Summarized Version of the Official Manifesto of Etherealism

However, things did not quite go as planned and my artistic journey became scattered and frustrating. COVID did not help at all as I lost the ability to engage in many industry-related opportunities I used to take for granted. In 2023 I faced a dilemma that can bring a professional artist to the brink of madness: I felt adrift in my practice. I realized that instead of finding my way towards unity, joy, and peace in my practice, I lost my way. I was making all and any kinds of arts to please all and any kinds of viewers. I had strayed from my pursuit of evolving Etherealism as my personal style and my art was all over the place. It looked like the work of ten different people. Even worse - I reached a plateau. I felt bored and uninspired to create. I no longer desired to please the crowd. Later I realized: I outgrew my pond and it was time for me to step up and step forward or settle where I was. Settling seemed unappealing and hanging up my apron for good would be defeat. So I joined the Milan Mastery Program to try and "shake loose" what I knew I was capable of deep inside.

My journey with the Milan Mastery Program brought me into my own as an artist. I learned how to develop my own unique style and voice. Etherealism became a pathway lit with many lanterns along the way. I fully credit Elli Milan (2025) for stepping out on this journey with me as my personal mentor. Etherealism became evident in my work and I was able to build an entire and brand new portfolio that showcased the style as a body of work for the very first time.

Etherealism - Art Historical Roots and Attributes

Etherealism, like all coined art styles and movements must be able to hold its own within an art historical context. When I look up the art movements created by the Modern Masters in Art History (Atkins, 1990, 1993, Janson & Janson, 1992), I see clear parallels between all of them. Evident in Robert Atkins' compilations of these movements, the art movements coined in the late 1800's through 1900's had the following golden threads running through them all:

• Each movement was built around a specific style and artistic voice defining its parameters.
• Each movement was coined based on a unique discovery or process of some kind by a single artist or several artists.
• Each movement had strong roots in Art History - either to deconstruct it or extrapolate more artistic dynamism from it.
• The artists who created these movements were all avant-garde and often anti-establishment.
• The artists who coined and then developed each movement were all serious, full time professional artists.
• The artists viewed their movement as bringing positive change and challenging the established norms of the artworld.
• None of the artists or movements were initially supported by the industry at large. They had to stand their ground until the industry caught up to them.

As I continue to develop the "Manifesto of Etherealism", I will explore the above mentioned aspects of coining an art style and creating an art movement even further. For right now, I assess the attributes of Etherealism as follows:

• Etherealism expresses thematic and conceptual bridges of light between seen and unseen worlds, realms, and dimensions.
• Etherealism celebrates the natural and supernatural worlds in a positive light (Philip-Ko, 2025).
• Art Historically - Etherealism can trace back its stylistic roots to Renaissance Realism, Spiritualism, Baroque, Rococo, Surrealism, Pre-Raphaelites, and Narrative Art (Atkins, 1990, 1993). Though it can be expressed in an abstracted form, it is mostly a representational or Abtract-Realism (Milan, 2025) leaning style.
• Philosophically - Etherealism relates well to Formalism, Pluralism, Modernism, Aestheticism, and Romanticism (Atkins, 1990, 1993; Janson & Janson, 1992).
• Procedurally - Etherealism encapsulates a methodical and intentional approach to traditional and contemporary art making, following in similar traditions as utilized by the Renaissance artists, the Pre-Raphaelites, and the post-impressionist artists of the early 1900's (Atkins, 1990, 1993; Janson & Janson, 1992).
• Etherealism is not explicitly for or against the Establishment. Neither does it seek to be avant-garde for the sake of being avant-garde. It simply seeks to carve out its own space within Art History (Philip-Ko, 2025).
• Etherealism requires a decent level of artistic skill to be expressed properly. Therefore it is a style more suited to artists with some traditional art knowledge and skills already in their quiver (Philip-Ko, 2025).
• Etherealism challenges the unskilled, anti-aesthetic, and soullessly bankrupt expressions of art that Postmodernism brought into the Establishment and Western Culture. It seeks a return to more traditional norms of Beauty and Aesthetic Reverie in art (Schaeffer, 1983).
• Etherealism challenges the artist to know themselves deeply and to embrace authenticity regardless of Establishment trends or norms. The style encourages artists to find their own voice in their art and to seek out Beauty in Fine Art instead of negativity and Darker Themes (Janson & Janson, 1992; Philip-Ko, 2022, 2025).
• Etherealism has a voice of its own, calling the artist to exist and create at a higher frequency within their process, style, and voice. The artist is to step into the light of their own journey in a way that contributes to society in a positive, authentic way (Hallam et al., 2022; Philip-Ko, 2022; Plesa, 2023).

It suffices to say that Etherealism is a style of high frequency existence as described by Joe Dispenza (Dispenza,

This style and movement I coined as "Etherealism" is intended to create a counter-culture space within the art historical landscape for artists who desire to express themselves with authenticity, excellence, and an acknowledgement of our moral responsibility to care for the natural world while embracing the knowing of a world that metaphysically exists beyond our own.

No part of this document may be copied or distributed without express written permission from Avianne Philip-Ko who owns the full copyright on this document and every image inside it.  (copyright 2025, Avianne Philip-Ko, all rights reserved)