to every art show I could enter." She received a scholarship to New Mexico State University and she is a graduate of Al Collins Graphic Design School. She has attended dozens of workshops and classes, always trying to improve her technique. With her outstanding achievements, it is evident she learned her lessons well.

Her talent is indisputable, but she is also a tremendous force in art advocacy in the Southwest. She has taught over four thousand kids in this lifetime and continues to champion children's art by participation in such events as judging for the international Art Quotient Art Annual student art competition. With her artist's in residency program, at the Lied's Children Discovery Museum, seven previously untrained high school students and herself created a mural titled "Tapestry of Dragons and Unicorns," which has become a permanent installation at this Las Vegas, Nevada Museum. Vicki continues to support art in education and is always available to help a child.

It is said that all artists have their quirks. Instead of being in her art studio, Vicki creates best surrounded by chaos: her eighteen month old grandson, daughter, husband, two cats, and music playing whether it be Celtic ballets, Rock, or Alternative. As she paints, she listens to music with a story, something with emotion, just like her art. Some how she transports herself, and therefore her viewers, back in time. She brings us an encapsulated vision of a distant and archaic land where magic is real, dragons do fly, and faeries are friends to humankind. To learn more about her Art of Enchantment, please visit Vicki on her website at www.vickiviscontitilley.com.

Debbe Sussman
Art Consultant, Gallery P
Las Vegas Nevada
Email:debsussman@aol.com