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Award for “Spiral Gyre #2”, Watercolor Society of Oregon (WSO)

I am delighted to announce that my watercolor painting Spiral Gyre #2 earned an “Award of Distinction” in the Watercolor Society of Oregon’s Spring 2023 Exhibition.  As such, I send my deepest “thanks” to Juror Vera Dickerson for selecting my work. Where To See The Show Bend, OR.  If you would like, you may see …

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Odd Man Inn 6th Annual Online Art Show & Sale

This week, until April 29th, you can purchase $5 chances here to win this original oil painting of Melvin, the tripod and earless pig from Odd Man Inn Animal Refuge in Janesville, TN. The painting is framed and ready to hang – canvas size is 24 x 18. Making this art package even better, Kat von Cupcake wrote a poem to accompany my painting. You can also view the many other wonderful art packages and purchase chances to win any of those items, all to benefit the sanctuary. Melvin lost his ears and his leg due to an altercation with a dog before he was taken in and rehabilitated by Odd Man Inn. His recovery is truly amazing and a testament to this strong boy’s will to survive.

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Odd Man Inn 6th Annual Online Art Show & Sale

This week, until April 29th, you can purchase $5 chances here to win this original oil painting of Melvin, the tripod and earless pig from Odd Man Inn Animal Refuge in Janesville, TN. The painting is framed and ready to hang – canvas size is 24 x 18. Making this art package even better, Kat von Cupcake wrote a poem to accompany my painting. You can also view the many other wonderful art packages and purchase chances to win any of those items, all to benefit the sanctuary. Melvin lost his ears and his leg due to an altercation with a dog before he was taken in and rehabilitated by Odd Man Inn. His recovery is truly amazing and a testament to this strong boy’s will to survive.

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Laughing Earth

Letting Emerson (and the daffodils) say it best: “The earth laughs in flowers.” 



Art in The Vineyard: A New Guild Gallery at Bridgeview Winery, opening celebration on Saturday April 15, 2023 from 5-8pm

Kicking off with a solo show featuring the art of local landscape painter Sheila Mason!

The Southern Oregon Guild & Bridgeview Winery proudly present, ART IN THE VINEYARD, a new Guild Member exclusive art gallery at Bridgeview’s newly renovated Tasting Room in Cave Junction! Kicking off our new gallery, Sheila Mason will be displaying a solo collection of her landscape paintings and sculpture. Join in on Saturday April 15, 2023 from 5-8pm for a FREE opening celebration to hear Sheila share her creative inspirations and answer any questions. Light appetizers will be provided along with a variety of Bridgeview wines available for tasting and purchase. Bridgeview Winery specializes in German varietals such as Pinot Noir and Riesling. They currently have a gold medal award winning Oregon Pinot Noir that has received a 89 point rating with Wine Spectator and is a great value!

Sheila Mason is a self-taught artist who lives in the mountains of the Illinois Valley of Southern Oregon. Her textured landscape paintings celebrate the flora and fauna of the Siskiyou & Kalomiopsis Wilderness, specifically the Pacific Coast Redwoods. Painting to her is about allowing the mind’s eye to stand among the trees away from the hustle and bustle of life’s minutiae. With each piece, Mason invites the viewer to join her in smelling the forest and hearing the sounds that abound there. She incorporates 3D textural elements into many of her 2D works. Tree bark comes alive and extends off the canvas through her unique application of thick gesso and plaster. She seeks to refresh the viewer and touch the soul, reveling in the glory among the calm and wonder of the trees. Sheila Mason’s work is currently on display at the Southern Oregon Guild Gallery & Art Center in Kerby, Oregon.

Bridgeview Winery is located at 4210 Holland Loop Road Cave Junction, OR 97523.

For more event information, visit www.SouthernOregonGuild.org

What a thing is spring

In this season of greening—

of already-but-not-yetness,

of muddy possibility,

of rainy enrichment,

of hungry wild ones

of pale tame ones—

I marvel at what comes up

seeking sun, seeking sky.

I give thanks for all

endings & beginnings. 

What a thing is spring. 

 

Winter Trees, Winter Reads

I have been diving into creative solitude this winter by writing, reading, and watching trees. One of my many book companions was May Sarton’s luminous Journal of a Solitude. Her wisdom on poetry alone astounds me. But so does her more general wisdom, some of which I decided to share on this first day of Lent: 

 

“Under the light of eternity things, the daily trivia, the daily frustrations, fall away.” (54)

 

“It is only when we can believe that we are creating the soul that life has any meaning, but when we can believe it—and I do and always have—then there is nothing we do that is without meaning and nothing that we suffer that does not hold the seed of creation in it.” (67)

 

“[S]olitude is one of the ways toward communion.” (73)

 

“I have said elsewhere that we have to make myths of our lives, the point being that if we do, then every grief or inexplicable seizure by weather, woe, or work can—if we discipline ourselves and think hard enough—be turned to account, be made to yield further insight into what it is to be alive, to be a human being, what the hazards are of a fairly usual, everyday kind.” (108)

 

“[R]eal joy. It is becoming exceedingly rare among artists of any kind. And I have an idea that those who can and do communicate it are always people who have had a hard time. Then the joy has no smugness or self-righteousness, it is inclusive not exclusive, and comes close to prayer.” (182) 

 

 

May Sarton, Journal of a Solitude. W. W. Norton & Company, 1977.

 

 

“Spiral Gyre #2” Juried Into Watercolor Society of Oregon Experimental Show

Hello!  I am happy to announce that my watercolor painting titled Spiral Gyre #2 was accepted into the Watercolor Society of Oregon’s (WSO) Spring Experimental Exhibition. My Thanks! I would like to say “thank you” to Ms. Vera Dickerson, Juror, for selecting my painting.  And, I would like to extend my gratitude to all the WSO …

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The post “Spiral Gyre #2” Juried Into Watercolor Society of Oregon Experimental Show appeared first on Margaret Stermer-Cox.

The "is" in this


All the swallows sing of sky,

& I try to wintry listen

to the is of this

the is in this. 



AGA January Art Opportunities

Ashland Gallery Association logo AGA

Ashland Galleries
January Visual Arts News
January = Art Opportunities

We’re excited to share a handful of fun and diverse art opportunities that are being offered this month to foster your inner creativity. 

Jenay Elder, Oranges in Sunlight, Acrylic on Canvas
Jenay Elder, Oranges in Sunlight, Acrylic on Canvas

Art & Soul Ashland
Backlit Citrus Paint Night with Jenay Elder
Friday, January 20, 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Join Art & Soul Ashland and Jenay Elder to learn more about acrylic painting techniques while referencing brightly lit citrus. Best known for her textured notes of color, representational quality, and sensitive subject matter, Jenay has developed a sharp eye for depicting subjects that instill insight and familiarity. Registration includes materials, wine, and refreshments. 

For those who are interested in participating, please click here for more information. 

Dennis McNett, Good Medicine, Woodblock Print
Dennis McNett, Good Medicine, Woodblock Print

Schneider Museum of Art
Saturday Salon: Pushing the Press
Saturday, January 21, 11:00 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.

Join the Schneider Museum of Art, Executive Director Scott Malbaurn, Curator Josef Zimmerman, and Featured Artists Kathryn Polk and Dennis McNett for a private tour of Pushing the Press: Contemporary Printers Redefining the Medium. Following the tour will be an intimate brunch with the opportunity to have lively conversations with both the curator and artists.

For those who are interested in attending, please click here for more information. 

Grants Pass Museum of Art, Untitled, Graphite
Grants Pass Museum of Art, Untitled, Graphite

Grants Pass Museum of Art
Drawing and Composition with Kristen O’Neill
Saturday, January 28, 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Join the Grants Pass Museum of Art and Kristen O’Neill to learn more about the basic fundamentals to create a strong composition. Using graphite tools and drawing from a simple scene, individuals will learn how to create a range of values while reviewing the principals of design. 

For those who are interested in participating, please click here for more information.

Fiber Arts Collective, Untitled, Mixed Media
Fiber Arts Collective, Untitled, Mixed Media

Fiber Arts Collective
Art Supply Swap!
Sunday, January 29, 2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Join Fiber Arts Collective for an Art Supply Swap! Artists are encouraged to bring one to five items that they would like to trade in exchange for other items. All supplies should be in good and usable condition. 

For those who are interested in attending, please click here for more information.