CANDICE TAVARES is a wood artist born and raised just outside of Philadelphia, PA. Her art is a celebration of Black beauty, love and culture that highlights the diversity in our hair texture and styling as well as skin complexion. Candice was formally educated in engineering and pharmacy, but her true passion has always aligned with the freedom of creativity. She was encouraged to experiment with different mediums during Saturday morning art classes and introduced to woodworking while helping her dad build and fix furniture in his woodshop. Years later she was able to combine that knowledge and experience to develop a style of art that felt uniquely hers. Though woodworking has often been classified as a more masculine art form, she does not shy away from using it to depict images of softness and femininity. She sees her art as an opportunity to celebrate Black beauty, history and resilience, while challenging the negative narratives about blackness that she sees perpetuated in healthcare and media. Her art is intended to remind viewers of their inherent beauty and value just as they are, just how God made them.

MOSES SALIHOU is a Cameroonian artist based in Toronto whose thick, tactile application of paint creates a textural intensity that mirrors the layered complexities of the human spirit. Central to Salihou’s practice is his belief that human beings are composites of identities, experiences, beliefs, memories, and emotions. His gestural mark-making intentionally leaves facial features loosely rendered, allowing the portraits to become composites of many rather than the likeness of one. In this way, the viewer is not a passive witness but is invited to participate to recognize, interpret, and locate themselves inside the work. These rich surface effects provide Salihou’s paintings with dynamism, movement, and depth capturing the fluidity of identity and personhood. His works vibrate with presence. Salihou has exhibited throughout the United States and Canada, and his work is held in private collections globally including Europe, New Zealand, Africa, Asia, Canada, and the United States. In 2025, Salihou had a sold-out presentation at EXPO Chicago and his work was featured in Art in America’s first printed edition of 2025, marking a powerful critical milestone in his career. He will now be showcasing at SCOPE Art Show, continuing his trajectory of high-profile exhibitions and continued sold-out moments across the art fair circuit.