2026 SF Literary Review Covers:
Ouija River
by Arlene Tribbia
Santa Fe Literary Review
Vol. 21 - 2026
Resistence: Grit, Rebellion, and Dissent
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The Abbey Road Expedition: My Grandmother Leading Others
in Search of a Little Help from the Beatles. . . in These Hard Times
by Michael Andryc
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An Artist’s Statement | Michael Andryc
2026 SF Literary Review pp. 40-41; 110
My “Contemporary Folk Art Pop,” embodies elements of folk art through centuries worldwide and incorporates pop culture references for social commentary. Through this amalgamation, I express how I feel about being alive, about the past, present, and the ephemeral unknown. Action-packed narratives and titles play a large part in my work – as do the use of satire, parody, and allusion.
For subject matter, I draw from dreams, jokes, family history, current and ancient events, famous people and paintings, mythology, and my imagination. Stylistically, I use a saturated color palette, hard lines, and flat surfaces to attract the observer to my messages and intent. Alongside visual enjoyment, I also wish to provoke thought, evoke humor, and pose messages for problem solving and hope.
Self-taught, I have studied many master artists such as Chagall, Kahlo, Modigliani, Picasso, Rousseau, Van Gogh, and Warhol. In addition, the painters of the Yugoslavian Primitive School, the iconography of the Catholic church, and the art of David Bradley of New Mexico have been major influences.
My Polish ancestry is infused in much of my artwork. One of my longest running series, “Selling My Own Grandmother,” features one of my Polish grandmothers, Anna Andryc. A powerful figure, she spoke a language I didn’t understand, and her past was seldom mentioned in either English or Polish. She appears as an archetype, a symbol of the resilience, inherent strength, and imagination of the Immigrant–American experience. Her adventures – and misadventures – run the gambit of the human condition.
Coming Soon!
2026 NEW MEXICO STATE FAIR
An Evening of the Arts
Wednesday, September 9 from 6:00 - 8:00 pm
One night only!
ALL* art galleries will be open with
FREE parking and admission.
Open to the public. Hope to see you there!
FINE ARTS GALLERY | Professional Artists' Division
Breaking Free (On Route 66)
By Michael Andryc
Acrylic on Canvas, Gallery Wrapped
12" (H) x 24" (W) x 2" (D)
FINE ARTS GALLERY | Professional Artists' Division
My Father Fishing with Picasso
(After 'Night Fishing at Antibes')
By Michael Andryc
Acrylic on Canvas, Gallery Wrapped
16" H x 20" W x 2" W
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FINE ARTS GALLERY | Professional Artists' Division
The Day Salvador Dali Came to My Hometown #2
By Michael Andryc
Acrylic on Canvas, Gallery Wrapped
21" H x 21" W x 2" W
*ALL of the galleries will be open on September 9th, Preview Night | An Evening of the Arts, including:
African American, Fine Arts, Hispanic, Native American, and Youth.
All sales of artwork are handled at the respective gallery with 25% of the sale price benefitting the NM State Fair.
Sales of fine art prints (giclees) will go on sale September 10, 2026.
Thank you for supporting the arts and artists in New Mexico!
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Painted by the Wolfman
(left) purchased by the Bernalillo County Arts Board for the Bernalillo County Public Arts Permanent Collection, is now installed at the fun-filled Paradise Hills Community Center | Senior Annex at 6100 Paradise Blvd NW, Albuquerque, NM 87114.
Thank you to everyone involved in the process!
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Painted by the Wolfman | The Back Story | By Michael Andryc The “wolf” figure has appeared intermittently in my body of artwork over the past five decades. Having studied the illuminated manuscripts that the monks in Europe created during the Dark Ages – especially the Book of Kells – I was awestruck by what I saw. In the monks’ works were animals adorned with haloes, fancy lettering, and what appeared to be artistic doodles in the margins. This inspired me as a young man to create my own mythology using the wolf as my personal spirit guide. In Painted by the Wolfman, I imagined having the Wolfman finally paint me - instead of the other way around. He appears on the canvas as if from another dimension, emerging through two portals – one for each foot – and he appears to be enjoying the turn-about. As one of my artistic alter egos, the Wolfman conveys both social commentary and my own internal reflections about life. I was honored to receive a third-place ribbon in acrylic painting for this picture from KOB TV-4, one of the sponsors of the 2022 New Mexico State Fair (Professional Artists’ Division). That award encouraged me to paint six new pieces which have also appeared at the NM State Fair’s Fine Arts Gallery, 2023, 2024, and 2025. In addition, the Wolfman headlined my 50-year Retrospective, “The Hour of the Wolf(Man)” in 2023 at the Step-Up Gallery at the Mesa Public Library in Los Alamos, NM. The exhibition featured more than 60 of my original paintings from the Wolfman series and several other of my long-running series. More information about my life and samples from my oeuvre of Contemporary Folk Art Pop can be viewed at https://www.MichaelAndryc.com/. I am pleased that Painted by the Wolfman has been so well received. And I am grateful that the County of Bernalillo Public Arts Board has chosen to add this artwork of mine to its permanent collection. Perhaps it will serve to inspire other artists and will be seen and enjoyed by current and future generations. Thank you! – Michael Andryc, Artist Albuquerque, New Mexico Spring 2026
Mailing Address
Michael Andryc Art
P.O. Box 67073
Albuquerque, NM 87193-7073
