I am also the Workshop Chairman for the SPS and so will be busy with duties for the workshop which is held on Friday, Saturday and Sunday this weekend in Norcross GA --- and I am enrolled to take the workshop from our judge and juror, Duane Wakeham. This will be his last workshop and I could not resist the opportunity to take from such a wonderful artist and teacher. I have taken a one-day intensive "thinking" session from him at the IAPS (International Association of Pastel Societies) convention about three years ago.
He and I started a friendship at a convention in Raleigh, NC which was five years ago. Now everytime I see him, it is so much fun catching up. He loves to give me a little hard time about my "southern" accent! Yes, I do have one!
Also, I do have a painting that was accepted into the show. I think the numbers were 362 pieces were submitted for jury and only 65 pieces were accepted. So . . . it is an honor to have one accepted into this show. There are many well known artists accepted into the exhibit and from quite a number of states in the US and some from Japan. It is truely an international exhibition. Our organization is one of the best in the country. I submitted three pieces and so I won't show you yet the one accepted but here are the two that were not accepted!
The "Creek Shadows" painting is on Ampersand Pastelbord and "Cypress Dance" is on gatorfoam and has a created surface of acrylic and pumic. On this one you can see the brush strokes where I laid on the pumic mixture and much of the orange underpainting shows. I love this painting! I thought it would be the one accepted if I got one in. You just never know! They are both 24" x 18" in size.
I do plan to make some changes in the cypress painting since I have had some time to look at it. The reflection is a little bright and also some of the distant tree trunks need to be "blued" a little to create a little more aerial perspective and help them recede more. The creek painting is still sitting with a cover over it and I will wait to have more input into it at a later time. I really want the focus in this creek painting to be in the middle background which is not a normal thing for me. So, I will have to figure out a way to knock those rocks in the foreground back a little more. Right now it seems the bright green leaves are stealing the show. What do I really want to be the star of the show?
It is always fun to revisit the paintings after a space of time away from them to see what would make them better. I'll show them another time when and if I make changes.
Here is the information for the reception and show:
Southeastern Pastel Society 2010 14th International Juried Exhibition
Oglethorpe University Museum of Art
4484 Peachtree Road, N.E, Atlanta, GA 30319
404-364-8555
http://museum.oglethorpe.edu/
Exhibit Dates: May 18-June 27, 2010
Opening Reception Thursday, May 20th, 7:00-9:00 p.m.
Museum hours: Tuesday-Sunday, noon - 5:00 p.m.
Come see me at the reception and all the wonderful work that our juror accepted into the show!
