Thursday, October 16, 2008

AWS - Last Days


Jerry and I visited the Middletown Arts Center today to see the American Watercolor Society travelling show. Very much worth the trip and we spent quite a while looking, walking around once and then looking again and then finally choosing our favorites.

I purchased one of the catalogs so I'll have the paintings to view at my leisure at home.

And which were favorites?


My favorite was by Yachiyo Beck, entitled Pomegranates, Deco. I, a painting that drew me in for its rich color and depth as well as the textures Ms. Beck used to give the eye plenty of interest. This 22" x 30" painting won the Margery Soroka Memorial Award with $500 check given. I think I would have ranked it higher but that's just my opinion.




















Jerry's favorite was also one of my top 3 picks: Spirit of the White House by Lynn McLain, AWS. This 22" x 28" painting was done with masterly strokes and had such a soothing and pleasing look in its muted coloring. This painting also won the Winsor & Newton Award with $1,000.




















And these next two I loved for the pure watercolor look of them: fresh, clean, lovely, something that can't be achieved with any other medium. These two artists know their stuff!

Whispering Smith by Ted Nuttall, AWS:
(Mr. Nuttall's portrait won the Edgar Whitney
Memorial Award with $500)


and


Blanca by Anne F. Fallin, AWS:
(Ms. Fallin's painting won the Louis Kaep
Award with $500)


I really enjoyed seeing all the paintings and, seeing the catalog, there are a few that I didn't get to see (not in the travelling show) that I would have liked to see.
If you want to view these paintings do it now!! The show ends Saturday and the MAC is closed Friday :( so only ONE MORE DAY before it is gone from our area.




If you can't visit them here or in their next venue (Tullahoma, Tennessee), then you can view the award winners on the AWS site here:
http://www.americanwatercolorsociety.com/a_awards.php?year=2008
You have to click each individual artist's name to view that painting.

10 comments:

Carol Carter said...

rhonda.. i added your blog link to my blog.. [i thought i had done this months ago] so.. thanks again for visiting the blog. it warms my heart to know that you still keep in touch. hope your painting is going well... c

Dawn said...

these are great Rhonda, thanks!

RH Carpenter said...

Thanks, Carol. You're stuck with me, girl! I've been telling people about your work for years now!
Glad you enjoyed them, Dawn :) There were some real stunners in the group.

Anonymous said...

Thank you for sharing these photos. I wish the show was coming to Las Vegas. Blanca is my favorite. The colors the artist used in the shadows are perfect.

Candy

Nava said...

I envy you for seeing this show! And - Ted Nuttall is coming to give a working to our watercolor organization in April 2009 (or is it March?). I can hardly wait!

RH Carpenter said...

Thanks, Candy. Glad you enjoyed seeing the work. Blanca was a wonderful watercolor!
Nava, I envy you getting a workshop from him - he paints so beautifully and loose!!!

Michelle Himes said...

I actually was lucky enough to see the whole show when it opened in NYC. There were so many that I loved that I couldn't choose my favorite, but the ones you picked were definitely in the running.

RH Carpenter said...

How lucky to be able to see the whole show, Michelle!

nigelfletcher said...

Just joined your blog and found this by Ted nuttall who I have just discovered, amazing fluid watercolourist, love his work

RH Carpenter said...

Glad you joined, Nigel. I hope you find things here to entertain and interest you :) Ted Nuttall is wonderful! A real style of his own (even though one of his students now copies his style almost perfectly - many times they are in the same juried shows!). I haven't taken a workshop from him yet but know he paints with his easel upright and from a very small travel-size palette - not the big brushes and puddles of water you'd think he'd use at all.