In one of the museums, a program will be held in conjunction with the exhibition Their animal friends, in which six local artists will show their individual approach to animal painting. The requirement for each of the artists is to create an animal-themed painting for the museum’s galleries and then tell visitors how they used certain methods and techniques to capture the image and spirit of the animals in the paintings. The museum’s executive director said that animals have a special meaning for people of all cultures and backgrounds.
The dove acts as a sign of peace and the buffalo is more of a spiritual symbol. A good omen can be associated with a red-tailed hawk while dogs indicate dear friends. Animals remain a worldwide favorite, considering how they have been the subjects of artistic endeavors since the beginning of time from petroglyphs to wall caves to oil paintings to jewelry.
A passionate explorer of ideas, styles and techniques is what this artist considers herself to be. When she developed her methods, it was over a long career in teaching, in workshop presentations, publications, and consulting. A founding member of the National Society of Watercolorists, she is on the Who in the West list.
Another artist to come from Southern California, she learned art and watercolor before moving to her hometown in 1983. What she works with are subjects like landscapes and floral studies as well as portraits of people and animals. Her aggressive use of pigment not to mention her ability to push the watercolor medium into works of extraordinary scale without sacrificing the sheer brilliance of watercolor can be attributed to her style according to the director.
At one of the famous colleges where an artist studied, not to mention the Art Center at the College of Design in Los Angeles. It was in Chicago where he was a graphic designer and had experience with exhibitions including the National Gallery of Watercolor in the Environment. In addition to local and regional venues, each artist will also give presentations and publications in Springfield, Illinois.
The fourth artist graduated with distinction from the New York College of the Arts, after a period of study at the University of California, Los Angeles. Best in Show was what she won at the Washington School of Art’s Twelfth Annual Competition. One reviewer described her work as giving a precious glimpse into the human drama full of psychological anguish as parts of a famous director’s film.
At the University of Kansas School of Fine Arts, the artist earned her fifth degree in painting. While she paints in her realistic interpretive style, she provides viewers with a sense of the subject’s mood and atmosphere as well. Protected exhibitions, a number of solo exhibitions, and a traveling exhibition that has been on display at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. called Kansas Landscape is where this artist has been able to participate.
Because the sixth artist studied Chinese brush painting with a famous Chinese painter for eight years, it culminated in her studying art and honing her painting skills. Lifted or erased during creation, she adapted this style of painting to the northern New Mexican environment. What the Museum Director underlined was their commitment to the working artists and designers, and stated that they were honored to welcome such distinguished artists from the community of watercolorists to the Museum.
For the enjoyment of audiences of young and old alike, there is a specially selected current animal friends gallery. This will be a workshop visitors will enjoy as artists make portraits of their animal friends. What was founded in 1992 was the Society of Watercolor Painters with a mission to encourage the production and appreciation of quality watercolors on a local and national level.