Tag Archives: Members Monthly Meeting

February 15, 2024 Members Meeting and Demonstration by Michael Holter, all on Zoom!

Following a brief Members Meeting we will have the pleasure of a demonstration by the popular watercolor artist and teacher Michael Holter, from Plano, Texas!
This will be a Zoom event, held at 4 pm on Thursday, February 15th. A Zoom link will be sent by email to all NFWS Members on the Monday before the Thursday afternoon Meeting.

MICHAEL HOLTER
https://www.michaelholter.com/

Michael Holter is known for his dynamic watercolor portraits, landscapes, and workshops. After a successful career inart education, advertisingdesign and creative leadership, Michael began focusing more seriously on his painting in 2011. Michael is a signature member of numerous national watercolor societies. His work is widely published and he has received numerous national and international awards. He has released four DVDs from Creative Catalyst Productions: 7 Steps to Landscape Painting in Watercolor, 7 Steps to Portraits in Watercolor, Watercolor Landscapes from Photos and Paint the Town. Although Michael has been painting most of his life, his work experience spans a wide range of creativity, from high school art teacher, advertising creative director and businessman. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Art Education and an MA in Visual Communication.

Michael says, “My work is impressionistic. I like to represent people or places and allow the painting to evolve from the recognizable. The challenge is to balance the care needed to make the representation interesting… and perhaps believable, with the freedom, looseness and painterly quality that makes a painting so expressive.”

 

 

 

 

Rick Surowicz’s January 18th ZoomDemonstration for NFWS is on our Youtube Channel!

Here is a link to Ric’s terrifically inspiring and informative January 18th Zoom Demonstration for NFWS now on our Niagara Frontier Watercolor Society YouTube Channel.

Ric Surowicz’s January 18, 2024 NFWS Demonstration

January 18, 2024 Members Meeting and Demonstration by Rick Surowicz, all on Zoom!

Following a brief Members Meeting we will have the pleasure of a demonstration by the popular watercolor artist and teacher Rick Surowicz, from Medina, Ohio.
This will be a Zoom event, held at 4 pm on Thursday, January 18th. A Zoom link will be sent by email to all NFWS Members on the Monday before the Thursday afternoon Meeting.

Artist Biography

Rick Surowicz, a painter currently living in Medina, Ohio, discovered how much he enjoyed the challenges of transparent watercolor in 1992.  His paintings have been juried into exhibitions of the American Watercolor Society, Transparent Watercolor Society of America, Louisiana Watercolor Society, Georgia Watercolor Society, and Splash 21.  Watercolor Artist Magazine did an eight-page feature article on his work in their 2021 Summer edition.   His YouTube channel has over 65,000 subscribers with over 4.8 million views.  Rick is a signature member of the Ohio Watercolor Society, and a current Trustee.  He keeps busy with his online instruction.

Artist Statement

To look where others don’t look, to see what others don’t see, to say without saying inspires and challenges me as an artist. I look through underbrush to see the river, I see beyond the flower to behold the foliage, and suggest the tree by painting the woods. I seek to portray that which is not obvious. It’s not my intent to replicate but to interpret through the elements and principles of design. I enjoy the beauty of transparent watercolor and continue to learn and evolve with every painting, with every brushstroke.

YouTube:  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_RHSK_GEIoVTF-QNKDRvgA

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/rsurowiczart 

Website:  https://rsurowiczart.com/

 

 

 

 

September 2023 Demonstration by Kathy Armstrong!

Announcing our September 2023 Season Opening in person demonstration by Rochester, NY artist, and NFWS Signature Member, Kathy Armstrong!

Her demonstration will follow a short NFWS Members Meeting where we will all be caught up to date on the events of the summer, and hear about the year to come.

 

Kathy Armstrong says that of all the media she paints in, watercolor is her favorite because its transparent nature makes it possible to achieve a luminosity that isn’t possible with other mediums. In addition to her studio painting
Kathy enjoys plein air painting in oil, and some of her largest paintings have been done in acrylic. Kathy teaches watercolor classes both in-person and virtually throughout the year.

After a long career as a graphic designer in Wisconsin and Colorado, Kathy returned to her native upstate New York in 2013, moving to Rochester in late 2017. She is a Signature member of the Philadelphia Water Color Society, Niagara Frontier Watercolor Society and the Rochester Art Club and paints outdoors with the Greater Rochester Plein Air Painters. Her work has been juried into international, national and regional shows. Armstrong has been juried into the Memorial Art Gallery’s Rochester/Finger Lakes Exhibition three consecutive times, winning the Alice E. Koret Award in 2019. She is one of the founding members of Pittsford Fine Art gallery at 4 Main Street in Pittsford, NY.

“When light touches the world it immediately brings it to life. It shapes and illuminates everything in its path. Trying to capture that light is the driving force behind my love of painting,” says Kathy.

To see her work or for class information please visit her website at kathyarmstrongfineart.com.

June Show Your Art Show!

June Members Meeting. 

SHOW YOUR ART SHOW!  In person at Amherst Community Church

With Comments by Rita Argen Auerbach and Sally Treanor

6:00 pm, JUNE 15, 2023. Pizza at 6:00, Art Show at 7:00

Bring one painting, matted or framed and ready to share. 

Book Swap, 6:00-9:00 at Show Your Art Show. Lots of art books available.Pick up some new books and pass on the books that you no longer need.

Also, last call for paper at the meetings. NFWS will no longer purchase paper for resale. Grab your paper while it lasts.

 

Members Meeting and Demonstration by Andy Evansen! Oh Boy!!

Following a brief Members Meeting we will have the pleasure of a demonstration by immensely popular Minnesota watercolor artist Andy Evansen.

This will be a Zoom event, held at  4 pm  on Thursday, March 16th. A Zoom link will be sent by email to all NFWS Members on the Monday before the Thursday evening Meeting.   

Andy Evansen’s interest in art started in childhood, and he can’t recall a time when he wasn’t drawing. Once he began painting, he found himself attempting to capture the landscape with an economy of brushstroke evident in the work of the British watercolor artists he admired.  In addition, he was impressed with the way those artists seemed to capture everyday scenes in such a way that revealed a hidden beauty, subjects that many would simply pass by.

“When I decided to begin painting 30 years ago, there was never any question in my mind what medium I would choose.  Watercolor has always fascinated me; the effects of pigment and water mixing on the paper are so unique and challenging and the results so beautiful.  It is also the perfect medium for capturing those fleeting moments and light effects when working on location.”

He has been featured in many publications and is a sought-after workshop instructor who paints and teaches internationally.  He became a signature member of the prestigious Plein Air Painters of America (PAPA) in 2012 and served as their President from 2015-2017.  In 2022 he was selected as the only international member of England’s Pure Watercolour Society.

His paintings have won numerous awards, including the Bronze and High Winds Medals from the American Watercolor Society in New York.

“While learning, I painted strictly from photographs and am glad I took that route.  Watercolor is challenging, as it relies on timely washes that can be affected by the weather and a large amount of confidence due to its unforgiving nature.  I now paint ‘en plein air’ as well, which has reinforced my efforts toward choosing strong, simple subjects and working quickly to capture the essence of the scene.”

His love of painting on location also led to him being included in the 2017 Qingdao International Masters Watercolor Plein Air Event.

You can view his work at www.EvansenArtStudio.com. 

 

Following a brief Members Meeting we will have the pleasure of a demonstration by Illinois watercolor artist Tom Francesconi. This will be a Zoom event, at 4 pm, on Thursday, February 16th. A Zoom link will be sent by email to all NFWS Members on the Monday before the Thursday afternoon Meeting.

Here is a link to the event page for Tom Francesconi’s 4 pm demonstration:

February 16th Members Meeting and Demonstration by Tom Francesconi

Members February 16, 2023 Zoom Meeting and Demonstration by Tom Francesconi at 4 pm!

Following a brief Members Meeting we will have the pleasure of a demonstration by Illinois watercolor artist Tom Francesconi. This will be a Zoom event, held at  4 pm  on Thursday, February 16th. A Zoom link will be sent by email to all NFWS Members on the Monday before the Thursday evening Meeting. 

ARTIST’S STATEMENT 

My paintings are a visual statement of my love for life. Yet, it is not only the world around me with which I am put in touch, but also the world inside of me. As an artist, I have chosen to express myself through the language of paint. Stirred emotions are the essential beginnings of that language. It is my hope that my paintings will echo that emotional response and the viewer will share in my spirited statements. 

Tom Francesconi, aws, nws, twsa (master) 

Tom Francesconi studied watercolor at the American Academy of Art in Chicago. His paintings have been exhibited in many national exhibitions, which include the American Watercolor Society, National Watercolor Society and the 2015 Shenzhen, China International Biennial Exhibition. In 2020, Tom’s painting was selected for inclusion in the NWS: 100 Years Exhibition. He has earned signature membership in numerous watercolor societies, including the American Watercolor Society, National Watercolor Society, Watercolor West, Rocky Mountain National Watermedia and the Transparent Watercolor Society of America, of which he has been honored with ‘Master’ status. Tom has served as president of the Transparent Watercolor Society of America. Currently, Tom is the executive director of the Illinois Watercolor Society.His work has been published in eight books on American Watercolor. Tom has written articles for Watercolor Artist, Watercolor Magic and Watercolor magazines. 

Tom’s paintings have received many awards in regional and national exhibitions, including the 1st Place Award at the 2011 Watercolor West Exhibition, 3rd Place Awards at the 2019 Houston International Watermedia Exhibition and the 2019 Rocky Mountain National Watermedia Exhibition. Tom received an Honorable Mention Award for his painting, “Unleashed”, published in The Best of Watercolor: Winners From the 22nd Annual Splash Competition, June 2021. Tom received the Gordon and Mildred Memorial Award at the 2023 Adirondacks National Exhibition of American Watercolors. 

Tom’s paintings are held in the corporate collections of Inland Real Estate Corporation, Oakbrook, IL, CNA Insurance Company, Chicago, IL, Paige Bus Enterprises, Chicago, IL and Morgan Stanley Financial Services Company, Chicago, IL and in many private collections throughout the United States. Along with his weekly classes in Chicago, Tom has conducted watercolor workshops throughout the United States, Canada, France, Italy and Croatia. 

www.tomfrancesconi.com