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The
Rio Grande
Art Association
Palette
Volume 16 Issue 19 May 2015
PRESIDENT’S LETTER
RGAA
NEXT MEETING
Saturday May 16
at 10am
MasterWorks 2015 has come to an end. Our workshop during the event was a smash hit. Bill
Gallen, the instructor for the class, was well versed in his approach to plein air painting. His
method of laying out his palette has now become the standard for many of the attendees. Bill
provided excellent points to help in the painting process. For example: if something in your
Cumberland Presbyterian painting bothers you, take something out. Everyone has heard the adage of: “less is more”
Church on Academy and which is the same principle. In fact, I have already applied this technique and it solves a lot of
problems. I appreciate the attendees for making the decision to participate; it was well worth
Moon
it. Bill, I can’t say it enough for my appreciation for conducting the workshop! Thank you!
The Board meets at
8.45am
Our monthly challenge for May will carry over from April because of the demo at Mas_____________
terWorks. As a refresher, the challenge is to create a piece of art that has a prominent three
May’s Demo is by RGAA
member:
dimensional feature.
Dianna Shomaker: Details
on page 2. Below a quote
from Dianna’s website:
“I am inspired by the comments of Marcel Proust who
observed that the real voyage
of discovery is not in seeking new landscapes but in
having new eyes. I am trying
to follow that path with new
eyes and I invite the viewer to
share it with me”
________________
This month’s challenge: to
create a piece of Art that a
strong three dimensional
feature.
_____________
RGAA’s All Members’ Show is forthcoming. The exhibition dates are May 18 through June
30, and July 1 through August 14 at the Jewish Community Center of Greater Albuquerque.
Contact Sheila Richmond 505-856-0245 or Allen Lowery 505-306-5131 for more information.
PLEASE remember ENCANTADA is much earlier this year. Nancy Davis is chairing this
event and is doing a fabulous job in coordinating all the aspects of our signature show in such
a short period of time. July 10th the show opens in the Fine Arts Building at the Expo. The
main reason for this change is: better attendance and hopefully more sales. The deadline for
digital entries is May 26th which is fast approaching. See inside for pertinent information and
also on the website.
A very special welcome to all our new members! To learn more about RGAA, ask fellow
members. The best way to get on the fast track is to get involved. In no time you will understand what we are all about. Most important is to enjoy our Association and all that it offers.
Paint like a ‘tiger is chasing you’ to have paintings ready for all the shows that are coming up.
In the process, have fun and be passionate creating your art.
NB. Editor’s Request:
Deadlines for submission
Bonnie Buckley
is the 4th of each month.
All photo submissions must President
be in Jpeg format and text
in Times New Roman. No
PDFs, please!!!!
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Our Presenter for May is RGAA Member Dianna Shomaker. Below this is how Dianna describes
herself on her website: www.diannashomaker.com: “I’ve been a nurse, a university professor, a researcher, a dean and an
anthropologist, but through it all, I’ve been an artist. Art should express a statement of intent and feeling. The goal is to
create a painting that is thought-provoking and to stretch the boundaries of light and space.”
Dianna was born in Seattle, Washington, holds BS and MSN degrees in Nursing, as well as MA and PhD degrees in Anthropology. She is retired from UNM where she was the Associate Dean of Nursing and Distance Education, and then Director of the UNM Graduate Centers in Santa Fe and Los Alamos. She is married to John Shomaker, a hydrogeologist and
CEO of JSAI consulting firm in Albuquerque. Dianna’s art education began at Central Washington College in Ellensburg,
Washington. In 1967 she studied with Ray Cox in San Antonio, Texas experimenting with new media and techniques such
as charcoal and collage. That experimentation continued and expanded under the tutelage of Frau Sachweh in Zweibrucken, Germany who focused on the use of palette knife and abstractions. Since 1973 she has studied with many art instructors in Albuquerque, e.g., Sam Smith, Ted Hogsett, Charles Dunbar, Diane Schlies, augmented by various workshops.
Work by Shomaker can been seen at Weems Art Gallery, and the New Fisher Gallery in Albuquerque.
She can be contacted on: (505)-771-3125 or [email protected]
During her demo Dianna plans to focus on definition, design, techniques and practical things. She’ll base it around her
abstract that was in Masterworks that won an award of Excellence in non-representational painting. Image left below:
Transformation 24''x30'' Oil (Masterworks)
Gypsy with Shawl 30''x30'' Acrylic by Dianna Shomaker
_________________________________
Congratulations to RGAA member Tom Blazier whose
Congratulations to RGAA member Ming Franz for being
painting “Pond Lilies in Shadow”, oil, 30” x 30”, has been awarded the Grand Prize for “Abstract / Experimental Art.
accepted in the Oil Painters of America National Juried
Challenge” by the International Artist Magazine. Her work
Exhibition in Traditional Oils. The exhibition runs May
is in the April/May issue of this magazine. Ming is also
1 - 25 at Cutter & Cutter Fine Art at its Brilliance in Color recognized and given awards in her native Taiwan
Gallery, St. Augustine, FL.
Above: Ming’s Splash Ink Painting awarded Grand Prize
Left: Lily Pond
by Tom Blazier
RGAA Board Minutes April 18, 2015
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Meeting at EXPO New Mexico – MasterWorks Exhibit
Attending: Charlie Aldrich; Bonnie Buckley; Nancy Davis; Allen Lowery; John Meister; Barbara Nahler; Carolyn Poole;
Sheila Richmond; Ray Tussing
Meeting called to order at 9:00AM.
I. Minutes of Mar 21 meeting approved.
II. Treasurer’s report sent via email, accepted. We have paid $300 to the Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce for the past
year’s membership. It was decided to discontinue the membership and reassess in a year, as we have not benefitted recently.
III. Officer and Committee Reports:
A. MasterWorks ; Workshop with Bill Gallen has been excellent re process, unity over quantity, simplicity.
B. Member Show. Allen will announce the need to sign up at the general meeting. Sheila, Allen, Bonnie and Diane will
be judges. Delivery date is May 18.
C. Ray says the website is up to date. Be sure to let Ray know if you have any comments. We will drop the YOLA email
when that payment is due next, as other emails are included on the site.
D. Encantada!;
Nancy Davis announced that she is working on Drop Box as a way to get the entries to jurors. Chris will help her
Donations are coming in.
We have cancelled the reservation we had with AAPAC for November.
Nancy will distribute sign-up sheets during the regular meeting asking for volunteers for several areas. She especially will
need help with the organization of sitters.
She says the publicity committee has been a great help.
Nancy will need to arrange about parking passes.
The prospectus (copies of which are at MasterWorks) will also be put atArtisans and the Art League.
Ray can link with the sponsors on the website – giving them additional publicity.
Charlie Aldrich has the appropriate signs to hang on the Fine Arts Bldg.
There was no report on Unfinished Business. Sheila and Wanda will still propose Policies and Procedures at another meeting.
There was no New Business.
Meeting adjourned at 9:40 AM.
Respectfully submitted, Sheila Richmond
_________________
REMINDER!!! JCC RGAA Members’ Show: Bring up to three paintings to the JCC 9-10:30am. on Monday, May 18.
This is our chance to showcase EVERYONE’S work, and we need a 100 percent turnout! We have 47 artists signed up by
cut-off date that we can accomodate and about 100 double-hung pieces that can hang according to Phyllis at JCC. Our original notice for May 18th installation stated... drop off 9:00-10:30... jurying...hanging 12:00-2:00. If your painting does not
make it into the first show, members can then submit it for the second show. For further information please contact Allen on
505-306-5131 or Sheila on 505-856-0245. Their emails are on the last page of this newsletter. Our monthly meeting is on
May 16th so this is before the RGAA drop off date.
___________________
Early Reminder:The Palette Newsletter is only published 10 times per year. There will not be an issue in July or December.
Trip to the South China Seas by Nora Sanders
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Last month, eight of us, joined Ming Franz for a 12-day visit to Taiwan, formerly known as Formosa in the South China
Seas. The official name is the Republic of China and Taiwan is the largest of a cluster of smaller islands, with Taipei as
the capital. We left San Francisco airport on April 25th and arrived in Taipei on April 26th after a 12-hour non-stop flight.
Three of our group are RGAA members: Ming Franz, Tom Blazier and Nora Sanders. One of our fellow travellers, writer
Valerie Storey has already started blogging about the trip at: http://www.valeriestorey.blogspot.com.
Ming had planned a varied and busy scheduled for us. Of course she was eager to show us as much of her native island as
possible. We had a very thoughtful guide, Angela, who was happy to answer our questions and meet our sometimes complicated dietary and other personal requirements. We had a bus to ourselves and our driver, Mr. Ling proved to be an excellent
and generous driver. We all received from him beautiful pendants made from china and he introduced us to fruit we had
never seen or eaten before. Coming from New Mexico we all delighted in the myriad shades of green. There were hardly
any barren or treeless hills. Taiwan lies on the Tropic of Cancer and its general climate is marine tropical. The northern and
central regions are subtropical, whereas the south is tropical and the mountainous regions are temperate. By going in April
we avoided the typhoon season. The volcanic soil, the sea and rain makes this a very fertile land. We all remarked how the
fruit and vegetables were full of flavor. Every single meal turned out to be a banquet and the five star hotels offered a rich
choice of Oriental and Western dishes for breakfast and sometimes for dinner as well.
We travelled extensively and enjoyed a variety of scenery, from wind- formed rock and sand formations recalling lunar
landscapes on the northern beaches of Keelung at the Yehliu Geopark, beautiful white crested waves coming in gently to
embrace the land, waterfalls, crowded street markets, roads carved out of mountainsides such as the Toroko Gorge, where
we had to wear hard hats because of the danger of rock falls. Peeping down into the gorge and over the narrow railing below
we could see the dry river beds that would turn into torrents in a matter of seconds, once the rains came. It rained only one
day during our trip, the first day, but otherwise it was sunshine all the way.
My main reason for going on the trip was to see the treasures, brought over from mainland China by the Nationalists in
l949. This proved to be almost prescient as they would have been destroyed by the Communists during the so-called Cultural Revolution. Ironic how a Cultural Revolution sets out to destroy the art and culture of its people. The National Palace
Museum in Taipei houses these treasures, as well as some of the art of the local aborigine peoples and also modern works.
Three and a half hours could not do justice to art and culture going back several millennia, but we made the most of it. It
was tiring and very crowded but worth it. Interesting to note that most museum exits in the world always take you via the
Gift Shoppe.
Before going to the National Palace Museum we visited the residence of the late Chang Dai Chien (also spelled Zhang
Daqian) one of the best-known and most prodigious Chinese artists of the twentieth century. Originally known as a guohua
painter, by the 1960s he was also renowned as a modern impressionist and expressionist painter. Zhang Daqian’s house was
delightful with inner courtyards, koi ponds with mini waterfalls and bonsai trees abounding.
We were received everywhere with courtesy and the local people were proud to show off their regional fare. We visited
Ming’s ancestral home where her grandfather had lived with his three wives. Now only “Little Uncle” and his wife live
there with a handful of cousins. We were offered fruit and tea. Tea from the local tea plantations and fruit from the local
trees, especially bananas. Ming’s cousin then took us to see her ‘business’. It turned out to be a plant nursery, full of exotic
flowers and trees. We feasted our eyes on orchids, peonies, bougainvilleas, magnolias, climbers, creepers, bushes and palms.
We saw many of these also in the gardens of the many hotels we stayed at. In the evening the intoxicating smell of jasmine
and gardenias filled the air. So unlike New Mexico. I wanted to capture each one with my camera and my memory and
eventually turn it into a painting.
Among other highlights was a visit to a village which specializes in wooden carvings. Street after street, and shop after shop
full of beautifully carved objects. I loved going around touching them. Some of the wood also had a wonderful smell such
as camphor and cedar. In another town the local specialty was pottery ranging from small items such as jewelry to huge pot,
vases and furniture. At one shop we were shown how china clay and the techniques used would make the object glow in the
dark with a small light shining on it. No wonder we still use the word china to describe pottery and crockery today.
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trip to South China Seas/cont’d
In Taipei, Ming took us to a shop where we could purchase Chinese rice paper, brushes and have our own seals (chops)
cut. A few of us had their names carved into these small stone seals in Chinese characters. I was fascinated to see craftsmen sitting in tiny 10’ x 10’ spaces, next to one another working on their trade: leather, making Chinese brushes, making
shoes on lasts, carving wood, cooking dumplings, painting china, making jewelry, cheek to jowl with the food stalls,
clothes stalls and the crowds thronging around them watching, buying, pushing and shoving. The whole place was alive,
vibrant and on the move…..Then we would move out and the bus would take us out to the countryside, along the sea, by
mountain streams, down valleys, up hills where only birds and vegetation existed and the odd building in the distance.
On the last day before returning to the US we were privileged to visit the studio of Tim Budden. Tim specializes in the
ancient art of paper cutting over which he superimposes other layers of finely cut paper and then creates the most amazing
art with colours, more paper cuts. We were all impressed with his beautiful designs and I have included some images here
in The Palette to give our members some idea of Tim’s art.
All in all, we all had a wonderful time, an unforgettable experience and some of us will be returning to the Far East in the
near future.
Nora Sanders
Eternal Spring Shrine at Hualien
Buddhist Monk waiting for alms
Below: Tim Budden’s Papercuts
Taroko Gorge
“The Queen’s Head”
carved out of stone by centuries of wind and storms
Tim Budden’s Art
Pagoda atop a hill, green vegetation and misty mountains in the distance. Some of
the typical scenes we saw.
Bill Gallen Workshop and Demonstration by Diane Buster
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As a part of April’s Masterworks Exhibition, Bill Gallen conducted a three day painting workshop and demonstrated his painting
techniques for both RGAA’s monthly meeting and the general public. Bill was raised in Wisconsin and graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in history and German. He intended to follow an academic and teaching career, but his life and interest in
art took him in a different direction. He has studied with Michael Lynch, David Ballew, Ned Jacobs, and Matt Smith. He currently
lives in Santa Fe and locally has works at the Sage Creek Gallery on Canyon Road. For more information go to his web site at www.
billgallen.vom or email at [email protected]
Basically Bill taught that right painting is about process, about creating a path for skillful and confident mark making, and about exuberance. Bill stressed that you cannot get energy at the finish of a work so start big and then refine. If you want to paint better, draw
often and do the work of color charts to know what your paints will do. Spend time to contemplate your subject matter and to enhance
your visual memory. When you are ready to start a painting there are techniques to enhance the chances of success. First is to address
your design. Select your format, its size and proportion and shape. All your sketches should be proportional. (3x4 to 6x8 to 12x16
etc.)
Bill does two sketches prior to painting. The first is what he terms a symbolic drawing. Using circles and lines he locates the main
area of interest, a secondary balancing element, his horizon line, and directional lines to lead the eyes around the image. He isn’t
thinking in terms of objects at all at this stage, simply placement, direction, and an overall design map. His second drawing is about
mass and value. Here he uses charcoal to mass in shapes and by adjusting pressure to show relative values. He may use the edge of
the charcoal for some linear definition, but only after massing in shapes first. Painting emphasizes mass over line. Charcoal has the
capacity of rendering mass and value rapidly without getting too detailed. This drawing can capture the “gesture” of the landscape
similar to gesture drawing of the figure, the total gestalt of the design. These are about two minute drawings with the goal of setting
the unified image in your memory or mind’s eye before starting to paint. Longer more careful drawing begins to allow detail and the
variety of the scene to take over too soon. In Bill’s opinion, unity trumps variety. “If a painting needs something, take something
out!” Confidence in this initial design will lead to relaxed, organic, gestural mark making.
Bill’s palette, which he always lays out in the same order, moves from cool to warm. Under each color he has premixed a 50% halftone which facilitates finding accurate values while painting. He uses Utrecht and Windsor Newton paints. His palette is as follows.
Ultramarine Blue, Utrecht; Viridian, WN; Sap Green, WN; Cad Yellow Lemon, WN; Cad Yellow light, Utrecht; Yellow Ochre,
Utrecht; Burnt Sienna, WN; Cad Orange Pure, Utrecht; Alizarin Crimson, Utrecht; and Artisan’s Maxima White. He also uses Cerulean Blue Hue, Utrecht in his skies and sometimes Dioxazine Purple, (? brand?) to neutralize yellows. He cautions not to overuse the
earth tones. His colors are always mixed on the palette and the mixes are adjusted in relative relationships meaning he constantly is
asking himself warmer or cooler, lighter or darker. If you notice something is too green or red or yellow, then chroma or intensity is
the problem and the mixture needs to be neutralized with its complement. Bill starts his paintings with thin washes using Gamsol, but
once into thicker paint he doesn’t use medium. He cleans his brushes with paper towels almost with every stroke, using the Gamsol
again if he makes a major color or value change. His brushes go from a soft old watercolor brush that is very abused and out of shape,
to water badger brushes of medium softness to hog bristle as the stiffer brushes. He also wipes out and removes excess paint with
paper towels or a palette knife as needed. Bill uses oil primed Classens Linen 15 double or 66 panels stating he prefers the absorbency
to cotton canvas.
Though Bill doesn’t always tone his canvas, he did tone his demonstration pieces. Yellow ochre is a favorite warm wash color. Bill
starts with his darkest dark and begins massing in that shape. The first demonstration he started with a mixture of viridian and alizarin
and a touch of burnt sienna for warmth. He uses no white at this stage though he may make some adjustments using the premixed
halftones. He says to err on the side of being too dark to start. He’s careful to connect the darks as he paints thinking of the whole
over any one area. Early in the process he finds the value of the sky as this informs how light and bright the land elements can be. He
starts finding the sky with his halftone cerulean mixture. It is crucial to get the sky tone right and he takes his time. He also tests a
small mark on the canvas before committing to larger statements. These two values anchor the rest of the painting. He doesn’t paint
an all over sky in one hue or value, but rather makes adjustments from right to left and from horizon to zenith. He leaves areas of the
warm underpainting open and untouched if he plans to have clouds later. After the dark masses are laid in and the sky value addressed
he finds the temperature and value of the warmest and darkest of his highlight areas. All other adjustments are made from this mixture.
Bill finds his colors and adjusts them on the palette which is his thinking space. He brings temperature and value changes to the outside of mixed piles of paints to compare and adjust mixtures. Once he likes what he sees on the palette, he tests it with a small stroke on
the painting. If that looks right he is ready for a bold gestural mark. He often “plays the air guitar” in front of the painting before actually making the mark to feel the movement of the stroke. This is similar to a practice golf swing. Once he makes the stroke he cautions
not to paint through it. “Don’t kill your babies too soon!” Going back over a mark reduces its energy by 50%. He tells us to “essentialize” the image rather than being a newsman trying to record all the facts. Bill points out that the land area of some photo references
often appear washed out; he prefers to paint them darker and richer. Using the halftone mixes to start finding the right mix for these
areas helps to avoid using too much white. Cad yellow light and the Dioxazine purple half tones make a good start in the search for this
value and hue.
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Bill Gallen/cont’d
Bill stressed at the completion of each demonstration to paint with exuberance, not going for detail too soon or too much. Work from
coarse to fine, big to little, dark to light, and warm to cool. Paint negatively; cutting into masses is more sculptural and creative than
starting with positive outlines in mind. Mountains belong to the sky, shape them as you create the sky. Vertical marks can create the
feeling of the vault of the sky. Play the air guitar as you feel a contour mark, then put it down and leave it. Sometimes it’s wise to just
stop painting. Trying to finish alla prima is an admirable goal; but if you do not understand what to do, it is better to stop and address it
later rather than just making marks and hoping for the best. If you have faith in the process, product will follow. Remember a bold lie
has much more power than a timid truth.
Bill Gallen is also running a four day workshop in Taos from May 27-30. This workshop
will offer both studio and on location painting experiences. The class will be open to all
levels of experience and limited to 12 participants. For lodging information go to www.
Taos.org. Check Bill’s website for more information regarding his new video, forthcoming classes and shows. www.billgallen.com
Left: Bill Gallen Air Demo
__________________________
Editor’s Note: Peter Seidenberg, cellist, has played throughout Europe, America and Asia. He made his concert debut in 1983 with
the Chicago Symphony and has since gone on to play solos with the De Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Eastman-Rochester Philharmonic, the New American Chamber Orchestra, and the Century Orchestra of Osaka, Japan. Mr. Seidenberg has recorded for Lyrichord, RCA and Pantheon. His radio broadcasts have included appearances on French National Radio, Air Aspana, Scandinavian
National Radio, and Asahi and NHK Broadcasting in Japan.
Hui-Mei Lin, pianist, made her New York solo debut at the Weill Recital Hall at the Carnegie Hall as the winner of the Artists International Competition. She was described by the New York Times as “an excellent pianist throughout” and the Taiwan News as “a
sensitive and powerful pianist.” Concert tours have taken her to Italy, Canada, and various cities in Taiwan, including two concerts
at the National Concert Hall in Taipei. Her media broadcast included solo performances at PBS, WQXR, Taiwan Television and
China Broadcasting Company.
RGAA 2015 Officers and Committee
President:
Bonnie Buckley505-480-7020
[email protected]
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Rio Grande
Art Association
The Rio Grande Art Association is a not for profit organization dedicated to the educaSecretary:
Sheila Richmond505-856-0245
tion and promotion of New
[email protected]
Mexico Artists working in oil, acrylic and
mixed media not normally shown under
Treasurer:
Wanda Portee505-250-7304
glass.
[email protected]
_________________
Vice President: Barbara Nahler
No email address
505-823-1264
Programs:
Mary Julyan505-298-8420
[email protected]
Encantada:
Nancy Davis505-688-9422
[email protected]
Membership:
Allen Lowery505-306-5131
[email protected]
Rio Grande Art Association
P.O.Box 53307
Albuquerque, NM 87153
President: Bonnie Buckley
Phone: 505-480-7020
Email: [email protected]
Historian:
Charlie Aldrich505-433-1141
[email protected]
Refreshments:
Carolyn Poole505-828-3909
[email protected]
Newsletter:
Nora Sanders505-891-3820
[email protected]
Associate
Wanda Portee 505-250-7304
Newsletter:[email protected]
Website:Ray Tussing505-800-8108
[email protected]
Masterworks: Bonnie Buckley (Workshop)
[email protected]
Michael Meyer (Webmaster) [email protected]
Exhibits and Publicity:
505-480-7020
505-359-1189
Open
Pond at Chang Dai Chien’s residence in Taipei