Join us Frifay Aug. 3, 5:00-7:00. We thank all the sponsors who made it possible!

Pictured: Atalina’s Gaze by Jenny Medved, First Place Winner
Searle Gallery Feb 13 – Mar 23
Juror: Gene Rizzo

Reception: Thursday, February 15th, 5-7 pm
Pickup: Saturday, March 24th, 10 am-11:30 AM

Florida Suncoast Watercolor Society (FSWS) is an IRS tax-exempt 501-C-3, not-for-profit organization for members who reside on the west coast of Florida. FSWS was formed in 1983 to foster the advancement of and promote excellence in the art of watercolor painting. Our intent is to inform and educate through exhibitions, lectures and painting demonstrations as to the best work currently being done in watercolor.

ArtCenter Manatee is honored to present the 150th Annual Traveling Exhibition of the American Watercolor Society International Exhibition featuring the work of 40 pre-eminent water media artists from around the world. Experience the world-class talent and enjoy this jewel in downtown Bradenton. $5 admission per person helps to cover the cost of bringing this prestigious exhibition to ArtCenter Manatee, one of only five venues in the country and the only in Florida.

Also on display will be the Aqueous Show by Florida Suncoast Watercolor Society (FSWS). The Opening Reception is free and open to the public. M-F-S 9-5, T-W-Th 9-6. Closed Sunday.

The American Watercolor Society is one of the oldest and most prestigious art societies in the world. Indeed, election to the Society as a Signature Member is one of the most sought-after honors in the painting world. AWS Membership comprises many of the greatest names in painting throughout the Society’s history and includes (to name drop a few) the American impressionist Childe Hassam, regionalists Edward Hopper and Charles Burchfield, plus virtually every member of the important “California School” of watercolorists, and everyone in between, up to and including the late Andrew Wyeth.

AWS’s annual Exhibition is one of the most revered watercolor exhibits in the world. More than 1,200 artists from throughout the United States and 27 foreign countries submit their work to a panel of jurors chosen from Signature Members of the AWS. Of these submissions, 150 paintings are selected for the exhibition. Forty paintings from the show are selected for the Traveling Exhibition, which tours museums and galleries across the country during the next year.

While inclusion in this exhibition is itself an honor, participants also compete for the Gold, Silver, and Bronze Medals of Honor, and 34 other awards and medals totaling more than $50,000 in prize money.

Exhibit: Suzy Schultz, A Long Solitude: Works from 2006 – 2017
Jan 9-Feb 9

Opening Reception Jan 11, 5:00-7:00

Suzy Schultz is an award-winning artist who works in the mediums of watercolor, oil, intaglio and graphite. Schultz has little formal art training, but was exposed to art at an early age through her mother, who is a painter. She graduated from Auburn University with a degree in Mathematics Education and taught high school for 4 1/2 years. Taking a leave of absence, she spent a year overseas in Poland. On returning, she did some part-time graphic design work for a local missions agency, and was eventually hired to help with their publications. There she was mentored and nurtured in her artistic talent, and encouraged to paint for illustrations used in the magazine. When her mentor and boss left to go on the mission field six years later, she was told she needed to leave her job and paint full time, which she did.

She has painted full-time since 1995, and has won many awards for her work. Her work has been featured in American Art Collector, Drawing, and Watercolor Magic magazines. She has also had work published in art books.

Suzy lives, works and teaches life drawing in Atlanta, Georgia.

Dec 12-Jan 5, Searle Gallery
Opening Reception Dec 14, 5:00-7:00pm

Slogging through swamps, wading through weeds and getting off the beaten path, Doctrow sketches native habitats and makes environmental woodcuts. These printed woodcuts are portraits of plants and plant communities, some endemic, rare and endangered.

About the Art

This art reflects Doctrow’s captivation with swampy jungles, exotic plants and diverse habitats. A dominant theme is the drama of the moment, a personal interaction with a particular place.

Through this artwork I connect to the natural world and hope to bring attention to these fragile environments.

Her recent work has focused on Central and South Florida, Big Cypress and the Everglades. The work is influenced by the Western landscape art tradition, representing natural forms accurately and expressively, as well as Oriental art. Working mostly in black and white, Doctrow explores complex forms and aims to simplify composition. Her artistic goal is to achieve a balance between black and white areas, carved and uncarved areas of the woodcut block, positive and negative.

She begins with field sketches of natural places, transfers them to woodblocks and then completes the final image with carving. “The carving demands spontaneity, letting go, and following the movement or feeling for the form.” The carved marks become visual shorthand – a way of simplifying complex images, expressing rhythm, texture, form and space.

The carved blocks are printed with water-based ink on Japanese kozo paper, each print hand-pulled in the artist’s studio using an etching press.

About the Artist

Doctrow is Curator Emerita at South Florida State College Museum of Florida Art & Culture in Avon Park, Florida. Her work has been featured in many solo and group exhibitions, and she has lectured widely and conducts workshops on woodcut art. Doctrow has held art residencies at Big Cypress National Preserve, Everglades National Park and Archbold Biological Station. These residencies provided access to remote and pristine areas in Florida, inspiring much of her recent work.

Sep 7-Oct 26

Opening Reception Friday, Sep 28,  5:30-7:30

Free & Open to the Public

We open the 2018-19 season with the annual Florida Watercolor Society (FWS) juried exhibit. This premier exhibit of paintings by Florida watercolorists will feature 102 pieces selected from a field of 600 entries by award-winning artist and juror, Thomas Schaller. The Exhibit will be on display September 7 through October 26. The opening reception will be Friday, September 28, from 5:30 to 7:30.  Complimentary appetizers and a cash bar.

The exhibit and reception are free and open to the public.

To get to the ArtCenter while 3rd Ave is under construction

An open, all media, juried exhibit
October 3 – November 3, 2017

Opening Reception Thursday, October 5, 5:00-7:00pm

Pictured: Radio Days  by John Bayalis

Pick up Date 11/4, 9:00am – 1:00pm

Live Artfully is an open, all media, juried exhibit. Prizes awarded.

This curated exhibit features the work of 5 accomplished local artists whose work in wood and graphite will be displayed in the Kellogg Gallery December 8 – January 8.

Pick up January 9, 9-1

Endangered by Lloyd Roberts
Oct 6- Nov 6
Kellogg Gallery

Opening Reception Thurs, Oct 8, 5-7pm
Free and open to the public

Lloyd Roberts’ photographs bring you close to some of the world’s most beautiful creatures in some of earth’s most remote places. A leopard peers out from his resting place, a pair of polar bears frolic in the snow, a line of wild horses stampedes towards him as he prepares his shot. The work of Lloyd Roberts is showcased in Endangered, in the Kellogg Gallery. Roberts’ work will hook you at first glance, drawing you closer as you wonder at the beauty of nature and her creatures and his ability to capture and convey the emotion of the moment. While photography is Roberts’ passion, he is also an accomplished watercolor artist and bronze sculptor. All three will be on display until Nov 6.

Go with the Flow is an open, all media, juried exhibit. Art will be displayed October 6-November 6.

Pick-up is Sat Nov 7, 9-1

Juror: Susan Foster

Awards

1st Place: John Bayalis Morning with Monet, Watercolor

2nd Place: Margaret Bayalis Rhapsody, Oil

3rd Place: Linda Lee Foster-Paul Moonlight On Water X, Watercolor

Merit: Lisa Swift North Jetty Light, Oil

Honorable Mentions:
Bernice Gaines In Motion, Watercolor

Roseann Haslett Snow Bear and Friends, Pastel

Jill Krasner Revisit, Watercolor & Gouache

Jean Cormier Red Tide Event, Acrylic Sea Salt Washes

Best In Jewelry: Margaret Hoyt, Art Flows Through Time, Roman Ancient Glass, Citrine, Silver

Best In 3D: Robert Doyon Totem Portal, Wood

Reid Hodges Gallery

September 1- October 2
Opening Reception September 3, 5-7pm

We invite you to view (and purchase!) this very special collection of art work by a very special group of young artists.

The Young Artists Awards, a not for profit organization benefiting local students in the arts now in its twelfth year, works with the staff at the Pediatric Oncology/Hematology program at the Golisano Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida.

100% of the proceeds from the sale of the children’s artwork goes to provide direct assistance to Southwest Florida families in crisis facing the financial challenges of childhood cancer through the “Family Emergency Fund”, created and funded by the Young Artists Awards. This fund, administered by a social worker at the hospital, helps families of kids with cancer with prescription costs, groceries, transportation, and other items otherwise not covered.

Kellogg & Searle Galleries
September 1 – October 2

Opening Reception September 3, 5-7pm

Juror: Barbara Anderson Hill, Consultant, City of Fort Myers Public Art Program

Art Matters is an open, all media, juried exhibit that celebrates the importance of art in our lives and in the life of our community.

Pick Up: October 3