Watercolor artists offer ‘real’ art show
Before the coronavirus pandemic upended life, several members of the Tennessee Watercolor Society had been scheduled to present an exhibition of works at Lee University in Cleveland, Tennessee. Next week, as students return to classes, the delayed exhibition will debut in Lee Gallery in the William G. Squires Library for an eight-week run.
Speaking on behalf of her fellow artists, Helen Burton says they’re thrilled at the chance to stage a “real” art show “in these days of virtual everything.” They’re hopeful that the colorful artworks in “Seasons Showcase” will be a way “to lift everyone’s spirits in a safe environment.”
In keeping with the university’s COVID-19 guidelines, visitors will be required to wear masks, their temperature will be taken at the door and they will be asked a few health questions before entering. Visitors also should mention that they are there for the gallery show and will not linger in the library. There will be no reception for the exhibit.
Forty works by 10 members will be on view. Artists include Mark Cobbe, Liz Darling and Faye Ives from Chattanooga; Kim Tilly and Harriet Chipley from Lookout Mountain; and Irma Herzog and Lupina Poi
Haney from Ooltewah. Burton will be joined by fellow Cleveland artist Jennie Kirkpatrick, as well as Marie Spaeder Haas from Ocoee, Tennessee.
Gallery director Bradley Wilson has scheduled the exhibition to span the summer/fall seasons, running from Wednesday, Aug. 5, through Wednesday, Sept. 30. Works are for sale, but they will not be removed from the gallery until the end of the exhibition.
The Tennessee Watercolor Society will commemorate its golden anniversary in 2021. Since its founding in 1971, the group has grown to more than 250 members across the state. The founder, Chattanooga artist Mary
“The Moon Rises and the Mountains Dance” is a woven watercolor on Yupo paper by Marie Spaeder Haas.
Britten Lynch, and several charter members are still actively painting.