Meet Artist Ruth Burney, Spring Obsession OPEN Division accepted artist

O-108  School Privy Douglas Flat by Ruth Burney  oil  20x16  $450

C. Ruth Burney

BIOGRAPHY

Ruth Burney is a native Californian born in St. Helena.  Her family moved to Napa in her early years.  At age seven they moved to an eighteen section cattle ranch in New Mexico.  Arizona, Nevada, Colorado, France and Washington were home in the years that followed.  She returned to California

in 1964.

 Formal training in fine art began at Colorado Womans College in Denver and continues today.  Her recent trip to Sedona Arizona included painting with plein aire artist, Joshua Been.  "His presentation on perspective was the clearest and simplist that I have ever known" She credits, Kathleen Dunphy  with introducing her to the plein aire artist's limited palette.  "This was a big leap in my artistic growth . Using only the three primary colors, plus and extra yellow and white, to render all that the eye can perceive is magic. It also allows, or more accurately forces,keener observation."  Another prominent artist, Timothy J Clark was very influential.  "My studies with, Tim have taken me to Italy, Spain, Hawaii and California (Yosemite).  We worked in plein aire using watercolors.  What a joy."

Ruth has occupied both sides of the art scene having had an art gallery in Mariposa, California and Jackson, Wyoming.." Time spent in the gallery was an art education in itself.  Surrounded by incredible pieces or work each day and listening to the artists discuss their work..what a gift. Being part of placing a

fine piece of art into a collector's appreciative hand was frosting on the cake."

My goal as an artist is to translate what I see and feel at that moment.  To share the result with others in the hope that  they will appreciate the beauty that surrounds us each day.

Ruth Burney's art is in both private and corporate collections across the country.

O-111  Canyon Fall  by Ruth Burney  oil  10x8  $350

Meet Artist Melinda Shook, Spring Obsession Theme Division artist

T-002  Dutch Treat by Melinda Shook  watercolor  30x24  $990

Melinda J. Shook
Artist Statement

Born and raised in Southern California, Melinda received her B.A. in Fine Arts from the University of California at Los Angeles. A year later she earned a K-8 General Teaching Credential. Her teaching career spanned thirty-six years, retiring in 2002. Art was always an integral part of her curriculum.

In 2005 Melinda renewed her interest in watercolor and began her painting career. Nature has always been deeply appreciated and a source of inspiration. With a love of photography, capturing images is an important and useful tool she employs in the painting process.

Melinda is a member of Watercolor Artists of Sonoma County (WASCO) and was juried into the 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010 Aqua Areas Exhibition in Santa Rosa.  Her painting, "Kyan," was awarded an honorable mention in '07. In '09 she received the People's Choice Award for her painting Pine Flat.  In 2010 her painting, Dutch Treat, was awarded the Glad Baker Memorial Association (CWA), Watercolor West (WW) and National Watercolor Society (NWS). In '07 and '08 she was accepted into the international transparent WW exhibitions.  In '07 and '09 she was an exhibitor in the national CWA showings. In the summer of '09 her image, San Zavier del Bac, was selected by the NEW jury to be three matted painting to apply for signature status. On October 10th she was presented at the Exhibition Awards Luncheon as a new signature member, a milestone in her career.  Being accepted into the 2010 CWA 41st national Exhibition, her third, made her eligible to apply for signature status.  On 5 May the CWA Board approved her application for signature membership.

Melinda is continually refining her skills through workshops, classes and employing new techniques in her painting. Several award winning artists have influenced her: Marge Gray, Judy Greenberg, Phyllis Rapp, Barbara Nechis, Joyce Faulknor, Tom Lynch, Jane Hofstetter, John Salminen, and Mike Bailey.

2011 thus far has been a truly rewarding year. I have been juried in to the NWS Member Show, the CWA 42nd National Exhibition, and the Rocky Mountain National Watermedia Exhibition, in its 38th year, presented by Foothills Art Center in Golden, Colorado. I was the top poster contest winner for the WASCO Aqua Areas upcoming show in Santa Rosa.

My painting, Crested Butte, was selected for the 2012 Rocky Mountain National Watermedia Exhibition from Sept. 14 - Oct. 28 at the Foothills Art Center in Golden, CO.

I was also accepted in the NWS 92nd Annual Exhibition Sept. 29 to Dec. 2 in San Pedro, CA. The juror of awards, Barbara Nechis, chose my painting, Artist's Row Mission Inn, for the 2013 Traveling Exhibition. It will be traveling in the U.S. for 12 months.

My landscape of Cathedral Rock, Sedona received an award in our annual Santa Rosa Aqua Areas Exhibition in Sept.

T-001  Cheaper by the Dozen  by Melinda Shook  watercolor  30x24  $990

Meet Artist Andrea Morris, Spring Obsession Theme Division Artist

andrea morris   
artist

Andrea Morris was born in Karlsrhue Germany and spent much of her younger years in Montana and Arizona.  She was exposed to art from an early age as her Mother was an artist and taught painting classes in their home.

She developed a love of wildlife and people and spent much of her time drawing and using pen and ink to capture her subject.  It was not until the 1970's that she started to explore working with color in watercolor.  Working in a local watercolor gallery in Tucson, Arizona she learned a about building up her paintings through layers of transparent color.

She experimented in working in oils and immediately fell in love with the medium and has worked almost exclusively in this medium since,  although she does paint in Acrylics and watercolors at times.

Her main focus of subject still remains wildlife and people and she has been working towards representing her subjects in a colorful and expressive style.

Being self taught she has learned most about her art by painting, experimenting and studying other works of art.  She has made a living of painting murals in many homes in the northern California area and has worked with the Wall Dogs painting large murals in city downtown businesses.

She presently resides in Lodi, California and teaches classes in her small studio.  She continues to paint and show her work in the surrounding areas art venues.

You can view a gallery of her art at www.andreamorrisart.com

Meet Artist Oranne Lee, Ironstone's Spring Obsession Theme Division artist

Oranne Lee

Oranne Lee Eichorn resides in Shingle Springs, CA, where she moved when retiring from teaching in Santa Barbara for 25 years. As a teacher, she brought the curriculum alive for her students by integrating art into every subject from social studies to science to math.  Oranne studied art with instructors at UC Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara City College, and the Santa Barbara Museum of Art in watercolor, pastels, and oil.  Since her move, she has enjoyed a number of workshops with local artists, including The School of Light and Color, Randall Tillery, and  Anita Wolff, with emphasis on still life and landscape in oils. 

Fascinated her whole life with mountain scenery, especially Yosemite, she is thrilled to discover so many local landscapes just waiting to be painted, from the American River to snowy Icehouse trails. While her husband fishes, she paints.  Her entry in the Mother Lode Show reflects the scenery she found kayaking at our local Wright’s Lake. 

Oranne is an active award-winning participant and board member of the Placerville Art Association.  Her work has also been accepted into the Motherlode Show, a juried Western Region competition, and the Ironstone Vineyard Tulip Festival Show in Murphys.  She currently shows her work at the Gold Country Artists’ Gallery in Placerville.

orannelee@aol.com