President's Letter
I am finally feeling like my world is getting back in order. I have spent the past month in and out of Washington MedStar Hospital in preparation for my hubby’s heart surgery. He went in for surgery two days after Christmas, and he came home the day after his surgery. Everything went incredibly well, considering his original aorta heart valve replacement was 14 years old and supposedly only had a ten- year shelf life. I would say Rick proved that wrong! The doctor said he will feel better now, so I am looking forward to watching him with his new lease on life.
In the past couple months, I had two people tell me I should try to paint small, and the idea really intrigued me! So, I took the challenge! My new adventure, took me to Michael’s Craft Store in search of the smallest frames I could find. I selected both 2” x 3” and 3” x 3” sizes. Due to the size of the frames, I thought they would be good for people downsizing, or people in retirement homes, kids in dorm rooms, or new tiny-house families. They are also great for those who cherish things that come in little packages. Little paintings are also a fabulous gift to give for someone on a budget. In my case, I wanted to paint one painting for my daughter and one for my granddaughter. First, I had to consider what subject matter might appeal to my recipients. It was actually a little difficult to figure out what would fit in a small frame. I took this matter one step further, and challenged both my daughter and granddaughter to paint small so we could exchange paintings. We have the same frames to use and can paint whatever we want. I supplied them with watercolor paper already pre-cut, to make things as easy as possible. I cannot wait to see where this will lead! I think we will end up with tiny treasures to enjoy for years to come!
I am really looking forward to a new year of possibilities! I’m going to keep an open mind and heart and cannot wait to see where 2024 leads us. There is so much creativity in our group and I cannot wait to see what develops with some new ideas/challenges.
I will look forward to seeing you at our January 10th Members Meeting at Seelos Hall, with artist Stacey Lund Levy as our painting demonstrator. As always, let us relax, meet some new people and enjoy the demonstration. Do not forget to bring your tasty treats and recipes to share.
Paint to Make Your Heart Sing,
Juanita Green, President
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Juanita Green, President, Linda Luke, Eileen Hempel, Vice President
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Thank you, Juanita and Eileen, for working so hard to organize the Holiday Party event held on Dec 5th. We all enjoyed the delicious food catered by Angela Nassar of A&A Catering. There were many members present to enjoy the festivities, art salon, and gift exchange fun. Thank you, Barbara Burns, for hosting the gift "giving and taking." Below are some photos of the fun afternoon. Thank you everyone who donated children's art gifts to needy families.
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Connie Robinson sets up paintings (We were thankful for all the art submitted for the Salon. See some posted below.)
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Eileen Hempel putting out the many desserts
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Thank you to everyone who brought gifts to EXCHANGE with members. And, thank you for the generous art gifts to children of needy families through Our Lady of Guadalupe Ministry.
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Thank You Father Patrick Woods
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Some months ago Connie Robinson asked the Pastor of St. Mary's Church, Fr. Patrick Woods, if the AWC could use Seelos Hall (next to St. John Neumann Church) for our meetings, work shops, and holiday party. We were so appreciative that Fr. Woods agreed! As a way to thank him, our AWC Board wanted to give him a $300 check to be used where needed in either church. Below is a view of the interior of beautiful St. Mary's Church at Christmas.
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Connie and Juanita recently visited Fr. Woods and presented him with our check. He was very thankful, and we had a nice visit.
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January 10th: In-Person Meeting, 1-4 pm
Seelos Hall at St. John Neumann Church
1 pm Art Salon (bring your paintings to show)
1:30 pm Juanita Green will host our General Meeting 2 pm Painting Demonstration by Stacy Lund Levy (followed by sharing treats)
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ART SALON
Display at Seelos Hall The goal of the art salon is to share work and share our comments and thoughts. We are looking for works in progress and finished works. Looking at the work entered into the salon is inspiring, and gives the viewers the opportunity to give positive feedback by writing down comments on ledger paper with the paintings Please consider bringing paintings for the next in-person Art Salon to be held on Wednesday, January 10, at 1 pm.
Andrea Naft (host) (Unfortunately, I will be unable to attend.)
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PAINTING DEMONSTRATION BY STACY LUND LEVY January 10th at In-Person Members' Meeting
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Artist and Baltimore native, Stacy Lund Levy has been creating art in many forms since kindergarten. She earned an undergraduate degree from Hood College in Biochemistry as well as a Masters Degree at The Johns Hopkins Art as Applied to Medicine program. Combining her natural artistic talents with her intellectual interest in anatomy and science, she initially worked as a medical illustrator. Stacy then opted to establish Lund Art Studios, a career move that enabled her to take on a variety of clients both locally and nationally, and also to jury shows, teach classes and workshops, give demonstrations, and exhibit her artwork.
Stacy works primarily in watercolor, but also creates wearable art. She is a signature member of the American, Baltimore, Pennsylvania, and Philadelphia Watercolor Societies, and American Women Artists. See two of Stay's paintings below.
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12" x 12" watercolor on Ampersand Aquaboard
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8" x 10" watercolor on Clayboard
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What Are Our AWC Members UP TO?
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Annette Uroskie was recently juried into two shows at the Maryland Federation of Art: “Small Wonders” in December and “Light and Shadows” through January. Both shows can be seen on line by opening the MFA site. Annette also gave a talk and demo on painting on Yupo paper to the Art League of St. Michaels in November.
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Watercolors on Yupo paper, "Eruption Series #12" (MFA Small Wonders Show)
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Watercolors on Yupo paper, "Cancun Shadows in Blue"
(MFA Light & Shadow Show)
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Another Place to Exhibit Your Art By Eileen Hempel
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Did you know that the Arts Council of Anne Arundel County owns an exhibit at the Baltimore–Washington International Airport (BWI)?
Exhibits at BWI Marshall Airport provide a wonderful opportunity for local Anne Arundel County artists to showcase their talents to thousands of travelers. Exhibits rotate every 4-5 months, each with a new theme. Anyone can visit the exhibit located between Concourse C & D in departures (pre-security) upper level near the UPS store & door 10. And if you are interested in submitting your artwork for the next installment, visit the Arts Council of Anne Arundel County webpage at https://www.acaac.org/our-programs/past-exhibits/.
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Kathy Daywalt, watercolor, “Tundra Moon”
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The current exhibit is BWI Exhibit 38: “Winter Around the World” which is on display November 17, 2023 to March 18, 2024. Participating artists for the current exhibit include our very own Kathy Daywalt, Joan Machinchick, and Annette Uroskie.
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Joan Machinchick, watercolor, “Ravine in Winter”
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Annette Uroskie, watercolor on Yupo paper, “Frozen Flowers
Melt…Rivers Flow”
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EXHIBITS
Greetings and Happy New Year, artists!
I hope everyone enjoyed the holidays and you’re all inspired with creativity for the coming year. There is still a little time to go over to Ginger Cove to see our exhibit in the gallery there. We will be picking up our paintings on January 12.
Warm wishes for a creative new year to all.
Joan Machinchick, Exhibits Chair
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MONTHLY
FEATURED ARTIST
Juris Eksteins
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Juris was born in Riga, Latvia. His family fled the Soviet army in 1944, ending in a displaced persons' camp in the American Zone in Esslingen, Germany. In 1950 his family immigrated to the United States. Juris studied to become a mechanical engineer, graduating from the University of Maryland. He worked into his 70's as an aerospace engineer for Litton Industries and later for Northrop Grumman.
Juris has always enjoyed sketching, drawing -- as a young boy he made sketches of nature, cars; as a teenager he made drawings for his high school yearbook; as an adult he was asked by his family and friends to make sketches for birthday cards, program covers.
Juris comes from an artistic family. His father was an accomplished painter in oils and his sister also painted in oils. (See his watercolor paintings below.)
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Later in Juris's retirement he took his first watercolor class at Maryland Hall with Linda Luke in 2019. He has continued weekly with Linda's Let's Paint classes and with various workshops with Linda until the present. He has also enjoyed participating in Linda's plein air workshops in Wades Point and learning from various workshops and demonstrations from the Watercolor Club.
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ART THINGS IS BACK!
After a two-year absence, the art supply shop is back in business at Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts, 801 Chase Street (ground floor).
The shop was recently bought by Sarah Winchester, and she has innovative ideas! She already had her first Art Talk on December 23, with a visiting watercolor artist (Richard Schatz and I attended -- see photo below). Sarah encourages people to ask her to carry certain items.
The current hours, beginning January 3rd, will be M-W-Th 10 am - 3 pm. The hours may increase in the future, depending on requests. For inquiries, call 410-878-7786
Sarah stated on her Facebook page: The first Art Talks at Art Things was a success! A big thanks to watercolor artist Chris Engnoth for bringing his work (for sale!) and sharing his expertise on watercolor techniques. Our next Art Talk will be in March. We have plenty of watercolor supplies.
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Excited Owner, Sarah Winchester
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SUNSHINE CLUB
Well, there is usually not a lot of sunshine this time of year, what with the days being so short and all. But we are making it our New Years Resolution to bring a little sunshine to anyone who needs something to brighten their day. The Sunshine Club is here to send out a lovely Jacquie Lawson email card to any member in need of encouragement or well wishes. We are also available to send any congratulatory messages to members celebrating a win in their artistic career. Please, if you, or someone you know would benefit from one of our e-cards, please send their name, email and occasion to sunshine.AWC.dw@gmail.com and an appropriate card will be sent without delay. Thank You, Dina Weavers
Thank You, Dina Weavers, Sunshine Club Chair
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AWC CALENDAR 2024
(click here to print copy)
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MEETINGS:
January
4 7:00 Board Meeting
10 1 pm Art Salon in Seelos Hall
1:30 pm Members Meeting 2 pm Demonstration, Stacy Lund Levy
February 1 7:00 Board Meeting 14 6:30: Art Salon by Andrea Naft 7:15 Members Meeting 7:30 Demonstration TBD
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EXHIBITS:
2024 Ginger Cove
Through Jan 12, 2024
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TREASURER'S REPORT
Our financial status as of December 21, 2023: Checking 6,430.61 Savings 10,262.61 Total $16,693.22
Sheryl Paris, Treasurer
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WEB SITE
Happy New Year! Thank you to all of you who have already renewed your membership for 2024. Our membership year begins on January 1st, so if you have not done so yet, you will receive a third reminder on January 1. Please visit our website and renew your dues.
To renew, go to https://annapoliswatercolorclub.org/Sys/Profile and log in, using your email address as your user name and selecting ‘Forgot password’ if you don’t remember your password or have not logged in before. If payment has not been received by January 21, your membership status will be changed to "lapsed," and you will need to renew your dues before registering for any members-only events.
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MEMBERSHIP
We closed the year with 211 members. Thirty-five of these were new members, and we retained over 80% of our members from last year. Every year we have some turn-over in membership, so we are always looking for new members. Our best advertising is word-of-mouth, so spread the word and encourage you friends to join! At $35 per year, with ten meetings per year and artist demonstrations at almost every meeting, as well as opportunities for workshops and exhibitions, it has always been a great deal. And of course, if you have not already renewed your membership, please go to the website and do so now, so you don’t miss out on another great year with AWC!
Liz Grimes
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Do you have an article to submit? Any friends having an art exhibit? Did you read something art related to share? Send the article or link to Connie Robinson, Newsletter Editor, constancejr@comcast.net
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I M P O R T A N T M E S S A G E
OPEN POSITIONS FOR
BOARD MEMBERS AND CHAIRS
As noted below, we have FIVE volunteer positions open.
Please consider serving a two-year term for one of these fun jobs!
TREASURER
EXHIBITS CHAIR
HOSPITALITY CHAIR
PLEIN AIR / SKETCHING CHAIR
PUBLICITY AND PROGRAM CHAIR
Email our President, Juanita Green, for more information
about any of these positions.
Juanitagreen640@yahoo.com
Or email the person in the job at the present time.
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ELECTED BOARD MEMBERS
President, Juanita Green
443.822.5916
juanitagreen640@yahoo.com
Secretary and Special Projects, Richard Schatz, 443.482.9553 RSchatz905@gmail.com
Treasurer, Sheryl Paris 410.224.6978, isaiah5410@comcast.net
Vice President, Eileen Hempel 503.758.5479, eileeng2413@gmail.com
Immediate Past President, Linda Luke 410.476.7770 lindalukewatercolor@gmail.com
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APPOINTED CHAIRS
Exhibits, Joan Machinchick
410.757.7901, joan21409@gmail.com
Hospitality (open)
Newsletter Editor, and Social Media,
Connie Robinson. 410.533.0991
constancejr@comcast.net
Plein Air/Journal Sketching (open)
Publicity & Program Coordinator (open)
Salon, Andrea Naft
443.255.5353, anaft123@gmail.com
Sunshine Club, Dina Wevers 443.597.2381, high-strung@comcast.net
Webmaster, Liz Grimes,
410.456.2560, lizgrimes@comcast.net
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Copyright © 2024 Annapolis Watercolor Club, All rights reserved.
You are receiving this email because you “opted in” via our website. Our Mailing address is: Annapolis Watercolor Club PO Box 6030, Annapolis, MD 21401-0030
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