We Talk Art is a quarterly (or more) Zoom presentation for members of the PSWC. Bonnie Zahn Griffith chats with well known artists and others in the art world in an informal virtual setting. These distinguished guests share their stories, processes, tips and more. The series features “live” interviews, so participants may post questions and comments during and after the interview. The link to the Zoom meeting for each session is posted on our Facebook page, and also sent via eBlast to all current PSWC members.
Upcoming: January 21, 2024, 12:00 Noon – Featuring Beka Watkins
2023 We Talk Art Interview Series
December 3, 12:00 Noon PST – Featuring Craig Lemley: Join us for a special conversation with Craig Lemley, owner of Dakota Art. Lemley earned a bachelor’s degree in fine arts from Western Washington University and was inspired to open his own shop after working in an art materials store. He named the store after his home state of North Dakota. Learn about Craig’s background, his commitment to have stores staffed by real, local artists, and get behind-the-scenes insight into the production of pastels. View the recorded interview here.
RESCHEDULED Date TBD- Featuring Scott Christensen: From Scott’s website: “After nearly three decades at the easel, Christensen is recognized around the globe, as evidenced by his invitation to show in Russia’s Ilya Repin St. Petersburg State Academic Institute for Painting, Sculpture, and Architecture. His energy flows through his work, paintings that, in turn, move us, opening our eyes to the beauty of places as varied as the California coast at twilight, and the storied English countryside. They are luscious yet economical landscapes that beg to be explored.”
October 15, 12:00 Noon PST – Featuring Clark Mitchell: Designated a Master Pastelist by the Pastel Society of America and a Distinguished Pastelist by the Pastel Society of the West Coast, Clark has received numerous awards in local as well as national competitions. In 2005, he won Best of Show at the Laguna Plein Air Invitational; and in 2011, Best of Show in the Maui Plein Air Painting Invitational. His paintings have been on the cover of American Artist, Southwest Art and the Pastel Journal. View the interview here.
September 24, 12:00 Noon PST – Featuring Mitchell Albala: For more than 30 years, Mitchell Albala has been a dedicated landscape painter and teaching artist. His atmospheric and semi-abstract landscapes have been exhibited nationally and are represented in corporate and private collections. Mitchell is the author of two popular books on landscape painting: Landscape Painting: Essential Concepts and Techniques for Plain Air and Studio Practice; and most recently, The Landscape Painter’s Workbook: Essential Studies in Shape, Composition, and Color, which is currently the best selling book on the subject in the nation. View the recorded interview here.
August 11, 12:00PM PST – Featuring Aaron Schuerr, AIS, PSA, LPAPA: From Aaron’s website: “Though painting is largely a solitary endeavor, it is never a lonely one, because I am invited to share in the ineffable mystery of beauty. And that is where the art is. Briefly, I am an artist, writer, actor, husband, and father of three wonderful boys. It all gets mixed up until the distinctions are blurred, as they should be. The heart of my work is in the outdoors, absorbing the pattern of light on the landscape. Actors speak of “being in the moment” immersing themselves so totally in story that everything else falls away. The open air is my stage, and in the best moments, I am lost in it. I have no desire to impress you with these paintings. Rather, I strive to share my experience with honesty and without fear.” View the recorded interview here.
February 12, 12:00 Noon PST – Featuring Natasha Isenhour: Natasha is a talented New Mexico based artist with a long list of achievements in the art world including being a Distinguished Pastelist in the Pastel Society of NM, exhibiting in prestigious galleries and museums and is a sought-after workshop educator.
American Realist Natasha Isenhour, conveys her emotional response to landscape, architecture and still-life in oil, pastel and watercolor. From a distance a first impression is the realistic feeling of the work, but a closer look reveals a contemporary edge where her mark-making controls the impressions of mass and delicacy.
January 22, 12:00 Noon PST – Featuring Dug Waggoner: In this first interview, Bonnie Zahn Griffith will be chatting with PSWC Distinguished Pastelist and IAPS Master Circle artist Dug Waggoner. Dug is a nationally award winning artist from California who has experienced a successful life long career in the arts. Dug says, “ Many years ago I fell in love with Pastel because of the speed and tactile feel of its drawing capabilities, the opaque coverage, the color brilliance and serendipity experimentation that gave a perfect voice for my work.” The interview with Dug is archived on our PSWC YouTube channel here.