Andy Eccleshall, Chesaw Sunset, oil, 30 x 30"

Among the juried works in this year’s show is Andy Eccleshall’s luminous Chesaw Sunset. The painting features a barn in the Okanogan Highlands of Washington State that Eccleshall has painted several times in different light and weather, this time against a billowing, fiery cloud mass. “I’ve spent a lot of time in that area and really enjoy the light, and the numerous weathered and decaying homesteads that are echoes of the families who have moved through the area over the last century and a half,” says the artist. “I’m always fascinated by mood and atmosphere. When I paint I’m trying to capture the feeling of a place and I’m trying to convey that to the viewer. Nothing makes me happier than to hear someone say that they know what that day ‘feels like’ when they look at one of my paintings., even if they are reading something into it that I didn’t intend. Art speaks to people in different ways, we take from it things that are related to our own experiences, each unique from each other.” 

Sandra Kuck, Repose, oil, 30 x 27"

The subject of Sandra Kuck’s juried work Repose is her granddaughter Yvonne, who she has been painting since she was eight years old. “In this painting, Vonnie was waiting on the Chinese bench to pose for me wearing a 1910 kimono,” says Kuck. “I glanced over to her and noticed the reflective light of red bouncing underneath her chin. I am always fascinated with the effects of light on surfaces, including skin and hair and how it bends around fabric creating textures. I try to stop time and reproduce this in my paintings, giving the viewer the time to observe what they normally wouldn’t see—the peace and beauty of a very brief moment in time.”

Larry Winborg, Mid November, oil, 30 x40"

These juried works and so many more will be on display in the NOAPS exhibition, hosted by Beverly McNeil Gallery in Birmingham, Alabama. The show opens on October 10 with a reception from 5 to 7:30 p.m., and will remain on view through November 9. The festivities kick off a couple days prior, with a plein air competition and Wet Paint Sale on October 8 and 9, for which artists are invited to paint in and around the city. Also on October 9, Master Artist Cheng Lian will lead a portrait demonstration at the gallery at 10 a.m., followed by an afternoon at the Birmingham Art Museum, and a dinner with NOAPS artists. Prior to the opening reception on October 10, board president Pat Tribastone and Master Artist Hebe Brooks will discuss a selection of paintings in the exhibition at 10 a.m., followed by a lunch and award presentation from 12 to 2:30 p.m.

Bing Weng, A Little Artist, oil, 22 x 23"

“Our Best of America Exhibition will present a wide array of realism and impressionism, with all genres,” says Tribastone. “When visiting our exhibition, attendees will find an array of excellent work with a wide range of styles, techniques and expression. One can see work from highly accomplished and well-known artists, and emerging artists whose work commands attention and will be widely lauded in years to come.”