Today included a couple of special events. First, there was an
Art Class from Our Lady Star of the Sea Catholic Church that spent a little
time with both Carole (pronounced “Carolla”) Boggeman Peirson and Greg
Johannesen. This was a very special time and it looked like nearly everyone was
enjoying themselves – artists included. The questions from the children were
great. For example, “why does your sky have red in it?”, when there was no hint
of red in the sky. Greg fielded the question easily and talked about a few of
the elements of composition. Carole was painting a beach scene and as is
typical there were plenty of Mallards around. One of the students noted there
were no ducks in the painting and questioned why, and followed up with another critique
laden question. It sounded like he might become an art critic. It was awesome! Carole playfully answered and was smiling throughout the experience. The young
ones even asked for autographs of both artists.
It was wonderful and I’m so glad I was there to witness the
interaction. 
Towards the end of the island is a lovely narrow two story
home. The bright pink flowers along the
railings have caught my attention on several occasions. Crystal Moll was painting the scene and, like all the artists, she was
very willing to entertain some questions and we had a nice chat. We talked
about her painting setup, which I noted included a very rugged Kobalt (as in
Lowes hardware brand) rolling bag that has a retractable handle – like luggage.
It works very well for her. Our short conversation ran the gamut from sailing
to birds. It was another great experience for me.
Meanwhile, Duane Sabiston was hard at work, so by the time I
found him he was just wrapping up. Duane is a lucky man, as his wonderful wife
travels with him on his painting adventures. Duane is noted for his use of
color and an ability to simplify a scene. My photograph doesn’t do his work justice. To see more of Duane's great works, check out DuaneSabiston.net.
The second special event was the Quick Draw competition.
This event challenges the artists to complete a piece in just two hours! The artists paint along the Riverwalk and surrounding streets, listening for a horn at 6:00 PM to signal
the start and another at 8:00 PM to signal the finish. The light, of course, is
changing rapidly as the sun sets. Most of the juried artists enter as well as
other artists from the area.
I ran into a Sherri and her husband near the Solomons Pier
Restaurant. She was so excited to be entered into her first Plein Air event.
She is much more accustomed to painting slowly and deliberately over extended
periods of time – days, weeks, rather than a couple hours. She was all smiles
and having a grand time. She worked right down to the wire and said she really
didn’t get it all done as she would have liked. It wasn’t apparent in her
attitude though. She was so thrilled with the experience, you could just see it
in her face.
This event was hard to cover as the artists were spread out
and time was critical. In other words they were painting FAST, and it was
difficult to capture the progress of each piece. A few of them completed two
pieces!
Tara Will was getting set up near the Oyster Cannery when I
met her. She was pondering the view and how she was going to approach the work.
As it turned out, she won honorable mention with her pastel piece. Keep an eye
out for this young artist, she’s incredibly talented and a pleasure to talk to.
I can already tell you she’ll be mentioned in my next post. You can check out more of her work at TaraWill.com.
Mick McAndrews kept an eye on Our Lady Star of the Sea and
the sailboat that docks in the creek there. He received an Honorable Mention
for his efforts. Mick’s watercolors were featured in Plein Air Magazine over
the summer.
Catherine Whitehead, Patrick Lee and Debra Howard were very
near each other and provided their interpretations of the river. Eileen Eder
too turned her eye toward the bridge from a different vantage point, as did Mimi
Little. Patrick was awarded First Place for his piece.
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| Catherine Whitehead |
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| Catherine's finished work |
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| Debra Howard working the sunset |
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| Patrick Lee's First Place Ribbon winner |
Carole Pierson did an amazing job in painting the iconic
Solomons Clock, and earned a Third Place ribbon.
Stephan Giannini painted the other side of the Oyster
Cannery.
Barbara Stepura made a wonderful painting of Solomons UnitedMethodist Church. I somehow managed to miss taking some shots of completed works and unfortunately Barbara's was among them - really sorry about that, Barbara.
Jackie Clark found a nice little spot to paint a bird house
along a fenced garden. I kept looking at the cart that Jackie uses to transport her gear, and I had to ask about it. The yellow 'cart' is actually a trailer usually towed behind bicycles! I should have figured it out from my younger years when a friend pulled on behind his bike. The larger soft tires make it very useful according to Jackie. Another very clever artist!
Juliya Ivanilova did two really nice watercolors.
Ann Crostic went to the far side of the Pier Restaurant for
a unique painting of that side of the building.
JoEllen Murphy did a nice colorful pastel piece of the
Oyster Cannery in the foreground with the Catholic Church providing depth to the
work.
Marius Zabinski came all the way from Brussels, Belgium to
share his talents. He completed two pieces interpreting the bridge in deep
colors with touches of bright highlights. With his European clothing flair and unique artistic style Marius drew a crowd. He's also incredibly quick painter and completed two pieces in the two hours!
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| Getting stared on number two |
I wasn’t able to find Wesley Drake but his night view of
Bunky’s Dock garnered an Honorable Mention.
Ray Ewing took on the front side of
Bunky’s.
Neal Hughes' take on the Riverwalk Gazebo netted him a Second
Place finish.
I had been trying to find Peter Emerson all week with not
avail, and only found him as the light was fading. He had tucked himself out of
the way behind the Southern Maryland Sailing Center painting a boat. Peter is a
gregarious young guy and has a lot of energy. You can tell right away that he’s
serious and dedicated to his painting, and that he loves talking with people.
Wow, that was a lot of action! As I mentioned, it was a bit rough trying to cover it all, but it was amazing to see the beauty these artists capture in such a short period of time. I'm hoping that seeing how they framed the scene will translate in some small way to my photography.
I'll be working on posts for Friday's and Saturday's events soon!
Blessings,
Brian
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