Meet Artist Carol Quinn, Spring Obsession Open Division Artist

O-018  Meditation In Green by Carol Quinn oil 24x30 $550

CAROL QUINN FINE ART

www.carolquinnfineart.com

cquinnart@gmail.com

About the Artist

Born in 1950, Carol Quinn, a long-time Northern California resident, currently lives and paints in the foothill town of Folsom, California. She specializes in capturing the surrounding natural landscape using oils. Viewing Carol’s art often evokes a strong personal connection for many people, drawing them in with the comforting feeling of familiar scenery or a favorite travel get away.

Since moving to California in 1965, Carol has focused almost exclusively on rendering the endless variety of landscapes and seascapes found there. She is consistently drawn to the strong, golden light that transforms everything it touches. Carol remarks that she particularly loves the late afternoon and early evening light when a scene is bathed in a golden or rosy peach glow, this is the magic hour. Her oil paintings are distinguished by the glow of an inner light which makes them come alive.

While primarily self taught, Carol has worked with Anita Wolff, Kathleen Dunphy and Mike Bagondonas. Carol states that each of these artists has provided the insights, challenges and tools to help her take her painting skills to the next level. Painting is a lifetime commitment, one that I am fortunate to do.

In recent years, Carol has focused on painting the Sierra, Yosemite and Lake Tahoe regions. These areas with their majestic land forms, vibrant color, as well as the varied faces of Lake Tahoe, provide limitless opportunities for new interpretations in oils. She is also drawn to the magnificent, gnarled oak trees set against golden hillsides in the summer or the lush green of winter and spring. Carol feels they are one of the iconic symbols of California.

My goal is to capture the feeling of a particular place and connect emotionally with the viewer to provide a beautiful respite from a busy world, she states. Art collectors have remarked on how looking at one of Carol’s paintings takes them back to a place they visited and renews treasured memories of time spent there.

Galleries-Petra Vineyard Tasting Room and Sutter Street Gallery, 627 Sutter St. Folsom, Ca.

Selected Exhibits and Events

August 2012-Three paintings purchased by Marshall Hospital, Placerville, Ca.

June-2012-Folsom Art Association Membership Show-Bank of America Gallery, Folsom Lake College

June- 2012-Barbera Festival-Plymouth, Ca.

June- 2012 Spring Studio Tour, Folsom, Ca.

January 2012-“3 x 3” Show-El Dorado Arts Council Gallery-Placerville,Ca.

August 2011-45^th Annual Mother Lode Show-Placerville, Ca.

June 2011-Barbera Festival-Plymouth, Ca.

www.carolquinnfineart.com   cquinnart@gmail.com

Meet Artist Randy Klassen, OPEN Division accepted Artist

Meet Artist Randy Klassen.  Randy is our first OPEN Division Artist featured here on our blog.  Stay tuned for more...

O-040 Time to Retire by Randy Klassen  watercolor  26x35  $1100

Randy Klassen      Biography

Randy has been interested in art since he was a very young child.  His dad was a recognized artist in Canada and took Randy with him on many sketching trips.  Randy learned early how to use watercolors.  Since then he  has committed to using the highest quality of paint and paper in his work.

His earlist vocation was that of a minister with art being a constant avocation.

However, in 1981, he and his wife Joyce, also an artist,   took a ‘sabatical’ from ministry to concentrate full time on art.  They participated in many art and wine shows and other exhibits, mostly in California.  In 1984 they were selected as part of a month long cultural exchange to China where their work was exhibited in the Gallery of Guanghou Art Institute.

Various awards and honors came to Randy throughout the years of his career in art.  One award was having his depiction of the area of Palm Springs being made into a poster which was distributed throughout the city and beyond.

First place awards also came from the city of San Francisco and the Society of Western Artists.  One of Randy’s most popular paintings entitled, “To Such Belongs the Kingdom of God” has been published in several magazines, displayed on television and used as a cover for a National Advent Calendar.  It was also reproduced into an edition of lithographs, all of which are now sold.

Giving visual expression to the beauty of creation and the wonders of humanity have always fascinated Randy.  He is grateful to have two of his recent paintings on exhibit in the Ironstone Spring Obsession Show.

O-037  Almost Ready  by Randy Klassen  watercolor  21x25  $750

Meet Artist Jerry De Garza, Ironstone Spring Obsession Theme Division Artist

jerry de garza

from las vegas nv. to ione ca

jerry de garza has been painting for 30 years, studied at berkley moved to las vegas doing shows and gallerys. then moved back to ione ca. and doing shows and gallerys

T-026  Boots by Jerry De Garza  oil  21x16  $500

to contact de garza

(209) 763- 2601

Meet Artist Gregory Gallardo, Ironstone's Spring Obsession OPEN Division accepted artist

O-047  Between Shadow And Soul  by Gregory E. Gallardo  collage  24x24 $1200

Gregory Gallardo

Artist Statement:

"I am an art school dropout"... Upon receiving a scholarship to attend art school, I did what any rational 17-years-old would do; I left home, left school and traveled the world as a musician. Music more than art encompassed my life for the following 10 years. Ironically, this journey influenced my visual arts in ways that no formal art education could have. One vital lesson I learned as a musician was that the space between the musical notes was just as important as the notes themselves. Visually this concept can be applied to the use of negative space by the strategic application of both color and texture to evoke a sense of motion, rhythm and tempo. In my most recent works my collage techniques emphasize this illusion. Sharp tears reveal white edges which add Rhythm. The magazine paper imagery is glued in patterns, moving the eye around the piece. Figure and background flow in balance. While on the surface this technique may appear academic, the underlying message mirrors my personal views on life and death; a seamless harmonious coexistence.

My journey for creating "art" is a selfish act. The process becomes all encompassing, with the outcome of a work of art often becoming inconsequential to the path that lead me to the final conclusion, i.e. "The point of the journey is not to arrive." When working with collage, Ideas unfold without any predetermined direction. Letting the magazine paper speak to me, a page is turned and textures, patterns and color are randomly discovered, altering the theme as each torn piece is glued into place. Building works in this manner becomes a spiritual experience; living in the moment and allowing chance to guide the eventual outcome. The organic imagery taken from the torn magazine paper which comprise my works speak of my link to nature. Found upon closer inspection a torn photograph of a purple sunset becomes the blush of a cheek, a birds nest and the needles of a cactus form hair. My hope is that this method of re-interpretation will give the viewer cause to reconsider their ideas of our own origin.

*40% of the proceeds on direct sales of Gregory’s art goes to local charities.

Gregory Gallardo

Email: gallardoart@me.com

Web: www.gregorygallardo.com