[Scmusenet] Three Watercolorists in Exhibition to open June 27 at the Pickens County Museum

Mon Jun 22 09:13:12 MDT 2009

Three Watercolorists in Exhibition at the Pickens County Museum

Exhibits featuring Dale Cochran, Lynn Greer and Russell Jewell to open
June 27

   The Pickens County Museum of Art & History will be presenting "Three
Watercolorists in Exhibition" from June 27 through August 27, 2009.
Please join us from 6:00 until 8:00 p.m. on June 27 as we host a
reception to meet the three artists featured in "Dale Cochran:
Extraordinary Experiences," "Lynn Greer: Night Views" and "Russell
Jewell: Legacy and Light." All three exhibitions will continue through
August 27, 2009. 

     Watercolor is a tradition that spans the chronicles of history.
Primitive man's use of pigments mixed with water to create cave
paintings evolved to the ancient Egyptians work on papyrus and
traditional Asian masters painting on silk and handmade paper. In the
Middle Ages illuminated manuscripts were brightly colored with the
medium. The increased availability of paper by the fourteenth century
allowed for the increase of artistic possibilities so artists such as
Albrecht Durer, Peter Paul Rubens, Jean Honore Fragonard and many more
used watercolor as a means of drawing and developing compositions.

     With the production of higher quality papers in the late eighteenth
century, the first national school of watercolorists emerged in Britain.
These renderings encompassed visual identity of ports of sea, as well as
the surrounding landscape and in 1768, influential topographers founded
the Royal Academy which encouraged watercolorists to carry the medium
beyond their own technical achievements, encouraging the likes of Joseph
M. W. Turner to grow into one of the most influential painters of the
nineteenth century.

     The earliest American watercolors were often created for
documentation of the "new world", thus American artists worked in the
shadow of European masters until the late nineteenth century. Gradually,
painters such as Thomas Eakins, Winslow Homer and James A. M. Whistler
began to develop artworks that challenged the Europeans and the rise of
American painting ensued. Watercolor became an inevitable medium for the
American painter who, from the beginning, made landscape painting one of
the dominant features of the American art tradition. Watercolor's
inherent luminosity, combined with its capacity for rapid execution,
gave landscape painters an ideal means for recording the fleeting
effects of nature. 

Dale Cochran

"Extraordinary Experiences"

     South Carolina native Dale Cochran is an artist with a gift for
revealing the uniqueness and beauty in things seemingly plain,
illuminating the stories and spirits behind the ordinary - an old barn,
a basket of pecans, a child caught in a moment of imagination, a crayon
on pavement. 

     Dale was a child when he began his journey as an artist, lying on
the floor beside his dad's drawing board. As a high school student, Dale
experienced his first formal training and then continued his studies at
Anderson University, receiving an associate degree in art, and then
Winthrop University, earning a bachelor's degree in visual arts.

     About this exhibition Dale say, "The title of this exhibition -
Extraordinary Experiences - supports my belief that when we take the
time to look and listen to the world around us, the commonplace and
ordinary become extraordinary. Through the years, I've made many
attempts to write an artist statement that describes my work. But I've
come to realize that my work isn't complicated; it's simply a visual
interpretation of my experiences, relationships and observations.
Sometimes there are stories behind the inspiration for the piece; at
other times, it's just the visual intrigue of the subject."

     Dale has been professionally involved in the arts for more than 30
years as an award-winning artist, illustrator, instructor and graphic
designer. Dale's work has been featured in numerous exhibitions and
publications. For more information about the artist and his work visit
www.dalecochran.com.

Lynn Greer

"Night Views"

     A Greenvillian since the age of eight, and Fine Arts Center
student, Lynn Greer is a 1979 University of Georgia graduate with a BFA
in Graphic Design. After eight years as an Art Director, she left to
join the ranks of, as she calls it, "poor starving artists."  For the
last twenty-one years she has made a living as a working artist;
painting commissioned works, organizing one-woman exhibits, taking part
in outdoor arts festivals and entering juried competitions.  

     About making watercolors Lynn says, "I love the watercolor medium.
The fluidity and the unlimited ability to surprise both add to the
enjoyment of painting. I am exhilarated by the process as well as the
product, whether I am painting a floral, a portrait or a cityscape. I
feel fortunate when I am able to communicate my joy to others." She
continues, "My current body of work focuses on the glow of lights in
urban, suburban and rural settings. I am interested in exploring the
many possibilities inherent in this subject matter. How many ways can I
portray the stages of evening, using both color and contrast? I am also
fascinated by the variety of hues in the night sky, depending on season,
weather and reflected light from the landscape below. The lights are the
stars.  The architecture and surrounding landscape play supporting
roles."

     Lynn is a member with excellence of the South Carolina Watercolor
Society, a signature member of the Georgia Watercolor Society, and a
board member of the Metropolitan Arts Council in Greenville, SC.  She
has recently been included in AMERICAN ARTIST WATERCOLOR MAGAZINE, as
one of twenty emerging artists across the US. She lives in downtown
Greenville with her husband Henk VanDyk.

Russell Jewell

"Legacy and Light"

     Russell Jewell is an artist/educator from Easley, South Carolina.
For more than twenty-five years he has carved a career out of the
combining forces of art and education. Jewell's qualifications for such
a career include a Bachelors degree in Art Education, a Masters of Art
degree from the University of South Carolina and a Doctorate of
Education from the University of Georgia. He is a certified Advanced
Placement teacher and has received certification by the National Board
for Professional Teachers Program.

     On the artistic front Jewell has been juried into many national
exhibitions including: Watercolor USA, Northeast Watercolor, Northwest
Watercolor, Watercolor West, Adirondacks Exhibition of American
Watercolor, Easton Maryland's Premiere Plein Air Competition, Telluride
Plein Air, as well as the National Watercolor Society exhibition. He has
been the recipient of a plethora of awards and honors and his work is
widely published

     When asked to speak about his upcoming exhibition, Dr. Jewell said,
"The works of 'Legacy and Light' reflect my artistic development as it
was coupled with the actual physical and social environment of a growing
family. As my family grew and matured so too grew my artistic knowledge
and personal awareness.  My life has always coupled art with education.
My passion seems to encompass both of these ideals in the form of a
'give and take'. As an artist, the more education I take, the more I
have to give back. This give and take fuels a personal passion to share,
not only my art, but my art knowledge as well. I often compare the
artist with the magician. Both the artist and the magician must first,
intellectually, learn the tricks of their trade but it is the viewer who
perceives the magic in their work. I encourage everyone to find their
passion and share the magic."

     Russell Jewell is a signature member of the S.C. Watermedia Society
and the National Watercolor Society. In 2008 he received a US patent for
his Jewell Box plein air viewfinder. His viewfinder and his work can be
viewed at www.russelljewell.com. 

     Three Watercolorists in Exhibition is part of the museum's 2008 -
2009 exhibition season sponsored by Blue Ridge Electric Cooperative,
Pickens Savings & Loan and Upstate Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery & Dental
Implant Center along with Cornerstone Bank, First Citizens Bank, ING
Financial Partners - Sam Head, Liberty Family Pharmacy, Richard & Laura
Powers, Pumpkintown Community Club, Mr. & Mrs. Alfred Robinson & Family
and the Rozelle Stone Company.

   The Pickens County Museum of Art & History is funded in part by
Pickens County, members and friends of the museum and a grant from the
South Carolina Arts Commission, which receives support from the National
Endowment for the Arts.

   Located at the corner of Hwy. 178 at 307 Johnson Street in Pickens
SC, the museum is open Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 9:00 a.m.
until 5:00 p.m., Thursdays from 9:00 a.m. until 7:30 p.m. and Saturdays
from 9:00 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. Admission is free but donations are
welcomed.

   For more information please contact the museum at (864) 898-5963.

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