Cally Krallman, Michael Albrechtsen and Henry Dixon Named 2008 PaintAmerica Top100 Jurors

The 2008 PaintAmerica Top100 competition will be juried January 9 – 11, 2009. The jury panel includes three nationally prominent artists from varied disciplines. PaintAmerica is proud to have such a distinguished juror panel for this years’ competition…

Henry W. Dixon is a realist painter working predominately in watercolor. Born in Jacksonville, Florida, Dixon grew up in Chicago, and holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Art and Master of Arts Degree in Graphic Design. Dixon was selected out of over 22,000 entries from Fifty-one countries around the world to represent the United States in London, England at the Winsor and Newton World-Wide Millennium Painting Competition, "Our World in the Year 2000." Prince Charles of Wales chaired the panel of world-renowned judges. The exhibition was also shown in Stockholm, Sweden and the United Nations Building in New York City. Dixon was also selected as the artist to represent the State of Missouri for the 2001 White House Calendar. He was named to the 2007 Best of America Artists and Artisans. Henry is a signature member of the Natonal Watercolor Society (NWS)

Michael Albrechtsen was raised in Bountiful, Utah and earned a Master of Fine Arts Degree from Utah State University. After graduation, Michael was offered a position with Hallmark and moved to Kansas City. Michael is fascinated by landscapes but also loves painting figures. During his employment with Hallmark he was in a unique position where he was allowed to use his experience as a landscape and figure painter to do specialty cards. Michael is in demand as an instructor at both the Scottsdale Artists School and the Fredericksburg Artists School. He exhibits across the country, and is shown in fine galleries including the Craghead Gallery in Carmel, The Legacy Gallery in Scottsdale and Jackson, the Demott Gallery at Vail, Whistle Pik Galleries in Fredericksburg, and Highlands Art Gallery in Chester, New Jersey.

Cally Krallman has been painting for over 20 years. She has traveled and painted in many places throughout the world, but is still drawn to the simplistic beauty of the Midwest states. She enjoys painting "en plein aire", and many of her works are painted on location. She has a Bachelor of Fine Arts, and has studied with Phil Starke, Kim English, Michael Albrechtson, and William Scott Jennings among others. Her work has been exhibited across the country including OPA and Salon International exhibits, as well as in Georgia of the former Soviet Union. Cally’s work has been featured in several publications and is held in many private and public art collections. She is a member of Oil Painters of America and American Women Artists.

Chicago area Paint the Parks100 Exhibit Highlights Indiana Dunes

The Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore and the Lake County Convention and Visitors Bureau partnered to bring the 2008 Paint the Parks100 Exhibit to the Chicago area at the Indiana Welcome Center in Hammond, Indiana. The exhibit began with an opening night reception on October 1st. According to Katie Holderby, executive vice president of Lake County Convention and Visitors Bureau, the exhibit was well received and they are looking at future dates to hold the exhibit again. The new 6500 sq. ft. contemporary exhibit space fashioned after the rolling waves and dunes of Lake Michigan was an exceptional venue for the Paint the Parks100 exhibit.

Paint the Parks Show at Old Courthouse Gallery in St. Louis!

The 2008 Paint the Parks100 national touring exhibit kicked off August 1st with a fantastic showing at the Old Courthouse Galleries in St. Louis, MO. The Old Courthouse is part of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, and the exhibit was sponsored by the Jefferson National Parks Association. It was an incredible venue for the first show of this year's exhibit season. Paintings were hung all around the historic rotundas on the first and second floor, as well as in the stately halls and anterooms of this beautiful building. The exhibit drew excellent crowds until its close September 15th.

France Tremblay Painting Wins 2008 Paint the Parks Grand Prize Purchase Award!

An acrylic painting titled "Southeast View from Zabriskie Point" by France Tremblay has been chosen as the 2008 Paint the Parks100 Grand Prize Purchase Award Winner. Other major award winners chosen included the following juror awards:
Elaine Hahn Jurors Award - Dan McWilliams, "Best Beach", oil
Susiehyer Jurors Award - Christopher Groves, "Santee Evening Light", oil
John Hulsey Jurors Award - Robert Highsmith - "Morning at Canyon de Chelly", watercolor

In addition, three winners were chosen to represent each of the three national park regions:
Region I Winner - Steven Hileman, "December Afternoon, Acadia", oil
Region II Winner - Robert Gunn, "Full Moon Ascending", oil
Region III Winner - Howard R. Hanson, "Forest Floor", oil alkyd

The jurors deliberated over a 3-day period, scoring hundreds and hundreds of entries before all the ballots were tabulated and the 100 highest scoring paintings emerged from the field. A complete list of all winners will be posted to www.PaintAmerica.org website by Friday, July 4th.

Susiehyer Conducts Painting Demonstration for PaintAmerica

On Sunday, June 29th, nationally recognized oil painter Susiehyer conducted a painting demonstration and seminar for PaintAmerica at the Maner Conference Center in Topeka, Kansas. Susie was in Topeka as a juror for the 2008 Paint the Parks competition, and agreed to conduct the demonstration as part of PaintAmerica's education mission.

Twice each year, as PaintAmerica national competitions are judged, one of the jurors agrees to provide a seminar for interested artists. Group size is kept small so that each attendee is assured of an up-close, intimate session with the instructor. Susie focused her demonstration on creating a better painting by focusing on strong shape and value structures in the early stages of the painting. We thank Susie for agreeing to provide this motivational and insightful demonstration!

Paint the Parks Jurors Work Through Entries

On Friday, June 27th, Susiehyer, Elaine Hahn and John Hulsey arrived at the PaintAmerica offices to begin wading through hundreds of entries in the 2008 Paint the Parks national competition. It was a daunting task. After an Italian dinner where the jurors got acquainted with each other, judging began about 8pm Friday, starting with the mini competition. To accomplish the judging within time constraints, the jurors scored each entry individually, with scores to be tabulated afterwards. The jurors retired for the evening about 11:30.

Saturday morning, the jurors met for breakfast and then dug into the remainder of the mini entries. With a few short breaks, judging went on all through the day, starting the full-size entries about 1:30, and not breaking again until dinner at 6pm. After dinner, the deliberation continued until almost midnight. On Sunday, the jurors discussed the previous 2 days of judging over a leisurely breakfast before preparing for Susiehyer's afternoon painting demonstration.

St. George Art Museum

The 2007 Paint the Parks 100 & Mini50 exhibition opens today, June 6th, at St. George Art Museum in St. George, Utah. This is your last chance to see the exhibit! If you can't make, be sure to visit the online exhibition.

Final Deadline Tomorrow!

You have two days left to enter for the opportunity to be a part of the 2008 Paint the Parks100 & Mini50! With a national touring exhibition and an online exhibition, there are excellent sales opportunities and chances for national exposure! Good luck in the competition!

Many Paintings Sold At Kolb Studio Exhibit at the Grand Canyon!

Nearly two dozen paintings sold at the Kolb Studio 2007 Paint the Parks Exhibit in Grand Canyon, Arizona totalling over $20,000! The exhibit was enjoyed by all and will be back again in 2009! Many thanks to the Grand Canyon Association and to The Dudley Family for making this exhibit happen.

If you haven't yet had a chance to view the 2007 Paint the Parks 100 and Mini50 the last exhibit takes place at The St. George Art Museum in St. George, Utah. We look forward to another wonderful show!

If you can't make the trip to Utah, view the exhibit online at www.paintamerica.org

*Pictured above are paintings recently sold at the Kolb Studio exhibit. "Trails and Tales" by Brenda D. Johnson (Top Left), "So Inviting" by Tarryl Gabel (Top Right), "Bodie Island Lighthouse" by Mark Kelvin Horton (Bottom Right) and "Needles Sunset" by John N. Agnew (bottom center).

Beverly Golembeski : Friday Featured Artist

Beverly Golembeski, PAA, has been a professional artist for over twenty years, and has demonstrated and taught classes and workshops throughout the Northeast and Florida. She was a past president of the Ocean County Artists’ Guild and a board member of the New Jersey Watercolor Society. She is a ‘Fellow’ of the American Artists Professional League and an Official Artist of the United States Coast Guard. Full Memberships include Audubon Artists, Inc, Philadelphia Watercolor Society, Pennsylvania Watercolor Society, and Garden State Watercolor Society. She was elected into Who’s Who in American Women and Who’s Who of American Art.

Even though she is proud of achieving the aforementioned, She cherishes the support of the local art groups and organizations. These were the foundation of her artistic beginnings. They nurtured her abilities and offered her the stepping-stones toward the road as a professional artist. She continues to promote their activities and programs and maintain her memberships with them. They gave her her start and she feels they will do so with the next generation of fledgling artists.

Pictured above are Beverly Golembeski's paintings included in PaintAmerica Exhibitions. Pictured from Top to Bottom, Left to Right, "Nana's Lighthouse" (Paint the Parks100, 2007), "Coconuts" (PaintAmerica Top100, 2007), "Regatta" (Paint the Parks100, 2007), "Wading Pool" (Paint the Parks Mini50, 2007), "In Flight" (PaintAmerica Top100, 2007), "Judee's Boat" (Paint the Parks100, 2007), "Pavilion Chatter" (Paint the Parks Mini50, 2007), "Chicken House" (PaintAmerica Top100, 2007).

Ezra Suko : Friday Featured Artist

Ezra Suko, a PaintAmerica Signature Member, is this weeks Friday Featured Artist. Ezra is one of the youngest artists included in any PaintAmerica exhibition. Many don't believe the art by Suko is that of an artist that is only twenty-six years old. Pictured above is one of Ezra Suko's paintings that made it into the 2007 PaintAmerica Top100, "Lights and Leaves". This has been a crowd favorite at the first exhibit of the show. Some swear there are lights behind the canvas giving the glow to the green lights and red tail lights and all wonder "How did he do that?!".

Below are three more of Ezra's paintings: "Twilight on the Pacific", 2007 PaintAmerica Top100; "Mid Summer Americana", 2007 PaintAmerica Top100; and "Lake McDonald: Late Afternoon Light", 2007 Paint the Parks100.

Are your entries ready?

In just two weeks the 2008 Paint the Parks100 early deadline will behind us! You don't want to miss the early discount deadline, $10 off every entry for the Paint the Parks100 and $5 off every entry for the Paint the Parks Mini50. Now that you have met that dreaded tax deadline, its time to move on to meeting a more enjoyable deadline! Mark your calendars for May 1st!

Don't think you will make it in time? Don't worry the final deadline is not until May 31st!

Jurors for 2008 Paint the Parks Announced

John Hulsey is an accomplished artist, author and teacher who has been working professionally for over thirty years. In addition to producing new work for exhibition and teaching workshops, Mr. Hulsey continues to write educational articles about painting for national art magazines, including Watercolor magazine and American Artist Magazine. He has been selected as a "Master Painter of the United States" by International Artist Magazine where his work was previously chosen to be included in the top ten of their international landscape painting competition. He was awarded residencies at both Yosemite and Glacier National Parks.

Elaine Hahn, NWS, AWS (elainehahnart.com) Elaine has studied with noted artists throughout the United States, England and Mexico. Elaine Hahn is a Signature member of the American Watercolor and the National Watercolor Societies. She is also a Signature member of the Florida Plein Air Society, a member of the Oil Painters of America and the American Impressionist Society. Her paintings have achieved prominence through acceptance and awards in major national juried exhibitions. Her works are included in private and corporate collections throughout the United States. She has taught and conducted Workshops and has served as a judge in Art Shows on the local and regional level.



Susie Hyer, OPA (www.susiehyerstudio.com) Susie is represented by several galleries along the Front Range. Her work can be seen in many private and corporate collections. She maintains a home and studio in Evergreen, CO where she lives with her husband and two children. She has received dozens of regional and national awards for her work, mostly in oils. She is a signature member of Oil Painters of America, Plein Air Artists of Colorado, and the American Society of Botanical Artists.

Looking for inspiration?

If you are thinking about entering the 2007 Paint the Parks100 or Mini50, a good source of inspiration would be last years winners! Order your viewbook today to gain that little extra motivation you need to be on the cover of the 2008 Paint the Parks viewbook!
Visit the PaintAmerica website to order.

Friday Featured Artist: Thomas Marcotti

Thomas Marcotti, a PaintAmerica Signature Member, has had five paintings juried into PaintAmerica competitions. "Springtime in Wiscasset", top left, was the 2007 PaintAmerica MiniTop50 Grand Prize Winner! He also had a painting in the Top100 this year; "Church Row", middle right. "Cromwell Brook", top right, was apart of the 2006 PaintAmerica Top100. And in the First Annual Paint the Parks Competition, Marcotti had two paintings, "View From Ocean Drive", middle left, and "White Mountain National Forrest", bottom.

Tom is basically self-taught in the fine arts and has successfully made art a life-long endeavor. He has involved himself with many facets of art. In all of his work from graphic art and commercial printing, to being a portrait artists at Disneyland, to his many commissions, to the stunning acrylics and watercolors he produces today. Through his sharp eye for detail he lets the viewer immediately relate to the painting. This is exactly what he wants in his work… “When people view my work I would like them to be able to relate to some part of the painting. Perhaps it is the peacefulness, a feeling that they wished they were there, or a remembrance of time spent in a similar place. My paintings are the places and spots I wish I could see or be part of every day.”

Looking at his work you can tell he has achieved his goal. Using acrylics as the versatile medium it is, and working with canvas, board, or paper yields a variety of opaque textures and transparent washes. Working with watercolor, one of his favorite mediums, he works with the white of the paper to produce clean, translucent colors. He uses photography as a tool to obtain reference material, allowing the capture of a moment in time and space so he can later produce with accuracy the detail in like and shadow, the colors, and the positive and negative space.

PaintAmerica Top100 First Friday Art Walk at Westboro Fine Arts

Tonight Westboro Fine Arts in Topeka, Kansas will welcome another large crowd to the PaintAmerica Top100 Exhibit. Every first Friday in Topeka art galleries welcome crowds to enjoy an evening art walk. They are looking forward to showing the beautiful art to even more art lovers!

Friday Featured Artist : Suzanne Ellis

This Friday's Featured Artist is Southern Wisconsin artist, Suzanne Ellis. PaintAmerica has been lucky to have three of her paintings juried into our competitions. Her "Ghost of Wildcat Mountain" (above center) was juried into the 2007 Paint the Parks. Suzanne's "Heart of the Mountain" (above right) was recently juried into the 2007 PaintAmerica MiniTop50. This years PaintAmerica Top100 Grand Prize Winnner was Suzanne's "Badger State of Mind" (above left).

Suzanne Ellis paints with acrylics and uses her own photos for reference. Her father was a writer and a naturalist. He was her first teacher. The painting Suzanne completed for one of her father’s books, “Notes from Little Lakes”, won the Addy Award for best book cover, 1995-1997, in Madison, Wisconsin.

She had her first solo show, July and August 2004 at the Richard C. Anderson Gallery, Land’s End in Dodgeville, Wisconsin. Another show followed in July and August 2006, at the UW Arboretum, Madison, Wisconsin. She has taken workshops with John Seerey-Lester, Paco Young, and Julie Chapman.

"I paint wildlife and nature because I want to share the mystery and unbelievable beauty of the natural world. Painting is how I pray for and celebrate what I love." - Suzanne Ellis

2008 PaintAmerica Scholarship Recipient

PaintAmerica is proud to announce our 2008 PaintAmerica Scholarship Recipient! Caitlin is a high school senior from Cincinnati, Ohio. She enjoys creating beautiful, fun, and often unreal things. She is a member of her high schools art club. She plans to earn a degree in Illustration.

"Caitlin is one of those students a teacher hopes to have. She not only challenges herself intellectually to broaden her technical skills, she has the ability to integrate creativity in a broad range of school activities... She has solid technical skills and understanding that wonderfully compliments her creative style."
-Michele Rivera, High School Art Teacher

Congratulations Caitlin and we look forward to hearing about your success!

PaintAmerica Top100 and MiniTop50 Viewbook

The 2007 PaintAmerica Top100 and MiniTop50 Viewbook is now on sale on the PaintAmerica website. You may also order the 2006 PaintAmerica and the 2007 Paint the Parks Viewbooks. Start your collection now!

Not comfortable ordering online? Give us a call!

PaintAmerica Signature Society Members

Announcing... 2008 Signature Society Members
Neil H. Adamson
Del-Bourree Bach
Ray Hunter
Les Lull
Thomas Marcotti
Walter Porter
Deb Schroer
Michael Stohlmeyer
Ezra Suko

2007 PaintAmerica Signature Society Members: Tom Altenburg, Ray Brown, Beverly Golembeski, Carol Brightman Johnson, Gary Ozias, Wes Siegrist and Joseph Yarnell

Congratulations!

2007 PaintAmerica Top100 Opening

We had a great turn out at the opening of the PaintAmerica Top100 in Topeka, Kansas at Westboro Fine Arts! Not only did many people come to view this wonderful show, but many artists showed up as well. We were visited by Johne Richardson, Ye Wang, Pat Vincent G. Abellon, Deb Shroer (pictured above, top), and Marilyn Wiens Horsch (also pictured above, bottom)

Westboro Fine Arts

The 2007 PaintAmerica Top100 have begun their exhibit journey! The first exhibit site, Westboro Fine Arts, is located in Topeka, Kansas. After two days of hanging, the art is on the walls! Above you can view a few of the walls, can you spot your painting? (you can click to enlarge)

Check back tomorrow for pictures from the opening!

Thousands more in cash prizes and purchase awards!
For entry form, click here to go to our website,
or email your name and address to
mail@paintamerica.org

PaintAmerica, a national, non-profit organization to
support and promote the visual arts, has announced the
Call to Entries for the 2008 Paint the Parks Art Competition.
Deadline: May 31st, 2008.
This competition was developed to fill the void created when Arts for the Parks
program was recently discontinued.

Full details and entry forms are available at
www.PaintAmerica.org

You're Invited

You're Invited to the
"National Debut" of the 2007
PaintAmerica Top100
Exhibition and Sale

Friday, February 15, 2008
6:30pm to 8:30pm
Westboro Fine Arts
Topeka, Kansas

Kind Words

While unpacking the paintings for the upcoming show, we are also compiling short biographies of each artist included in the show to travel to the exhibits so that everyone can know more about the artists that created the beautiful work they are viewing. While reading Sandy Askey-Adams biography I came across this quote from her and just wanted to share it with all of you and thank her for the kind words. She sees aspects of PaintAmerica other than enjoying the beautiful work but also using art to spread a message. Thanks Sandy!

“And perhaps my paintings will help serve as a reminder of the importance of appreciating, preserving, and taking care of our American landscape and seascape, wildlife and all of nature for the sake of all life on this earth. Through PaintAmerica Top100 and their other competitions, their shows and their selected paintings we may be able to see the beauty of nature and what we would be missing”.
--Sandy Askey-Adams

Paintings are arriving!

The Top100 and MiniTop50 paintings are arriving on a snowy day here in Topeka, Kansas. We've seen many cold mail delivery people carrying in boxes with beautiful paintings inside! We always say its like Christmas here at PaintAmerica as the paintings arrive and we get to unpack the boxes. We first learn to appreciate then via digital slide, but unwrapping a box and viewing the original painting for the first time just feels like Christmas morning!

Thank you to all the artists who have made their way to mail their paintings. We are looking forward to the opening of the show February 15th in Topeka, Kansas!

Second Annual PaintAmerica MiniTop50

Below you will see the winners of the MiniTop50, just a few of the 50 amazing pieces that make up the Second Annual PaintAmerica MiniTop50!



















Grand Prize Winner
"Springtime in Wiscasset"
Thomas Marcotti


















Paul Jackson Juror's Award
"Stellar Jay"
Sandra Williams



















Sallie K. Smith Juror's Award
"Tulip Bed"
Eileen Nistler






















Director's Choice
"Bump!"
Ray Hassard























Award of Distinction
"Streets of New York - The Red Umbrella"
September McGee

Please click here to view a full list of the PaintAmerica MiniTop50

Announcing Second Annual PaintAmerica Top100 Winners

After an exciting weekend of judging work by America's best artists, it is time to announce the Second Annual PaintAmerica Top100!













Grand Prize Winner
"Badger State of Mind"
Suzanne Ellis

















Paul Jackson Juror's Award
"Morning Assembly"
Suzie Seerey-Lester


















Sallie K. Smith Juror's Award
"Twilight on the Pacific"
Ezra Suko






















Director's Choice
"Heliotrope"
Johne Richardson

Please click here to view a full list of the 2007 PaintAmerica Top100

2007 PaintAmerica Top100 & MiniTop50

We just finished a great weekend with jurors Paul Jackson and Sallie K. Smith! Paul and Sallie spent the weekend viewing all the wonderful entries we received for the Second Annual PaintAmerica Top100. Now we are busy tabulating the results so we can let all of the wonderful artists from all over the country know of their accomplishments!

Also, many area artists had the unique opportunity to attend a workshop by internationally known watercolorist Paul Jackson. He demonstrated some of his methods while excited artists looked on. Thank you Paul for providing the artists with this opportunity! Check back for more opportunities to attend a seminar like this one!

Looking for a Paint the Parks100 prospectus?

Click here to obtain an entry form for America's leading competition and exhibition designed to illustrate the beauty and significance of America’s National Parks!

PaintAmerica Scholarship

One of PaintAmerica's missions is to provide scholarships for young artists pursuing an education in art. We are currently going through the applications for this year scholarship and will announce the winner on February 15th!

If you will be a high school senior next year and are interested in applying for the PaintAmerica scholarship, send us an email and we will send you an application.

Good Luck to all of our scholarship applicants!

PaintAmerica Announces 2008 Paint the Parks Call to Entries

PaintAmerica, a national, non-profit organization to support and promote the visual arts, has announced the Call to Entries for the 2008 “Paint The Parks” National Artists’ Competition. Paint The Parks will attract many of our nations’ top artists, with a $10,000 purchase award for the Grand Prize. Many other cash prizes and purchase awards will also be available, making Paint The Parks one of the country’s richest art competitions. Full details and entry forms are available at www.PaintAmerica.org

The 2008 Paint the Parks100 Competition and the Paint the Parks “Mini50” provide the country’s top national venue for established and emerging representational artists to showcase their talents. The competition celebrates our country’s national parks, with a portion of the proceeds benefiting the National Parks Foundation (www.nationalparks.org) The competition also supports the PaintAmerica mission of providing scholarships for young artists and promoting the visual arts across America.

The Paint the Parks Competition format rewards artists with great potential for sales of their work. It also provides recognition, exposure and awareness through a national traveling exhibition and an online display. The exhibition will be shown in venues such as The Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, St. Louis, MO; The RW Norton Art Gallery, Shreveport, LA; and The CACEG Gallery; Estes Park, CO. Showcasing the beauty and qualities of America’s National Park system as seen through the eyes of its artists is another benefit of the program.

The Second Annual Paint the Parks 100 carries on the tradition of the long-running Arts for the Parks competition. Last years grand prize winners were John Agnew of Cincinnati, OH for his painting “Looking for the Shore” and Ray Hunter of Santa Barbara, CA for his mini painting “Lesson on the Yellowstone”.

Entries representing any of the 390 National Parks are submitted and judged within one of the three National Park Regions. The highest scoring painting from all entries is named the Grand Prize Purchase Award Winner and claims a $10,000 purchase award. It, and the top 33 paintings from each of the three regions advance to the Paint the Parks100. Other artists in the top 100 also have the chance to receive additional cash prizes and purchase awards. Recognition is also given to the “2nd 100” artists.

The “mini” competition is for works up to 180 square inches. The full-size competition accepts work up to 720 square inches. A discounted entry is available for meeting the early deadline of May 1, 2008. The final competition entry deadline is May 31, 2008. Galleries interested in exhibiting the Paint The Parks Top100 should contact PaintAmerica at mail@PaintAmerica.org


P.O. Box 4031 • Topeka, KS 66604 • 785.273.4502 • fax 785.273.4510 • www.PaintAmerica.org

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year! We are looking forward to a new year full of wonderful competitions and exhibitions!

We are busy preparing for the judging of the Second Annual PaintAmerica Top100 and MiniTop50! Paul Jackson and Sallie K. Smith will be visiting Topeka, Kansas January 11th-13th to pick this years Top100 and MiniTop50. Check the PaintAmerica website the following week to view the winners. We are very excited about this show and look forward to everyone being able to enjoy the talent of all of the PaintAmerica artists!

This is going to be an exciting year for PaintAmerica!