Oriental Steampunk Dragon Print

Since Phil Ventrello works with such a broad array of subjects, styles and genres, it’s difficult to pinpoint a particular piece in his collection of art that clearly identifies him. In fact, his diverse body of work has made his art very popular across a wide spectrum of peoples' tastes.  His eclectic, creative process blends his raw and fertile imagination with high end contemporary digital art skills seamlessly interwoven with traditional painting, illustration and mixed media. His father was an art teacher, painter, photographer and musician, so he grew up immersed in an artsy environment. Remarkably, he and his father have different tastes, but his love of mixed media, collage and assemblage grew out of his admiration for his father’s unique artwork. Ventrello’s history has been a mixture of graphic design and fine arts. In 1987 Ventrello earned his BFA from Edinboro University of PA, and landed his first job as a graphic designer. Eventually he held positions as an Art Director at 3 separate advertising agencies, all the while enjoying his family life with his wife and 3 kids. He occasionally exhibited at art galleries, but during most of his successful career in graphic design and advertising, Phil’s fine art production was really limited for many years. As circumstances changed over time, he decided in 2009 to form his own graphic design/digital illustration company, SANCTUS, which specialized in digital artwork for home decor, apparel, and sports and electronic products. He began to license his artwork and really use his skills to explore new markets that allowed him to freely express his interests in, among others, gothic, oriental, fantasy, assemblage and abstract art. In 2013 his company’s direction evolved entirely into an offshoot business promoting and marketing a martial arts product he invented. His leadership role, by necessity, pulled him away from his focus on creating artwork to the demands of nurturing a new business. As a consequence, over the years invested in this venture, his artwork output naturally dwindled. Today, with his business on a solid foundation and successful, he has gladly embraced the freedom he has once again to plunge back into the world of art creation he loves so much. You can expect to see much more!