Alaska is the principal cohesive theme of art by local artists. They find inspiration in the wilderness and the unique people around them.

Igor Pasternak, 39, is likewise stimulated by his surroundings, and often uses Alaska as a muse in paintings that capture elements of his life.

This untitled piece has several features representing Alaska to Pasternak, like the guns and targets used for hunting or the collaged "Jesus freak" in the corner. The dangling objects are small bundles and are also Alaskan because they were created in a manner similar to traditional Yupik masks.

He views his art as manifestations of his thoughts. He explained his motivations in creating mixed media pieces by saying: "The collage is the projection of thoughts inside my head onto the flat surface."

He starts out with one element, one shape, and builds from there, layering ideas on top of each other. He keeps the ideas that look good and has learned to intuit many artistic principals, like balancing shapes and contrasting colors for heightened effect.

This particular painting consists of mostly rounded elements, including the large piece of a sweatshirt that dominates the central part of the frame and inspired the circular, geometric theme that includes bullet holes and targets. To Pasternak, the skill of the craftsman who creates a piece is just as vital as the initial idea that spawned the painting.

He doesn't enjoy creating paintings that are realistic depictions of something because he doesn't think it is challenging. For Pasternak, real talent is in the ability of an artist to reach into his or her mind and find a subject, to use thought rather than something substantial, to fashion a likeness from.