Title: The Cottage Artist: Ron Andrews Medium: Watercolor Size: Height x Width: 15" x 22" Click on IMAGE for larger viewAbout the Artist: I experience a great sensation of awe and wonder when in unspoiled natural environments. I find this particularly true with the great diversity of environments in California where I make my home. I paint with the intent to capture the emotion inherent in unique California and Western American landscapes. I search for drama and mood in my paintings such as that manifest by the long shadows of early morning or late evening, the feeling of heat in the sunny desert or the cold of the overcast day or snowy mountain peaks, or the exuberance of pounding surf on a rocky coast. In painting such emotion filled scenes I use artistic license to exaggerate the elements of the painting to better communicate the essential emotion. As examples I use exaggerated colors to help set a mood, powerful contrasts of light and dark to focus attention; unique perspectives to create interest, and augmented compositional elements to please the eye; all of this to help the viewer of the artwork experience the emotion that was manifest in the natural environment. I work with watercolor exclusively. It provides rich color and a glow from the white paper and the transparent pigments. It addition watercolor offers a unique spontaneity as pigments blend on wet paper to mimic the infinite diversity found in nature. I attempt to use the full range of values from the white of paper to dense blended darks. I use loose shapes to define the scene and detail to define areas of particular interest. In the end success is in the viewing . . . if it captures a mood and an emotion. RESUME I am a PhD physicist enjoying the challenges and joys of watercolor since retiring from the aerospace industry in 2000. I’ve had a lifelong interest in art with time spent sketching and in metal sculpture in earlier years, as well as an early and ongoing interest in nature photography. I admire and try to emulate style aspects of the California School of Watercolor and its many masters from the early and mid 20th century as well as the work of Thomas Moran. I add to this personal techniques to communicate the emotion of the landscape. I have relied on independent studies and workshops with local artists and contemporary watercolorists with national and international reputations such as Tony Couch, Zoltan Szabo, Frank Webb, Dale Laitinen, Don Andrews, Mel Stabin, Tony van Hasselt, Jane Hofstetter, and Frank Francese. I am a member of the California Watercolor Association and the Santa Clara Valley Watercolor Society and the Silicon Valley Society of Local Artists. Recent juried shows include: Society of Local Artists 2006 Annual California Watercolor Association 2006 Annual Show LaJolla Art Association 2006 “Dimensions” |