Blooms for a Wedding Accepted into International Guild of Realism Fall Salon Online Exhibition which will run from Oct. 20 - Dec. 20, 2023. 202 works were selected from over 627 entered. The inspiration for this piece was an iPhone photo I took on son's wedding day. The Morton Arboretum was the location for the reception and the August pathways were bursting with glorious flowers.
In January, I received an email from the Colored Pencil Society of America reminding me to send an entry for the upcoming 31st Annual International Exhibition because I was ONE acceptance away from signature status. No pressure, right? This is THE exhibition for colored pencil artists. I'm doing a happy dance because I received word the The Morel of the Story was one of the 101 selected works. The Exhibition runs from July 2 - 30, 2023 at the Summit Hotel in Cincinnati.
Getting into the very prestigious Colored Pencil Society of America Annual International Exhibition is always one of my goals. My piece Manitowish River Rocks will travel to Florida for the 30th Annual Colored Pencil Society of America International Exhibition. The show runs from July 11 - Nov. 15 2022. I am honored to be a part of this show.
Getting into the very prestigious Colored Pencil Society of America Annual International Exhibition has been one of my goals, no, make that dreams. This year I made it! My piece Old Growth in the Porkies will join works from 126 colored pencil artists (800 entered) for an online exhibit beginning July 15, 2020. This show is usually held in a gallery, but was changed to online due to Covid restrictions. I am honored to be a part of this show.
Water Shapes Rock - The Apostle Islands, Lake Superior and Lily Pads, Morton Arboretum Children's Garden were juried into the McCord Gallery Drawn to Water Show. The McCord Gallery and Cultural Center is located in Palos Park, IL. The show was to open on in March of 2020, but Covid 19 restrictions turned it into on online show. Water Shapes Rock is a colored pencil on drafting film piece and Lily Pads is oil pastel on watercolor paper.
Wisteria and Hydrangea, Morton Arboretum Children's Garden was juried into International Guild of Realism Spring Salon 2020 online exhibit. The show ran from March 20 - June 20, 2020, but can still be viewed on the IGOR website. There were oer 700 entries from 20 countries. Of these, 215 were chosen for the show.
Old Growth in the Porkies and Peony Time were juried into the Fusion Art 5th Annual Artist's Choice Art Exhibition online juried show. There were 441 entries from artists all around the world so competition was stiff. 100 pieces were selected for inclusion. The show ran during the month of February, 2020
"Peony Time" was juried into the 14th Annual International Guild of Realism Exhibition, held at the Principle Gallery in Alexandria, Virginia. which opened on Sept. 20, 2019. The work was awarded Best Floral. Over 450 paintings were entered in this show, with 92 selected for inclusion.
Portraits should express the personality of the subject and this one really does. Rose is serious and intelligent, playful and silly. The reference photo for this piece was taken on Valentine's Day in a crowded restaurant with lots of background "noise" and the table she was leaning on was black, so... artistic license. The black background and foreground makes for drama and focuses the attention on Rose. An Icarus heated painting board was used and was a big help in rendering the dark background. That black consists of multiple layers of color - crimson, indigo, dark green, and 3 brands of black pencil Pencils used - Prismacolor, Derwent Lightfast, Polychromos, and Luminance. The substrate is Arches Aquarelle Hot Press #140.
The Chicago area was experiencing record cold this winter - -23F with dangerous wind chills - so I decided I needs some Spring in my life. I checked my files of photos from the Morton Arboretum, always an inspiration for floral paintings. This peony lives on the Joy Path there (named for Joy Morton, the founder of the Arboretum). That area is one of my favorite spots to snap reference photos as the flowers are always posing.
