Congratulations to our
Second Place Award of Excellence Winner
STEPHEN VON MASON
Stephen was awarded the second place in
The San Diego Museum of Art Artists Guild's
2026 ONLINE JURIED INTERNATIOAL EXHIBITION
juried by Tina Yapelli
Professor of Art and Design, Senior Curator
University Art Gallery School of Art and Design, San Diego State University
for his
Oil on Canvas Guardians of Light.
Please view the exhbition on the Artists Guild's Online Gallery on the Guild's website: www.sdmaag.org
About Stephen:
Stephen Von Mason is an American painter and printmaker whose work explores African American history, cultural memory, resilience, love, and the possibility of healing through art. Born in South Bend, Indiana, Mason earned a BFA in printmaking from the John Heron School of Art in Indianapolis and an MFA from the San Francisco Art Institute, where he studied painting and printmaking. His artistic practice has been shaped by a lifelong engagement with the history and lived experiences of African Americans, as well as by his belief that art can challenge cultural erasure while creating space for reflection, connection, and renewal. Based in the Bay Area, Mason has exhibited widely and has spent much of his career both creating and teaching art. His vibrant figurative paintings bring together intense color, symbolic imagery, nature, and human relationships to explore the enduring strength of identity, community, love, and the human spirit.
Recent Exhibitions:
2026 - Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History, MAH, Survey, Santa Cruz, CA2026 - National Art League Annual, New York, NY
2026 & 2019 - Venice Biennial Project, Venice, Italy
2025 - Sausalito Center for the Arts Open, Sausalito, CA
2024 - Whitelock Art Center, (Excellence Award Winner,) New York, NY
2023 - The deYoung Museum of Art Open Triennial, San Francisco, CA
About Guardians of Light:
Guardians of Light celebrates love, companionship, and the sacred relationship between humanity and the natural world. At the center of the painting, a couple stands together within an abundant landscape filled with birds, flowers, trees, and animals, their presence suggesting that they are not simply inhabitants of this world but its caretakers and protectors. The vibrant colors and luminous forms transform the landscape into a place of possibility, where nature becomes a metaphor for renewal, growth, and hope. The couple's quiet connection represents the strength found in loving partnership—the understanding that we are not meant to journey through life alone. For me, the "guardians" are those who protect what gives life: love, family, community, memory, beauty, and the natural world. Guardians of Light ultimately asks us to consider what we choose to preserve and what kind of light we will carry forward for those who come after us.
Website: https://vonmasonart.com
