Friday, February 14, 2014

Umpqua Community College Permanent Art Collection

I'm delighted and honored to announce that my painting, Four And Twenty Blackbirds was chosen for Umpqua Community College's recent art purchase. According to Susan Rochester, Director of the Umpqua Community College Art Collection, the project goal was to add to the permanent art
collection through the acquisition of contemporary and modern art that recognizes the
artistic talent of artists in the Pacific Northwest. Approximately $45,000 was available to purchase existing artwork in two sections: $25,000  to purchase existing works created by
artists living in southwestern Oregon (Douglas, Coos, Curry, Jackson, Josephine,
Klamath, and Lake Counties), and $20,000  to purchase existing works by artists within the greater Pacific Northwest, outside southwestern Oregon.
 
The Art Purchase Task Force reviewed over 1,100 artworks submitted by 115 artists with active studio practices in Oregon, Washington, and Idaho. From that body, the following artists' works were selected for inclusion in UCC's Permanent Art Collection:

Holly Andres, Portland, Oregon
Rich Bergeman, Corvallis, Oregon
Clint Brown, Corvallis, Oregon
Kathleen Caprario, Springfield, Oregon
Renee Couture, Glide, Oregon
Tallmadge Doyle, Eugene, Oregon
Sarah Fagan, Portland, Oregon
Sally Finch, Portland, Oregon
James Florschutz, Portland, Oregon
Margaret Godfrey, Blue River, Oregon
Yuji Hiratsuka, Corvallis, Oregon
Jenny Kroik, Eugene, Oregon
Jon Leach, Winston, Oregon
Ann Lindsay, Winchester, Oregon
Barbara Benedetti Newton, Renton, Washington
Ryan Pierce, Portland, Oregon
Daniel Robinson, Fossil, Oregon
Paul Xavier Rutz, Portland, Oregon
Nancy Watterson Scharf, Oakland, Oregon
Pat Snyder, Coos Bay, Oregon
Gena Lee Tharp, Roseburg, Oregon
Paul Zegers, Roseburg, Oregon

The artwork will be placed in College buildings for the benefit and enjoyment of the general public.The works were unveiled at an opening reception Thursday, February 13. It was an interesting and impressive grouping of  works with many styles and approaches.  In spite of the variety it was fascinating to see a common thread that runs through the entire collection. What emerged from the artists was a powerful collective response to living in the contemporary Pacific Northwest landscape.