Members of the North Central Arkansas Artist League hung a new art exhibit at Ozark Health Medical Center in Clinton on Highway 65. The free exhibit features 31 paintings by 20 area artists, and is open to the public through January. The gallery is located on the second floor of the hospital next to the cafeteria.
Exhibiting artists are Van Swink, Ruby Krimm, Ellen Kelly, Pauline Sears, Anne Strawn, Doris Sexson, Bonnie Hookman, Lea Berry, Freda May, Dorothy Hendrickson, Jeanne Homuth, Connie Hood, Alison Shreck, Melva King, Charlotte Rierson, all of Fairfield Bay; Julie Caswell, Jan Cobb, Pamma Henderson, Edgemont; Diana Foote and Joyce Hartmann, Clinton.
This exhibit is varied. Viewers will see acrylics, watercolors, oils, clay, pastel, scratchboard, and ink. Landscapes range from familiar Arkansas scenes to the Grand Canyon, Jerusalem, and other exotic places. There are abstracts and realistic paintings. Some combine the two, as Clinton artist Diana Foote, who says, “I like to apply abstract principles to realistic subjects.”
Animals and birds seem to play a major role in this exhibit, with horses, hummingbirds, chickens, sheep, parrots, owls, mallard ducks rising from wetlands, and even a bear up a tree. All seasons are represented, including autumn leaves, spring flowers abloom, summer kayaking, and poinsettias marking the winter season.
A successful painting often has a mood about it. A watercolor of a realistic subject can also convey a feeling of space, peace, and poignant beauty found in nature, such as the soft watercolor “Lone Fishermen” by Julie Caswell, Edgemont.
Each artist tries to communicate their feelings about their subjects to their viewers. It is usually a very personal communication and often results in the viewer wanting to own the art work, which motivates the artist to paint even more. “It’s very satisfying to the artist to know that someone appreciates their work enough to buy it,” says artist Anne Strawn, Fairfield Bay.
All art works are unique one-of-a-kind originals and are for sale, ranging from $20 to $1,200, with some of each purchase supporting the Hospital Auxiliary’s purchase of medical equipment.
The North Central Arkansas Artist League meets in Fairfield Bay each Monday and Thursday to paint together. Members also hold demonstrations, workshops, put on art shows, exhibit in the area, and conduct other art-related projects to improve their techniques and share their art. They maintain a small gallery, Bayside Art Studio and Gallery, located on Highway 330 and Greenwood Rd., across from the Razorback Rock, open each Monday morning or by appointment. For further information about the League, call President Jan Cobb at 825-7084. For further information about the OHMC exhibit, call Joyce Hartmann at 745-6615.
