Oil & Acrylic
Juried by Rob Sherrill
Presented Online
July 15 to August 15, 2021
Hello, Friends,
President’s Message
I am very excited about our Oil & Acrylic Exhibit and hope you enjoy it, as well. Our juror, Rob Sherrill, selected 22 artworks from 12 artists. Although the media in this exhibit have been narrowly defined, the following paintings demonstrate a wide range of subjects and methods. I love experiencing the variety of perspectives our member artists bring to the PSA and am pleased to present this exhibition online to a worldwide audience. Please enjoy your journey through the artwork. Warmly, Shaney Watters
The Pasadena Society of Artists wishes to acknowledge and thank the Jeanne Ward Foundation for its continuing support. The Pasadena Society of Artists wishes to acknowledge and thank the Pasadena Arts League for its support.
Juror’s Statement My experience with the PSA has been a very positive one. I was invited to do a virtual demonstration back in April and received many searching questions and much enthusiastic support from the members, which was very flattering. Being invited as a Juror was an unexpected and humbling experience because I am usually the artist entering the show. It has been interesting to see all of the work and what the juror has to do. Reading about the artists and considering their points of view was fascinating and thought-provoking. Many of the artists are quite accomplished in technique and personal style. Today, with the Internet, many new opportunities have arisen, giving the artist other avenues to show and hopefully inspire new audiences, so I feel privileged to be a part of this Oil & Acrylic Exhibition online juried show. Thank you, Robert Sherrill
Robert Sherrill Biography After competing in regional art shows and painting scenic backdrops for school plays all through high school, Robert got a job as a technical draftsman. He earned his BFA at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, and taught there from 1991 until 2008. He spent a stint in commercial art, working on animation backgrounds and murals, but wanted to get back to where his passion lay -- painting. Currently he balances teaching at the Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens in San Marino and Creative Arts Group in Sierra Madre with painting portraits, landscapes, still life and architecture. “Teaching and painting are so harmonious. I like that vibe. I’m always learning. It is a good cycle. Through trial and error I’ve learned a lot and I feel can pass that on to my students.” He is comfortable with both oil paint and watercolor. “I love the thickness of oil – like butter or icing.”
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Table of Contents President’s Message & Juror’s Statement and Biography 1 Table of Contents & Directory of Artists 2 Rosina Maize 3 Fred Chuang 4 Sonali Kolhatkar 7 Joanna Kos 9 Rick Drobner 12 Eileen Oda Leaf 13 Kevin McCants 15 Marilyn Stempel 16 Janet Manalo 17 David Sikes 19 Kathleen Swaydan 21 Tsvetelina Valkov 23 Contact the Artist 25 PSA Board of Directors 2021-2022 26 Catalog Production Team 27 A Short History of PSA 28 Call for New Members 29
Directory of Artists Fred Chuang 4 Rick Drobner 12 Sonali Kolhatkar 7 Joanna Kos 9 Eileen Oda Leaf 13 Rosina Maize 3 Janet Manalo 17 Kevin McCants 15 David Sikes 19 Marilyn Stempel 16 Kathleen Swaydan 21 Tsvetelina Valkov 23
What are Oil and Acrylic Paints? Oil Paint: Consists of finely divided pigment particles evenly dispersed in a liquid medium or vehicle; it has the property of drying to form a continuous, adherent film when applied to a surface for decorative or protective purposes. Acrylic or Polymer Paint: The most widely used artists’ colors, based on synthetic resins. These paints are made by dispersing pigment in an acrylic emulsion. The colors are thinned with water, but when they dry, the resin particles coalesce to form a tough, flexible film that is impervious to water. Both definitions courtesy of “The Artist’s Handbook of Materials and Techniques,” by Ralph Mayer, Fourth Edition, Revised and Updated, 1981. Artists represented on the cover: Top right: Eileen Oda Leaf Clockwise from top left: Marilyn Stempel, Janet Manalo, Sonali Kolhatkar, Kathleen Swaydan, Fred Chuang Artwork appears courtesy of PSA members. Copyrights held by the artists. All rights reserved.
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Camellia in a Delft Bowl Rosina Maize
Oil on Stretched Canvas 9" x 12" $425 This little bowl is a souvenir from a trip to the Netherlands. A tour of the Delft factory shows each piece being hand painted with the signature blue colors of Delft.
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Contact information for this artist can be found on page 25.
Memory of Eden Fred Chuang
Acrylic Spray Paint seen through a Thin, Clear Panel 13" x 16.75" $600 My paintings result from a progressive dialogue between stages of strategy, analysis, and intuitive choices. I use multiple pigment media, primarily acrylic spray enamel and metallic powder. I also consider the polymer of my clear “canvas,” through which the pigment is viewed, as another medium, which creates the unique surface and depth of color—often misperceived as copper enameling. This painting was created in an improvisational mindset—developing in a typical order, background to foreground, despite the process of painting from the back. Using solvents and sgraffito, I worked out details while retaining the organic qualities that are the nature of my technique.
Contact information for this artist can be found on page 25.
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Aeolian Glyph Fred Chuang
Acrylic Spray Paint seen through a Thin, Clear Panel 36" x 36" $4500 My paintings result from a progressive dialogue between stages of strategy, analysis, and intuitive choices. Though I work from behind, my process is not formulaic. Unlike “reverse painting,” I paint backgrounds first, and through use of solvents or masking, I move to foreground elements—thereby engaging creativity and spontaneity throughout the process. I use multiple pigment media, primarily acrylic spray enamel and metallic powder. I also consider the polymer of my clear “canvas,” through which the pigment is viewed, as another medium, which creates the unique surface and depth of color—often misperceived as copper enameling. This body of work fuses fundamental compositional and calligraphic aesthetics from my Asian heritage with expressive qualities from my Western upbringing. The gestural foundation of each painting is developed through color, texture, and embellishments to come full-circle—returning the esoteric, cryptic glyph to a more nuanced and interpretive “picture”—be it figure or scene.
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Contact information for this artist can be found on page 25.
Snare Fred Chuang
Acrylic Spray Paint seen through a Thin, Clear Panel 36" x 36" $4500 This work fuses fundamental compositional and calligraphic aesthetics from my Chinese heritage with expressive qualities from my Western upbringing. The gestural foundation of these paintings is developed through layered color, texture, and embellishments to come full-circle—returning the idea of the esoteric, cryptic glyph to a more nuanced and expressive “picture”—whether figure or scene. The dynamic “figure” in these works is the traditional brush-stroke—in this case, using brushed solvent, instead of pigment, to remove the initial, textural “background” in order to subsequently insert the pigment by spray. The special charm of this technique lies in the less soluble, metallic pigments that largely resist this step, resulting in a gestural figure that floats in a dimensional space between sections of delicate foreground texture and the overall textural field. This technique engages delicacy and durability, randomness and strategy, and occupies the serendipitous tangent between deep traditions and modern materials.
Contact information for this artist can be found on page 25.
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Love Poem Sonali Kolhatkar
Acrylic on Canvas 20" x 16" $398 Bollywood love songs from the 1940s, ‘50s, and ‘60s were so evocative, poetic, and romantic that they were written to melt even the most stubborn of hearts. This piece is inspired by the Hindi-language love poetry of a bygone era.
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Contact information for this artist can be found on page 25.
Foliage Sonali Kolhatkar
Acrylic on Canvas 16" x 12" $210 “Mother Nature,” “Earth Goddess,” or “Gaia,” artists have been personifying the natural world via female forms from time immemorial. This piece visualizes the powerful forces of life, nature, and growth in a state that is sublimely intense and inevitable.
Contact information for this artist can be found on page 25.
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Heart of Spring Joanna Kos
Acrylic on Canvas 36" x 24" $860 This composition represents springtime. The flowers are fresh and heavy with moisture. The water droplets emanating from the spring are keeping them alive. This upward movement of the water symbolizes a lifting of spirit with anticipation of happiness and a new beginning of life.
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Contact information for this artist can be found on page 25.
Summer Joanna Kos
Acrylic on Canvas 36" x 24" $860 “Summer” belongs to the floral series of my paintings. It presents a tangled brush of flowers bathed by the rays of the sun. The leaves capture the warmth and bright backlighting effects presented by the morning sun. I tried to convey the feeling of abundance and joy of the summertime.
Contact information for this artist can be found on page 25.
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Autumn Rain Joanna Kos
Acrylic on Canvas 36" x 24" $860 Many of my compositions are inspired by the ever-changing weather and seasons. One rainy morning this past autumn, I found myself looking out the window at the garden just outside. The window glass seeped with trickling water droplets became a distorting lens through which I could see the world beyond. The plant life appeared partially obscured, reminding me of a shimmering mirage effect that I felt drawn to capture on canvas.
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Contact information for this artist can be found on page 25.
It’s Up There Rick Drobner
Acrylic on Canvas 36" x 36" $1200 A return romp to the nonobjective world. My usual hard-edged style was abandoned for a dip into the here and now. The abstract image seems to take on a lot of immediacy when you let it lead the way.
Contact information for this artist can be found on page 25.
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Catalina from Palos Verdes Eileen Oda Leaf
Oil, Mixed Media on Canvas 36" x 48" $750 I took refuge in this place perched on a high cliff during the COVID-19 pandemic. Its sheer beauty, the sound of crashing waves, the ripples on the ocean, and the island off in the distance made me feel separate and alone, but gave me a sense of hope because of its enduring, timeless beauty.
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Contact information for this artist can be found on page 25.
Super Bloom Eileen Oda Leaf
Oil, Mixed Media on Canvas 40" x 30" $750 In an imaginary world, we walk in harmonious abandonment of society’s norms to commune and be one with nature. During a super bloom of California wildflowers, the overwhelming sense of beauty, depth and meaning brings a sense of real peace.
Contact information for this artist can be found on page 25.
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The Traveler in Window #3 Kevin McCants Oil on Panel 40" x 30" $2500
Painted in oils using glazing and washes, “The Traveler” focuses on our nomadic selves and maintaining our desire for comfort and style.
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Contact information for this artist can be found on page 25.
My Blood Is Still Red Marilyn Stempel
Acrylic on Canvas 40" x 30" NFS “My Blood Is Still Red” is the first of my “Leukemia” series. This piece signifies my initial response when I “came out” with my disease.
Contact information for this artist can be found on page 25.
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Summer Heat Janet Manalo
Acrylic on Canvas 33" x 24" NFS The dry, dusty, and choking heat of California’s summer months inspired this artwork. The layered canvas is one of several techniques I have used in my “Manipulated Artwork” series.
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Contact information for this artist can be found on page 25.
Fire Country Janet Manalo
Acrylic on Canvas 16" x 20" $500 Existence in California has now become referenced by the fires one has battled, witnessed, or survived. The abstract nature of flames, devouring the terrain, inspired this artwork.
Contact information for this artist can be found on page 25.
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Venice, Spring 1982 David Sikes
Oil on Luan Veneer 36" x 24" $300 “Venice, Spring 1982” was part of my attempt to be occupied with proactive activities in light of recent events. The painting is based on an ancient photo of a trip to Venice taken prior to the advent of huge cruise ships. Hope you, too, are keeping safe, sane, and doing activities that give joy to the soul.
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Contact information for this artist can be found on page 25.
Love the Art David Sikes
Oil on Luan Veneer 36" x 24" $400 “Love the Art” is based on a photograph I took while in Barcelona in 2019. I love the interplay of the picture with the reflection in the glass frame and the grain of the Luan veneer on which it is painted. Hope you like the result, too.
Contact information for this artist can be found on page 25.
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Persimmon Kathleen Swaydan
Oil on Canvas 8" x 10" $295 Every year I paint several still lifes of persimmons that grow in our yard. To me, their color is captivating. My preference is to paint from life whenever possible; this painting is created in a traditional still life style. I am a studio artist. My art focuses primarily on realistic still life and landscape paintings. I work in several media depending on the subject at hand. My art, whether watercolor, pastel, oil or graphite, is influenced by the ancient Greek and Roman tradition of landscape and still life paintings frequently found on the walls of guest quarters in private domiciles such as those found in Pompeii. Those images provided a private devotional area and visual banquet for the guests and evoked an impression of hospitality and generosity. This ancient tradition is the undertone of my artwork.
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Contact information for this artist can be found on page 25.
Still Life for Grandma Elsie Kathleen Swaydan Oil on Canvas 8" x 10" $295
“Still Life for Grandma Elsie” includes two of my grandmother’s belongings, the vase and small painting, which I treasure and used in this still life in her memory. She was a self-taught painter. The pomegranate is included because she had a pomegranate tree in her yard. I am a studio artist. My art focuses primarily on realistic still life and landscape paintings. I work in several media depending on the subject at hand. My art, whether watercolor, pastel, oil or graphite, is influenced by the ancient Greek and Roman tradition of landscape and still life paintings frequently found on the walls of guest quarters in private domiciles such as those found in Pompeii. Those images provided a private devotional area and visual banquet for the guests and evoked an impression of hospitality and generosity. This ancient tradition is the undertone of my artwork.
Contact information for this artist can be found on page 25.
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Still Life Tsvetelina Valkov
Oil on Canvas 20" x 20" NFS My father, a great artist by hand and by soul as well as my first art teacher, used to say that there was nothing like “white color:” As a background of my still life paintings, the white is supposed to become a rich palette of reflections coming not only from surrounding objects, but from my imagination, too.
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Contact information for this artist can be found on page 25.
California Grown Tsvetelina Valkov
Oil on Canvas 18" x 24" $600 During one of my Trader Joe’s visits, my attention was caught at the front door of the market, where bunches of fresh flowers were stored. The magical picture of countless, vivid, colorful picks, happily blooming in bouquets, made me wish to buy the whole flower stand …
Contact information for this artist can be found on page 25.
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Contact the Artist Fred Chuang ftchuang@gmail.com https://fred-chuang.pixels.com/ https://fredchuang.com/ FB: The Art of Fred Chuang IG: @ftchuang https://www.pasadenasocietyofartists.org/artists/chuang/fred-chuang.html Rick Drobner rickdrobner@gmail.com https://www.pasadenasocietyofartists.org/artists/drobner/rick-drobner.html Sonali Kolhatkar sonali@sonaliandjim.net http://www.Etsy.com/Shop/Skolhatkar http://www.sonalikolhatkar.com FB: ArtbySonaliKolhatkar IG: @SonaliKolhatkar https://www.pasadenasocietyofartists.org/artists/sonali-kolhatkar/kolhatkar.html Joanna Kos joannakosart@gmail.com https://www.joannakos.com https://www.pasadenasocietyofartists.org/artists/kos/joanna-kos.html Rosina Maize rmaize@earthlink.net https://www.rosinamaize.com/ FB: Rosina Maize Fine Art https://www.pasadenasocietyofartists.org/artists/rosina-maize/rosina-maize.html Janet Manalo jrmana@pacbell.net http://www.JanetManalo.com IG: @JanetManalo20 https://www.pasadenasocietyofartists.org/artists/manalo/janet-manalo.html Kevin McCants umcleball4u@gmail.com https://www.kevinmccantspaintings.com IG: @uncleball4u https://www.pasadenasocietyofartists.org/artists/kevin-mccants/kevin-mccants.html Eileen Oda Leaf cre8art2018@gmail.com FB: Eileen Oda Fine Art https://www.pasadenasocietyofartists.org/artists/oda/eileen-oda.html David Sikes davesfile2@gmail.com https://www.pasadenasocietyofartists.org/artists/sikes/david-sikes.html Marliyn Stempel marilyn@marilynstempel.com FB: MarilynStempelArtist IG: @marilynstempel https://www.pasadenasocietyofartists.org/artists/stempel/stempel.html Kathleen Swaydan kdswaydan@gmail.com KathleenSwaydan.com FB: Kathleen Swaydan IG:@kswaydan https://www.pasadenasocietyofartists.org/artists/swayden/swayden.html Tsvetelina Valkov lozenez1@yahoo.com FB: Tsvetelina Valkov https://www.pasadenasocietyofartists.org/artists/valkov/tsvetelina-valkov.html
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Pasadena Society of Artists Board of Directors 2021 - 2022 President: Shaney Watters President@PasadenaSocietyofArtists.org Executive Vice President: Robert Asa Crook VicePresident@PasadenaSocietyofArtists.org Vice President - Exhibitions: Lawrence D. Rodgers Exhibitions@PasadenaSocietyofArtists.org Recording Secretary: Rhonda Raulston Secretary@PasadenaSocietyofArtists.org Treasurer: Kathleen Swaydan Admin@PasadenaSocietyofArtists.org Director of Communications: Debbi Swanson Patrick News@PasadenaSocietyofArtists.org Director of Grants: Kruti Shah Grants@PasadenaSocietyofArtists.org Director of History & Archives: Robert Asa Crook Historian@PasadenaSocietyofArtists.org Director of Membership: Marion Dies Membership@PasadenaSocietyofArtists.org Director of Programs: Patricia Jessup-Woodlin Programs@PasadenaSocietyofArtists.org Past President: Victor Picou PastPresident@PasadenaSocietyofArtists.org Member at Large: Art Carrillo MembersatLarge@PasadenaSocietyofArtists.org Member at Large: Liz Crimzon MembersatLarge@PasadenaSocietyofArtists.org www.PasadenaSocietyofArtists.org FB: PasadenaSocietyofArtists IG: @pasadenasocietyofartists
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Catalog Production Team Exhibition Chair: Lawrence D. Rodgers Director of Communications: Debbi Swanson Patrick Editor: Alison Davies Treasurer: Kathleen Swaydan Technical Lead: Rhonda Raulston Instagram Content: Emily Suñez Facebook Content: George Paul Miller Webmaster: Fred Chuang Catalog Designer: Lawrence D. Rodgers Cover Design: Karen Hochman Brown Artwork appears courtesy of PSA members. Copyrights held by the artists. All rights reserved. © 2021 Pasadena Society of Artists www.PasadenaSocietyofArtists.org
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A Short History of the Pasadena Society of Artists The Pasadena Society of Artists came into being in early 1925. Benjamin C. Brown, the “dean of Pasadena painters,” sent out a notice to local painters to discuss the formation of a society for local artists. In addition to Mr. Brown, attending this meeting were Edward B. Butler, Maud Daggett, Antoinette De Forest Merwin, Louis Hovey Sharp, F. Carl Smith, Orrin A. White, Wallace LeRoy De Wolff, and Frederick A. Zimmerman. The consensus was that the Pasadena Society of Artists should be formed. Seven more artists then joined PSA to form the founding charter members. They were Herbert V. B. Acker, F. Tolles Chamberlin, Alson S. Clark, John “Jack” Frost, Jean Mannheim, Katherine B. Stetson and Marion Wachtel. It has been suggested that PSA was formed out of the desire of the founders to exhibit their contemporary work, which was not acceptable in exhibitions of the California Art Club. The first Annual Juried Exhibition was presented in April 1925 at the Pasadena Art Institute located in Carmelita Park, now the site of the Norton Simon Art Museum. The PSA founders stated that “the standard will be high and only work of real merit will be accepted.” Every year since 1925 PSA has presented an Annual Juried Exhibition. For more than 50 years PSA exhibited at the Pasadena Art Institute/Pasadena Art Museum in addition to presenting Annuals at various institutions throughout southern California. Besides the Annual Exhibition, the Society has always maintained a vigorous schedule of other exhibitions each year. These are usually selected by the exhibition committee, and may be juried or non-juried. They take place in schools, universities, libraries, museums, art galleries and other public buildings. The Pasadena Society of Artists is celebrating its 96th anniversary during 2021. Five exhibitions, including the 96th Annual Juried Exhibition, are scheduled for this year. Each exhibition will be presented online and will have a printed catalog; some may also have a traditional gallery installation concurrent with the online version. With over 100 PSA members, the variety of artworks presented at exhibitions is always very interesting. PSA continues to adhere to the guiding statement of the founders by accepting new members by juried submission. www.PasadenaSocietyofArtists.org Facebook: PasadenaSocietyofArtists Instagram: @pasadenasocietyofartists 28
Call for New Members Are you an artist? Throughout Pasadena Society of Artists’ 96-year history, works by PSA members of have been sold at major auction houses, collected in important art collections, and displayed in museums throughout the United States and Europe. Our legacy is immense! Would you like to be part of our organization? We are always looking for new, dedicated members. Our artists work in all media and styles of drawing, painting, sculpture, and photography. All have been juried into the society. New Member Screenings for the Pasadena Society of Artists are usually held twice a year, in the spring and fall. Please go to our website at www.pasadenasocietyofartists.org for more information. If you are interested in becoming a member, please complete a Membership Inquiry Form, found online, and contact our Director of Membership, Marion Dies. Ms. Dies will notify you when the next screening has been scheduled. Qualifications considered for membership include the applicant’s dedication to artistic standards of excellence, professionalism, accomplishments, skills that benefit the Society, and the artist’s future potential. Applicants submit three (four if a virtual screening) pieces of artwork representing current media and style, created in the past two years. Artwork submitted is judged by presentation, talent, and originality. We encourage perseverance; a number of our members have been offered memberships after having been declined multiple times. Former members include Charles White, Walter Askin, Jirayr Zorithian, Conrad Buff, David Green, Enjar Hansen, Frode Dann, Jae Carmichael, Leonard Edmondson, Mildred Lapson, Paul Sample, Hanson Puthuff, Sam Hyde Harris, Martin Mondrus, Betye Saar and many more. We look forward to welcoming new artists to the Pasadena Society of Artists as we approach our 100th anniversary in 2025. For a Membership Inquiry Form go to: https://www.pasadenasocietyofartists.org/get_involved/join/application.html
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Pasadena Society of Artists P. O. Box 90074 Pasadena, California 91109
www.PasadenaSocietyofArtists.org Facebook: PasadenaSocietyofArtists Instagram: @pasadenasocietyofartists