East Texas Face-Off, March 4, 2017

Edna Krueger Shares Workshop Opportunity

Thought if any may be interested to forward this on to our portrait group. Sometimes it is refreshing to get outside & do something not so studio bonded. I may not be able to go but love getting outside to paint. Thought maybe others may feel the same. Thanks for forwarding this. Edna Krueger 

Randy Sexton Workshop II - March 24, 25, 26th, Austin TX

Good morning artists,

Please feel free to share this with any fellow painters or artist groups that may be interested in participating in a plein air workshop with instructor Randy Sexton.

Exciting News!!! Plein Air Austin is hosting a workshop with Randy Sexton for Spring 2017 here in Austin, Texas. 

Randy Sextion Workshop II - March 24, 25, 26, 2017

Paint urban scenes with Plein Air Austin members and instructor Randall Sexton. Open to all levels, this 3-day workshop is especially geared to encourage the experienced artist to reach greater heights in their work. Sexton will review the basics of solid picture making, compositions, values, and shape - while sharing his own methods for simplifying the complex. Three days (weather permitting) will be spent on location in downtown Austin. Daily demonstrations will be followed up with individual assistance at the easel. Sexton works in oil medium but is open to all mediums. Workshop will run 9am – 4pm with a break for lunch.

COST: $450/ 3 Days – Class size is limited to 12 (Only 3 spots left)  

Check out Randall Sexton’s work on his website.

Contact: Alexis McCarthy / 512.695.5174/lexie@alexismccarthy.com

Spotlight on: Karen Offutt, 2017 Texas Top Ten

Name:  Karen Offutt

City:  Austin, Texas

Website:  www.karenoffutt.com

"Lighthouse", 24"x18", oil on board 

BIO:

A native Texan, figurative artist Karen Offutt was self-taught until her mid-twenties when she began to take a more formal approach to her education focusing on drawing and painting with oils at Austin Fine Arts Classes.  She has also studied with some of today's most nationally renowned artists.  While taking a few years off to raise her kids, Karen yearned to reexamine and redefine the direction of her work both in technique and content.  While Karen's previous body of work has the ethereal feel of a memory, her most recent paintings invite the viewer into a world of her creation.

Karen's work has been featured in various publications such as Southwest Art Magazine, American Art Collector, International Artist Magazine, Artist on Art among others.  Her work has also won awards and received recognition nationally from Salon International, the Portrait Society of America, and Oil Painters of America.  Over the years her work has shown in various invitational and juried shows such as Emerging Artist Show in Scottsdale, AZ, U.S. Artists Show in Philadelphia, PA, American Art Invitational in Denver, CO, Women Painting Women in Charleston, SC, Women Painting Women in Georgetown, TX, and Painters Painting Painters in Austin, TX.

She currently has work in Jack Meier Gallery in Houston, TX, Abend Gallery, Denver, CO, Principle Gallery in Charleston, SC and in the Waterhouse Gallery in Santa Barbara, CA. 

Karen and her husband, along with their two young boys, live in Austin, Texas.

Congratulations Brenda Hash!

My pastel, "Liz", is currently hanging at the Butler Institute of American Art in Youngstown, Ohio. It was one of twenty pastels selected to travel to The Butler from the Pastel Society of America's 44th Annual Enduring Brilliance Exhibition which hung at the National Arts Club in New York.

"Liz", 16"x 25", pastel   by Brenda Hash, PSA

Brenda Hash, PSA -

 Fine Art & Portraiture

Website:                   brendahash.com             Facebook:  facebook.com/BrendaHash

On My Easel Blog:  brendahash.com/blog     LinkedIn:    linkedin.com/in/brendahash

Special One-Day Portrait Workshop

 Special One-Day Portrait Workshop

D U E L I N G   

E A S E L S

Gene Dillard and Don Mullins 

February 25

Description

This will be a unique one-day workshop. 

It will be primarily a day of demonstration and instruction. 

Gene and Don, members of the Portrait Society of America,

will paint a day-long portrait side by side from a live model. Lots of commentary,

explanation of process, tips on techniques, color mixing, the whole works. 

Expect lots of banner back and forth between the two artists

…long term painter friends.

Attendees are welcome to bring samples of their work and receive expert critiques. 

They are also welcome to sketch or draw from the model (in dry media only).

The workshop is sponsored by the Plano Art Association 

and a portion of the fees will go to support the organization.

Location

The Plano Art Association Gallery

1013 15^th Place #105

Downtown Plano, Texas 75074

(Adjacent to the DART Rail Station)

(map)

Date and Time

Saturday, February 25

9:00 AM till 4:00 PM (with an hour break for lunch…great lunch spots in Downtown Plano)

Fee and Registration

The fee is $100

To register, make payment and reserve your attendance, go to 

www.dfwartworkshops.com and click on payment options.

Or email 

gene@legacyportraitpainters.com 

and confirm that you will be attending and will pay at the door.

Workshop Leaders

 

Don Mullins www.donmullinsfineart.com

Don loves portrait painting because he enjoys the process of turning a blank 

canvas into a beautiful painted image. Each commission offers a new and exciting challenge

 - an adventure in art in which the client is a key collaborator. People painted 

by Don receive not only a one of a kind painting but also a one-of-a-kind experience.

All of Don's paintings are colorful and professional, but most distinctive is 

Don's ability to capture a meaningful gesture or attitude to suggest the personality of the subject. 

These skills translate seamlessly into other portrait categories. Don paints executive portraits, 

official portraits, family portraits, children portraits and posthumous portraits.

Don has a long string of awards and recognition including the 

Portrait Society of America, Oil Painters of America, The Artist’s Magazine, 

Salon International, and the Lyme Academy of Fine Art alumni show to name a few. 

Trained at the prestigious Lyme Academy in Old Lyme, Connecticut.

 Don lives in New Mexico with his wife Karen. 

He conducts workshops in figurative art, painting and drawing.

Gene Dillard www.legacyportaitpainters.com

Gene comes to portraiture from a background of extensive academic 

training and experience in the graphics field. Growing up in Texas in a home filled 

with art by relatives, Gene began painting and drawing at an early age. 

He studied art first at Baylor University and then completed his first degree in fine art 

at the University of Texas at Austin. He then studied at 

The California Institute of The Arts in Los Angeles and completed his second degree at 

The Art Center College of Design in Los Angeles.

He ascended through a career in advertising design as an 

Art Director and Creative Director for major national and regional advertising agencies in Texas. 

His ad designs have been published throughout the U.S. in national media. 

Throughout his career in advertising he maintained a strong parallel activity 

of painting and teaching art. He has taught classes at Southern Methodist University, 

The Art Institute of Dallas and in the School of Visual Arts at The University of North Texas. 

He has conducted workshops and demos for a number or art clubs though 

out Texas plus workshops at several universities. 

Gene is on the board of directors of the Plano Art Association and is a member of the Portrait Society of America.

He manages the Rail Station Studio and Gallery in Downtown Plano. 

He leads a weekly painting and drawing group that meets at the PAA gallery. 

He is a resident of Plano with his wife Louise.

SaveSave

Congratulations Jesse Lane!

Jesse Lane's work on the cover of the April 2017 Issue of The Artist's Magazine

ARTIST BIO

“Through art, I’ve been able to find something inside myself that changed my life. 

Growing up, I often felt alone.  In school, I was struggling with the challenges of dyslexia.  I desperately wanted to find a place in life where I didn’t feel inferior. 

For years, I bottled up my feelings. Then I realized they could be a source of inspiration.  I began creating images of personal struggle and intimate emotion. 

What was hidden for so long became voiced and heard. For the first time, I felt truly seen. I took my weakness and made it my strength. 

Along the way, I’ve discovered we all share these feelings. They are universal.

When people see my portraits, they’re surprised I work in colored pencil. I love the precision and versatility of colored pencil. This medium can be as rich and nuanced as any other.  One of my goals is to advance colored pencil in the world of fine art.”

Jesse Lane (born 1990) lives in The Woodlands, Texas, near Houston.  His earliest teacher was his father, Jerry Lane, a former illustrator, courtroom artist and underground cartoonist.  

Jesse earned a degree in visualization from Texas A&M University.  He also studied art in Italy, where he was greatly influenced by the lighting and drama of the master painter Caravaggio.

Since launching his career as a professional artist, Jesse’s provocative portraits have captured attention.

“For collectors interested in a quickly ascending star in the art world, Lane is one surely to watch.”
Fine Art Connoisseur Magazine

Southwest Art Magazine recently recognized Jesse as one of the nation’s leading young emerging artists. 

His numerous awards include top honors from the Salmagundi Club, International Artist Magazine, the Colored Pencil Society of America and the Hudson Valley Art Association.  He was also a finalist in the 2016 International Art Renewal Center Salon.

Jesse’s work has been featured in publications including American Art Collector, Southwest Art, International Artist and The Artist’s Magazine. 

“Jesse Lane is taking the colored pencil world by storm.”
Colored Pencil Magazine

Artist Statement

In my art, I turn the ordinary into the extraordinary.

My work captures intimate moments and gives glimpses of an inner private world… providing a window to our own introspective thoughts and our own mystery. 

My drawings capture emotions and stories wrapped into a single instant.

These stories are open-ended.  I want the viewer to create the narrative, to feel the power and vulnerability of that unique moment in time. 

My aim is to ignite the imagination and touch the viewer’s soul.

I call my body of work “Anatomy of Light.”  My figures emerge into light and disappear into darkness… both literally and figuratively. Black backgrounds isolate the figures and put them in their own world, the world of their thoughts.  Nothing is there except what they’re feeling.

At best, I hope my work continues to be both contemporary and timeless. If there is a theme, it is personal struggle. This struggle is universal, but also unique to each of us

Curriculum Vitae 

SELECTED AWARDS & HONORS

2016

Best of Show, The Salmagundi Club 38th Annual Juried Painting & Sculpture Exhibition for Non-Members, Salmagundi Club, New York, New York

Grand Prize, International Artist Magazine “Favorite Subjects Challenge”

Finalist, 12th International Art Renewal Center Salon

Mrs. John Newington Award for Excellence, Hudson Valley Art Association 83rd Annual National Juried Exhibition, Salmagundi Club, New York, New York

First Place Colored Pencil, The Artist’s Magazine All-Media Competition

Award for Exceptional Merit, Colored Pencil Society of America 24th Annual International Exhibition, The American Art Company, Tacoma, Washington

First Place, Jerry’s Artarama National Self-Portrait Contest

First Place, National Society of Artists 32nd National Juried Show, Rosenberg Library, Galveston, Texas 

Finalist, The Hunting Art Prize, Friedkin Corporate Campus, Houston, Texas

Honorable Mention, Colored Pencil Society of America ArtSpectations

Best of Show, Texas & Neighbors Regional Art Competition, Irving Arts Center, Irving, Texas

First Place Pastel/Graphics, Richardson Civic Art Society 50th Regional Juried Exhibition, Charles Eismann Center for the Performing Arts, Richardson, Texas

2015

Derwent / Conte a Paris – ColArt Americas Award for Exceptional Merit, Colored Pencil Society of America 23rd International Exhibition, Oglethorpe Museum of Art, Atlanta, Georgia

Best of Show, Colored Pencil Society of America Fall ArtSpectations

Best of Show, Pencil Art Society Member International Juried Exhibition

Second Place Other Media, Richeson75 International Figure/Portrait Art Exhibit, Richeson School of Art and Gallery, Kimberly, Wisconsin 

National Finalist, The Williams Prize in Drawing for Emerging Artists, The Artists for Artists Project

Best of Show, ArTexas Competition, Salado Village Artists, Salado Civic Center, Salado, Texas 

Honorable Mention, Colored Pencil Society of America Spring ArtSpectiations

Judge’s Choice Award, Richardson Civic Art Society 49th Regional Juried Exhibition, Charles Eismann Center for the Performing Arts, Richardson, Texas

SOLO EXHIBITION

“Face Reality,” RJD Gallery, Sag Harbor, New York, October 10 – December 15, 2016

GROUP EXHIBITIONS

2016

“The Princess and the Provocateur,” RJD Gallery, Sag Harbor, New York 

Colored Pencil Society of American 24th Annual International Exhibition, The American Art Company, Tacoma, Washington 

Salmagundi Annual Painting & Sculpture Exhibition for Non-Members, Salmagundi Club, New York, New York 

Hudson Valley Art Association 83rd Annual National Juried Exhibition, Salmagundi Club, New York, New York

INDA 11, International Drawing Annual Exhibitions in Print, Manifest Drawing Center, Cincinnati, Ohio

The Hunting Art Prize, Friedkin Corporate Campus, Houston, Texas

Texas National Art Competition & Exhibition, Stephen F. Austin University Gallery, Nacogdoches, Texas

Richardson Civic Art Society 50th Annual Regional Juried Exhibit, Charles Eismann Center for the Performing Arts, Richardson, Texas 

Texas & Neighbors 31st Regional Art Exhibition, Irving Arts Center, Irving, Texas

2015

American Artists Professional League 87th Grand National Exhibition, Salmagundi Club, New York, New York

Colored Pencil Society of America International Exhibition, Oglethorpe Museum of Art, Atlanta, Georgia

Pencil Art Society Member International Juried Exhibition

The Richeson75 International Figure/Portrait Art Exhibit, Richeson School of Art and Gallery, Kimberly, Wisconsin

Artspectations, Colored Pencil Society of America

National Society of Artists Juried National Show, The Center for the Arts & Sciences, Clute, Texas 

Visual Arts Alliance Juried Membership Exhibition, 1600 Smith Street Gallery, Houston, Texas 

Art Hop Juried Exhibition, Georgetown Art Center, Georgetown, Texas 

ArTexas, Salado Village Artists, Salado Civic Center, Salado, Texas 

MEMBERSHIPS

Colored Pencil Society of America
International Guild of Realism
Portrait Society of America
Woodlands Art League 

ARTICLES & PUBLICATIONS

2017

“Strokes of Genius 9: Creative Discoveries,” North Light Books

2016

International Artist Magazine, “Precision with Pencils,” December Issue, pgs. 4-5

American Art Collector Magazine, “Anatomy of Light” December Issue, pgs. 116-119

American Art Collector Magazine, “Jesse Lane: Face Reality,” October Issue, pgs. 78-79

Southwest Art Magazine, “21 Under 31,” September Issue, pg. 97

“INDA 11, International Drawing Annual,” published by Manifest Drawing Center, Cincinnati, Ohio

DRAW Portraits in Colored Pencil: The Ultimate Step by Step Guide, co-authored with Ann Kullberg and others, pgs. 64-73

The Artist’s Magazine, “A Stroke Above the Rest,” July/August Issue, pg. 77

CP Treasures: Colored Pencil Masterworks from Around the Globe, Volume 4, by Ann Kullberg, pg 61

Color Magazine, Cover Artist, September Issue, pgs. 4-7

The Woodlands Lifestyles & Homes, “Jesse Lane Now Represented by New York Art Gallery,” ” August Issue, pg. 101

2015

Colored Pencil Magazine, Featured Cover Artist, December Issue, pgs. 10-13

The 2015 Winners’ Catalog, The Williams Prize in Drawing for Emerging Artists, The Artist For Artists Project, pgs. 44-45

The Richeson75 International Figure/Portrait 2015 Book, Richeson School of Art & Gallery, pgs. 63-64

The Woodlands Lifestyles & Homes, “Colored Pencil Artwork Drawing Attention,” October Issue, pgs. 122-123

The Woodlands Villager, “Seeing Things: Local Artist Studies Abroad,” August 13, pg. 12A

EDUCATION

Bachelor of Science in Visualization, Texas A&M University, 2014

Santa Chiara Study Center, semester-abroad art classes, Castiglion Fiorentino, Italy, 2013

Spotlight on: Naomi Hughes, 2017 Texas Top Ten

NAME: Naomi Hughes

CITY: Austin, TX

WEBSITE: www.n-hughes.com

"Girl in Yellow" 20"x14", Oil

BIO:

Originally from Houston, Naomi Hughes moved to New York after high school to study painting and writing at Sarah Lawrence College. She spent her junior undergraduate year as an exchange student at Oxford University in the U.K. where she studied under the art historian and novelist, Linda Proud Smith, and spent her off-hours reading Ruskin and drawing fossils and other curiosities in the Oxford Natural History Museum. Between trimesters, she toured the continent’s art museums. For the past six years, she has fervently pursued the study of academic realism on her own and with mentors, Tony Ryder and Scott Waddell. 

Naomi’s two children are classical violin students. Her own artistic practice has been deeply influenced by Suzuki Method music pedagogy—the core belief of which is that with the right environment, development of proper working habits, and consistent practice, mastery is available to anyone. Naomi educates her children at home and they very often work alongside her in the studio so the principles of talent education are never very far from her mind. 

She teaches classical drawing and painting to private students and frequently paints commissioned works. She has only recently begun showing her work publicly but has in the past year been a finalist for the Artist’s Magazine Annual Competition and the Hunting Art Prize. She is a member of the Portrait Society of America.

She is a passionate gardener and reader and is currently designing architectural plans for a tiny house. 

Spotlight on: Jennifer Balkan, 2017 Texas Top Ten

NAME: Jennifer Balkan

CITY: Austin, Texas

WEBSITE: www.jenniferbalkan.net

“Sisters”m 24”x30”, oil on wood panel

BIO: 

Jennifer grew up in New Jersey and began to draw at a very young age. She studied neuroscience in college and considered pursuing a path in psychology. After living in Boulder and Seattle, she moved to Austin. She attained her Ph.D. in 2001 after conducting anthropological fieldwork in Mexico. Although her experience in Mexico was rich, Jennifer longed for artistic creativity. In August of 2001, Jennifer spent a month in Spain, France, and Italy where she saw masterworks that would become her inspiration. She then threw herself into oil painting and now paints fervently.   Jennifer has taken art classes at Laguna Gloria Art School, the Austin Fine Arts School and at the Art Students League in Denver. She currently paints in her studio and in life painting groups. She has been teaching figure and portrait painting in oils to private groups of students since 2005. Her work has been exhibited across the United States and in Europe and has been featured in a number of art publications.  In 2015, two of her portraits were awarded by the Portrait Society of America.  She was also named “Best Visual Artist of 2015” by the Austin Chronicle’s Readers’ Poll.  Most recently in 2017, she has been included in Fine Art Connoisseur Magazine’s photo essay on leading contemporary figurative painters.  

ARTIST STATEMENT:
Though it is a cerebral concept that motivates me, the process of painting is superior to all else.   Once I begin a painting, my interaction with the canvas takes on a life of its own; it transcends whatever I can actually say about the painting once it is finished.   Like some kind of meditation, if I remain in this state during the entirety of my painting experience, then I can say that my work is honest.

PSoA, TX Chapter, EAST TEXAS FACE-OFF, March 4

The Texas Chapter of the Portrait Society of America invites you to our East Texas "Face-Off". 

What is a Face-Off? A Face-Off is when artists come together to paint one model all at the same time. Artists are allowed to work in any media in which they are most comfortable and will interpret the model in their own unique way. 

Participating artists

Susan Hotard

Suzie Baker

Partha Chinnasamy

Rosslyn Duncan

Brenda Hash

Nancy Hines. 

DATE: Saturday, March 4

TIME: 10:00am - 1pm

LOCATION: The HopePointe Anglican Church 

3333 South Panther Creek Drive

The Woodlands, TX 77381.

The church is located on the corner of woodlands parkway and South Panther Creek ( white water tower is a landmark). Spring, TX also comes up as the address. It is the same location, the post office recognizes both Spring and The Woodlands.

See you there!

Spotlight on: Nancy Boren, 2017 Texas Top Ten

NAME: Nancy Boren

CITY: The Colony, Texas
WEBSITE: http://www.nancyboren.com

"Sing Your Song", 20" x 20",  oil

Nancy Boren’s first painting, a watercolor, was done at age 12 while sitting next to her artist father, James Boren, as he painted at the Grand Canyon.  Since then her work has grown to include original print making and oil painting. Figures, both western and otherwise, remain her favorite subject although she enjoys forays into landscape and plein air also.

Boren’s work is included in Texas Traditions by Michael Duty and Susan Halsten McGarry and Brushstrokes and Balladeers and Reflections of the West both edited by C. J. Hadley.  Her painting, Aloft in the Western Sky, is part of the permanent collection of the Booth Western Art Museum in Georgia. In 2016 she was awarded the Bronze Medal at the Oil Painters of America National Show. Boren has also exhibited at the National Arts Club in New York, the Gilcrease Museum, The National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame, and the national juried shows of the Outdoor Painters’ Society and the American Impressionist Society. Boren is a Master Signature member of American Women Artists. Her paintings were used in the feature film 9 Months and the ABC TV show The Benefactor. She was one of five finalists in the state of Texas for the design of the Texas Quarter in 2004. When Nancy is not painting or speaking to art groups, she loves to read mysteries, walk her dogs, and collect antique circus toys.

Affiliations: Signature Member of the Oil Painters of America, Signature Member of the Outdoor Painters Society, Master Signature Member of the American Women Artists (Gold Medal 2015, 2014)  American Impressionist Society, Portrait Society of America.

Introducing New Member Irena Taylor

NAME:Irena N.Taylor

CITY: San Antonio TX

WEBSITE: irenataylor.com

ARTIST STATEMENT AND BIO:

Art has been a "forever friend" if you know what I mean.  Even when you would like to permanently walk away from it, thankfully it's not going to happen. 

From a very young age I was drawing, drawing, drawing.   I remember as a kindergartner hoping each day I'd get to paint at the easel.  Well, now that does happen -not easily(pun intended) but still ultimately very satisfying, perhaps because I'm doing what I've been designed to do. 

After college and taking various classes in painting, I finally found a  place where representational art was taught.  When I first walked into Paul Ingbretson's studio for classical drawing and painting I instantly knew this was the kind of art education for which I had been longing.  I wanted to learn the craft of art.   

Art studies with  Paul Ingbretson's at his studio for Classical for Drawing and Painting in MA and NH.

Extended Workshops with:  Ted Seth Jacobs, France

Workshop and classes with Sherry McGraw, Daniel Greene, Doug Dawson, Gladys deMoras, Kraig Kiedrowski, Jeremy Deck, Danny Grant

Teaching at the Coppini Academy of Fine Art -adults and children  1999-2015  Currently private teaching

Exploring various techniques, while working primarily in oil and pastel, keep my portfolio quite varied.  Though most subjects are of interest the figure and portrait remain favorites. 

Memberships:  

Oil Painters of America 

Outdoor Painters Society

Texas Pastel Society(past President) 

Portrait Painters of America

Spotlight on: Stephen Zhang, 2017 Texas Top Ten

Name: Stephen Zhang

City: Plano, TX

Website: stephenzhangart.com

" Rialto",  36" x 48", Watercolor on paper

Current solo exhibition: 

Stephen Zhang’s solo exhibition “Flow” is on view at the Artists Showplace Gallery, from February 4 to March 4. 15615 Coit Road, Suite 230, Dallas, Texas 75248. http://theartistsshowplace.com/

Bio and Artist Statement:

Born in China, Stephen Zhang grew up in his father’s studios, who was an artist and professor. After getting his BFA and spending a few years teaching in college, Stephen came to the U.S. for his MFA degree at University of North Texas. As a result, he is the product of both classical Chinese and contemporary Western cultures.

Stephen Zhang has a special connection with watercolor, which bridges Eastern and Western sensitivities. In watercolor, the fluidity, unpredictability, and surprise are embodiments of Taoist philosophy that Stephen follows. The opposing forces between complexity and simplicity, controlling and letting go, external and internal, and subject and object are contradictions that he finds fascination in.

Through his art, Stephen tells stories beyond the surface, and he expresses the spirits of both human and nature. As part of the world, each person or place has a unique story and possesses unique Qi (spirit). His painting process brings these stories and Qi to life. Meantime, his paintings are also discoveries of the infinite patterns and design in nature. Through his work, Stephen aims to create a world in which people can be lost, feel refreshed, and find solace 

For years, Stephen has had parallel careers as a design leader and an artist. His artworks have been accepted and awarded by Chinese National Exhibition, Infiniti National Art Competition, Watercolor U.S.A., Transparent Watercolor Society, Portrait Society of America and American Watercolor Society. Besides, he has been recognized by numerous international design organizations and competitions.

Education: 

MFA—University of North Texas

BFA—Luxun Academy of Fine Arts, China.