This past weekend I was honored to represent the Watercolor Society of Oregon at the meeting of the Western Federation of Watercolor Societies Annual meeting in Scottsdale, AZ. Each year, delegates and artists from twelve groups within the Western United States converge on a rotating basis to produce an exhibition of outstanding caliber.

Last year’s exhibition took place in the Dallas, TX area, hosted by the Southwestern Watercolor Society. My work, Golden Hour, was displayed and even won an award! This year my painting “Runaway” was included. This was a painting that began as a demonstration for the Emerald Art Center during their Friday night Art Walk. Here is a photo during the show… I was so tickled to hang next to one of my idols, Judi Betts.

Don’t I look pleased as punch!?

The weekend began on Thursday evening with a gallery stroll through downtown Scottsdale. What a thrill! We were able to see a nice show by Oregon artist Carolee Clark at Xanadu Gallery. The wide spectrum of work represented by the downtown galleries surprised me. I really expected to only see Southwestern Art represented. Two favorites for me were Paul Scott Gallery and LewAllen Contemporary.

At Paul Scott, it was a thrill to see mixed media sculptures I have admired on the internet by Geoffrey Gorman. I also particularly enjoyed sculptures by Mike Moran. LewAllen Contemporary had a stunning show by painter Emily Mason, as well as work by Fritz Scholder.

Aside from meetings to plan next year’s exhibit and share ideas about optimizing our different groups, we had lots of time to sightsee. I particularly enjoyed a trip to the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art.

at the SMoCA

I am particularly proud of all the Oregon artists who were included in the WFWS show. Here are some photos from this wonderful weekend.