Amazing People: When Art Becomes a Calling
A story about how meeting extraordinary people changes our perspective on creativity and life
Encounters That Change Our Perspective
Throughout my life, I’ve been fortunate to meet many amazing people. Each such encounter is not just an acquaintance, but the discovery of an entire world, a new philosophy of life and creativity. Today I want to tell you about one special couple — Jill and Eric Von Berg.
Jill and Eric are an example of how two people can complement each other, creating something greater than the sum of their individual talents. They are both incredibly gifted people, but what strikes me most is their exceptional kindness and the inner light they radiate.
When I think about people who have changed my perspective on art and life, this couple will definitely be featured in the book I will write. Perhaps it will be called “Amazing People of My Life.”
We met during the period when they were building their art gallery in Arroyo Grande, California. It was a time of big plans, creative searches, and turning dreams into reality. I’m proud that one of our kinetic installations graces their gallery.
The Story of Jill and Eric Von Berg
Eric is an artist with a capital A. His paintings possess that rare ability to stop time and make the viewer freeze in admiration. Their home is a living gallery, where each wall tells its story through his works. Just like their professional gallery, this space breathes art.
Before fully dedicating themselves to art, both Jill and Eric held high positions in various well-known companies around the world. But their real story began when they decided to leave their corporate careers for what they had perhaps wanted to do all their lives — create beauty and bring it into our world.
Every meeting with them fills me with a special feeling — a sense of belonging to a great cause. A cause that somehow, in a completely inexplicable way, led me down this path as well. They became my guiding lights, people who, by the calling of their souls, dedicate all their time to their true calling.
During our last meeting, I asked Eric about his favorite artist. Hearing the answer “Caravaggio,” I wasn’t surprised. This choice reflects the depth of his understanding of art, his aspiration for the drama of light and shadow, for that emotional intensity that is inherent in his own works as well.
Perhaps in the future, many museums around the world will be proud to have Eric Von Berg’s works in their exhibitions.
The Power of Art to Inspire
If there were more people like this in our world — people who follow their calling, create beauty and share it with others — our world would be completely different. Kinder, more beautiful, more humane.
This story is a reminder that art unites people across borders and continents, creating invisible threads of connection between creative souls. At DION Art Studio, we believe in the power of art to transform spaces and people’s lives, and meetings with such amazing people as Jill and Eric Von Berg inspire us to continue this path, create new kinetic installations and make this world more beautiful.
Written by
Сo-founder & Creative director of DION ART
Master of Arts in Art Education, Public Art (School of the Art Institute of Chicago, USA)
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