An exhibition opening in March at the Vernon Filley Art Museum in Pratt, Kansas, explores what can come of taking the beauty of a photograph and transforming it into a painting. Kansas artist Charles Baughman has embarked on a project in which he asked local photographers to send him photos capturing the state’s unique beauty. The artist then drew inspiration from those photos and re-created them in his signature “splatterscape” paintings. 
Charles Baughman, Western Kansas Sunset, acrylic and mixed media painting of photograph by Bonnie Johnson.
These paintings along with their original photographs will hang side by side in the collaborative exhibition, titled “Ninnescah Landscapes” Splatterscape paintings by Charles Baughman & Photography by Regional Artists, running March 25 through July 22. 
Bonnie Johnson, Western Kansas Sunset, photograph.
“I wanted to connect with people in that area of Kansas to share images of what they find beautiful. Getting community involvement is really important to me,” says Baughman. “It’s been rewarding to collaborate with local amateur and professional photographers and get a fresh perspective and use the landscape to show both realistic and abstract versions of the same scene.” 
Charles Baughman, Meadow, acrylic and mixed media painting of photograph by Stan Reimer.
Viewing Baughman’s paintings and their corresponding photographs right next to one another give visitors the ability to take in a “real life” scene and then reconceptualize and reimagine it in its abstracted form. “For years I drew very realistically with pen and ink, graphite and watercolor,” Baughman shares, “but in the last two decades my style has loosened with every year.” For the last 10 years, he’s transitioned to only using his fingers and sticks to paint, explaining, “Using the bare minimum tools forces me to be pretty bold with my color and mark making. I [think] my paintings have an energy that can’t be seen in photographs alone.”
Charles Baughman, Kansas Sky, acrylic and mixed media painting of photograph by Brian Creal.
“Ninnescah Landscapes” Splatterscape paintings by Charles Baughman & Photography by Regional Artists will kick off with an opening reception on March 25 from 6 to 8 p.m. —
Vernon Filley Art Museum
421 South Jackson Street • Pratt, KS 67124
(620) 933-2787 • www.vernonfilleyartmuseum.org
Powered by Froala Editor
