PIccolo Spoleto Outdoor Art Exhibition 2012 - Day 3, Sunday 5/27/12

First Place Award Winner 2012

"First Blooms"

Oil by Daryl Knox

Sunday the crowd was full and steady with beautiful weather! Is there really a tropical storm named Beryl on the way?  

Part of the art buzz today was the coverage in the Charleston Post and Courier - 2 stories side by side about the outdoor art exhibition and featured in the Spoleto section with several quotes that sounded out of character for the individuals that they were attributed to (and, after some investigation, it appears that the quotes were incorrect).  One of the best parts of this particular art show is the camaraderie of the artists.  We help each other, we watch out for each other and we work well together. We are also committed to the excellence of the exhibition - after all, the show is a reflection, not just of the participating artists, but also of our city. 

2012 Judge for Piccolo Spoleto Outdoor Art Exhibition

Roberta Sokolitz

Judging an outdoor art show with 84 participating artists in late May Charleston temperatures and humidity is probably a bit daunting, but Roberta Sokolitz was more than up to the job.  Armed with sunhat, bottled water and excellent credentials, she chose an exciting slate of award winners.  Currently the Curator and Art Collections Manager for the Medical University of South Carolina, Roberta has also served as a curator or staff member for the Gibbes Museum of Art, Spoleto Festival USA, Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art and the Charleston Renaissance Gallery.  She worked for the City of Charleston on the professional team that redesigned Marion Square and frequently consults for the City of Charleston's Office of Cultural Affairs on exhibitions, editing publications and gallery planning.

Also at the awards ceremony Friday afternoon were Mayor Joe Riley and Ellen Dressler Moryl, Director of Charleston Cultural Affairs:

(Right to Left) 

Ellen Dressler Moryl, Mayor Joseph P. Riley, Jr, Juror Roberta Sokolitz

with Vicki Ellis and Leslie Johnson, Coordinators, Piccolo Spoleto Outdoor Art Exhibition

PIccolo Spoleto Outdoor Art Show 2012 - Day 2

The Show is in High Gear

Yes, that is really a Chandelier!

When you live in Marion Square for 16 days I suppose you do want some of the comforts of home.

Like a chandelier?

Friends from Mobile, Alabama

Jay and Amy McRae

This really is one of the perks of the show - not only do you get to meet people from all over the world who are in Charleston for Spoleto, but old friends, new friends and friends of friends stop by - Jay and Amy McRae have known my cousin, Barbara Whaley, who also lives in Mobile, for years, and when Barbara was still doing a lot of travel, they took trips together to wonderful and far away places.  So what a delightful surprise that Jay and Amy were here and came looking for me!

Piccolo Spoleto Outdoor Art Show 2012 - Day 1 - Friday 5/25

REINERT TAKES TOP AWARD!

Mayor's Award

"Dusk at King and Queen"

Rick Reinert, Artist

Congratulations, Rick Reinert!  The Mayor's Award is Best in Show and Rick's painting becomes part of the excellent City of Charleston art collection.  For the first year, "Dusk at King and Queen" will hang in the Mayor's office, and then be rotated throughout City offices.  

As I blog the show, we'll visit the other award winners and their paintings and just have some Piccolo Spoleto fun!

Piccolo Spoleto Outdoor Art Exhibition 2012 - Pre-Show Logistics

Bare Bones

Getting ready for the 16 day show is a process, not just the painting which continues right up to and throughout the show, but also the physical logistics of the show - always the part that the artist struggles with - we'd all rather be painting!  The tent is necessary, however, and becomes the artist's "house" over 16 days.  I put up my tent late Wednesday afternoon, May 23 - all by myself except for getting the top on (which I can do by myself, it just takes a lot more time pushing, pulling and continually carrying the ladder from side to side...).  Nance Sneddon, one of my artist neighbors in Marion Square this year, and her "rent-a-husband" (her friend's husband who helps her put up her tent each year) helped with the top.

 Tent with Clothes On

Late Thursday afternoon I returned with my panels and art.  Fortunately for me, Tyrone was sitting on Meeting Street as I drove up.  Whenever Piccolo rolls around, you'll find Tyrone in Marion Square - he is great at helping set up, take down, whatever the artists may need.  With Tyrone's help, we put my panels up in half the time it would have taken me to do by myself.

Tyrone of Marion Square

A Wednesday Night Worship Painting for Fishin' For A Mission

Garden Tomb, Jerusalem

Original Mixed Media

11x17"

Donated for Fishin' For A Mission Auction

This piece was painted at St. Andrews Mt. Pleasant on Wednesday, April 11, 2012, right after Easter and about 2 weeks after returning from Israel.  The stone, in reality, is opposite the opening to the tomb, but, in this painting, I "just located it back" to where it would have been in the early part of the first century.

The Garden Tomb is one of 2 sites in Jerusalem that could be the tomb of Jesus.  Although archeological evidence, tradition and many scholars favor the Church of the Holy Sepulchre as the actual site, the Garden Tomb is a place of great peace and lends itself to meditation on the death and resurrection of Christ. This is the place most Christian pilgrims celebrate communion as part of their pilgrimage to the Holy Land, which personally was a profound and moving experience for me in March.

The "Fishin For A Mission" Banquet and Auction is our primary fundraiser for mission work supported by St. Andrews and will be held on Friday, May 11th, at 6:30 p.m. at the Omar Shrine Temple, Mt. Pleasant.  Tickets are $10.00 (click on link for more info). Last year, $88,000 was raised for missions and 100% of the proceeds is spent on missions.  St. Andrews bears the administrative, etc. costs.

It's truly a privilege to be able to sow into and support our missions ministry through my art.

Creativity Events - Collage

7 Completed Collage Panels

Each Panel 6x6"

One of the things I love best about my art career is encouraging the release of creativity in others, so I call these workshops "Creativity Events". The events can take many different forms - collage, watercolor journaling, mixed media journaling, mixed media/altered books, etc. Anyone interested in more information and booking can email me at the address listed at the top of this blog.

The collages above were created within 2 hours, with all supplies included for this event.  We had 7 ladies, each of whom completed and left with a lovely and unique piece of art, ready to hang in their homes.  Actually these little panels have a 1" lip, so they don't even have to be hung, they can just stand on a shelf.  When we put each of them on the floor to photograph them, someone suggested the arrangement of the cross and it worked perfectly - not surprising since the 7 ladies are part of a Tuesday evening Bible Study...

Good Friday 2012

"Passion"

Mixed Media on Board

12x12"

Painted at Worship 2011, St. Andrews Mt. Pleasant