This issue’s cover artist, Dina Brodsky, was born in Minsk, Belarus. She moved to the U.S. in 1991, and now lives and works in New York City. She was educated at University of Massachusetts Amherst and the New York Academy of Art, where she received her MFA. Brodsky calls herself a contemporary realist miniaturist, painter and curator. The form, she believes, encourages viewers to focus more deeply on the subject, forcing them to pay attention to that which is usually overlooked. This is a return to a tradition that had been prominent in many over through the centuries, but has been largely abandoned in the 21st century.

Since becoming a professional, Brodsky has created several series of artworks. Her “One More Shelter” series, from which our cover image, “After Vermeer,” is taken, is based on situations she has seen since moving to New York City. “I can’t help but notice an entire generation of New Yorkers seemingly lost on their own streets,” she says. “I want to tell their stories, creating in miniature a narrative of the places they left to search for their city dreams, and of the price they paid, of the loneliness and alienation that can frequently be experienced in the multi-varied, glittering kaleidoscope of life that New York consists of.”

Other series include “Desert Places,” named for the Robert Frost poem of the same title. Each of the nine works evokes a sense of melancholy exuded by formerly occupied spaces. This series had its beginnings a few years ago, during a bicycle trip through Iceland, with its surreal and unpopulated landscape.

The series “Cycling Guide to Lilliput” is a combination of her twin passions of painting and cycling. Each miniature is an attempt to capture a specific moment from her travels. “Secret Life of Trees” explores the synergy in which all living things exist in a system of checks and balances, ultimately reliant on each other for survival. Standing firm, as the steadfast icon of this basic truth is the tree.

Brodsky is considered a social media influencer, and has more than 400,000 followers on Instagram. She teaches at several institutions, including the Castle Hill Center for the Arts, the Long Island Academy of Fine Art, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She also teaches privately. To see many additional samples of her work, reviews of her shows, and other information, visit dinabrodsky.com.