And the arts cover contest winner is ... Sarah Stieber!

Sarah Stieber paints in what she calls “Electric Realism,” a style that projects the “amplification of real life,” and uses bright, vivid colors that suggest “wishful seeing.” Stieber created “Fierce” in 2014, originally intending the 48˝x 48˝ oil painting as part of her Dolls series, which she describes as an “overstylized, fashion-y series of doll-like characters.” But as she painted, “Fierce” took on a deeper meaning. “Each of the hands covered in jewels are these bright, flashy, seductive forces in society that are constantly bombarding all of us,” Stieber says, “and in the image her gaze is very fierce, focused and concentrated. It has, to me, a sense of peace within the chaos.”

Stieber, 26, graduated from Boston University in 2010 and then returned to San Diego, where she grew up. Today, she paints in her studio at 3rdSpace in University Heights. The “Fierce” original currently hangs at OBR Gallery on Ray Street in North Park as part of a solo show featuring Stieber’s work. The closing reception takes place Saturday, February 7. Her work will also be featured in a juried show at the Oceanside Museum of Art, which opens March 7. See the artist’s website, SarahStieber.com, for more information on where to find her work.