Sikara Sokel is a contemporary painter hailing from Harpers Ferry, West Virginia. She is a proud graduate of Shepherd University, where she earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in May 2024. Sikara primarily works in oil paint, focusing on reimagining traditional portraiture through vibrancy, light and color. Her work has been exhibited in local and regional venues such as The Phaze 2 Gallery in Shepherdstown, WV; Two-Two-Eight Gallery in Fairmont, WV; and D’Art Center in Norfolk, VA. Her work has also been included in publications such as Sans Merci, Shepherdstown Art Magazine, You’re Not Seeing Things, Create! Magazine, and Splashland Magazine.

 Sikara is passionate about the arts, culture, and people of Appalachia. Sikara’s main goal for the future is to keep the arts alive and accessible throughout West Virginia and the Appalachian Region – to enrich and celebrate the art, and artists who make it, in this often-overlooked corner of the world.