For the International Guild of Realism’s 20th Annual Juried Exhibition, attendees can expect an even larger selection of available contemporary realism than in past years. “It’s our biggest and best gallery show ever,” says Donald Clapper, founding IGOR charter member.
The exhibition, hosted at Principle Gallery for the second time, will feature 107 representational artworks by 102 IGOR members. The gallery, located in the heart of the historic district of Charleston, South Carolina, is known as one of the best in the Southeastern United States for showcasing realism, with a strong collector base for the genre.
Principle Gallery will host this year's Annual National Juried Exhibition in the beautiful art destitnation of Charleston, South Carolina.“[The] show will feature a blend of contemporary and classical realism such as trompe l’oeil, magic realism, traditional realism and photorealism,” notes Clapper. “This will be one of the largest realism exhibitions to come to Charleston, featuring juried IGOR members from over 10 countries. The show will have price points from $700 all the way to $50,000, so there will be artworks available for every collector’s budget.”
Many of the “stars of realism” are participating, including Duffy Sheridan, David Michael Bowers, Dale Terbush, Claudia Kaak, Timothy Rees, Sandra Kuck and many others.
Alan Fink, Morning Dew, soft pastel, 18¾ x 20 in.
Additional juried artists include Alan Fink, presenting his soft pastel iris piece Morning Dew. “I have been inspired by the beauty of the natural world since childhood,” he shares. “This single iris is testament to that inspiration, where form and color exist in complete and perfect harmony. Its rich violet petals, shaped by sun and season, reflect the merging of air, light and moisture. The droplets are evidence of our living ecosystem, each one reflecting both atmosphere and earth, synergistically creating a moment of natural beauty. It’s impossible to not stop and be mesmerized by that perfection.”
Arlene Steinberg displays her stunning peony piece And One for Her, executed using colored pencil and wax crayon on paper. “I was drawn to the simple beauty of the peonies—their color, their softness, the way they seem to ask you to slow down,” she says. “I wanted to preserve this moment of quiet beauty, and I wanted viewers to feel that same pull. To take a breath and stay a little longer.”
About her show painting, Good Gumdrop, artist Camille Engel shares, “[This piece] is a trick-of-the-eye combining surrealism with trompe l’oeil. My goal is to stir the viewer’s imagination as one of the gumdrops begins to tumble out of the taped photograph and cast its shadow on the board’s surface. In this series, I always create a title to draw the viewer’s eye to the surrealism part of the painting. I want my paintings to reveal a life amazed and captivated by detail: lush colors, light play and texture.”
Jill Corless, Rosette Dance, pastel, 30 x 40 in.
Artist Christine Dixon is inspired by classical realism, and enjoys the challenge of bringing a sense of nostalgia and modernity to her paintings—as in her featured piece A Fruitful Summit. “I employ an indirect method of layering paint which enables me to create delicate transitions of light,” Dixon notes. “This effect invites us to savor what it highlights. I believe the world was designed beautifully on purpose, to give us moments of peace and reflection. It is my hope that my works, in their simplicity, do the same.”
In describing his oil painting Blue Chairs, Christopher B. Mooney says, “Viewed from behind, patrons lean over their cell phones at an upscale bar, their bodies softened by a few sips and the weight of whatever they carried in with them. Their postures hint at relationships, routines and private battles. Blues and brass tones, cut by the amber glow of bottles and low lighting, create an atmosphere both familiar and quietly affecting. Rather than Hopper’s idealized Americana, this piece offers a more varnished yet deeply respectful portrait of the modern middle class: a calm, intimate moment captured in the stillness of a lull rather than the energy of a rush.”
Christopher Forrest is intrigued by the ocean surf, especially from an overhead perspective. In the case of his show piece Surf Patrol,we see a view from a cliff overlooking a breaking wave. “I always enjoy adding wildlife to coastal scenes and in this case a tern, or sea swallow, one of my favorite birds that are renowned for their fishing ability.”
Top: Arlene Steinberg, And One for Her, colored pencil and water-soluble wax crayon on paper, 14 x 20 in Bottom: Camille Engel, Goody Gumdrop, oil on panel, 12 x 12 in. Christine Dixon, A Fruitful Summit, oil on linen, 12 x 12 in.
Patsy Lindamood also incorporates wildlife in her graphite marine scene, Great Blue on the Bow. “In pursuit of a better vantage point of a great blue heron perched between a bait house and a work boat in a marina, I stepped around the corner of the bait house and was suddenly overwhelmed by a spectacle of reflections,” the artist explains. “The heat of the harsh late-afternoon sunlight, ricocheting off the side of the boat where the heron rested, transformed the scene entirely. What began as the foundation for a bird painting evolved into a celebration of light, reflection and surface.”
Another marine and coastline painter, Desirée Rose Zaslow, explains the inspiration behind her work Walking the Docks at Dawn.“While walking the docks at dawn one morning, the first light spilled across the water and boats,” she says. “I was mesmerized by the soft, luminous reflections that shimmered with each ripple. In this enchanting, fleeting moment between night and early morning, the harbor revealed a serene, poetic beauty I felt compelled to capture and hold forever.”
Top: Christopher B. Mooney, Blue Chairs, oil on canvas, 30 x 40 in. Christopher Forrest, Surf Patrol, oil on panel, 18 x 20 in. Bottom: J. Elaine Senack, Unexpected Find, acrylic on panel, 10 x 8 in. Denice Peters, Bread and Jelly, soft pastel, 12 x 16 in.
Denice Peters’ work is realistic, emotional and created using only her fingers and pure pigment sticks called soft pastels, also featured in her IGOR painting Bread and Jelly. “My art focuses on light, shadow and detail to create beauty, nostalgia and peace,” she says. “I’m inspired by the light contrasts I see even in everyday items, and I paint letting the light and emotion guide me. Still life painting challenges and grounds me, allowing deep creativity and reflection. My goal is to help you feel and see beauty, sentimentality and a sense of connection.”
Artist J. Elaine Senack adds a bit of whimsy to the exhibition with her acrylic piece Unexpected Find—depicting a close-up view of a squirrel with its collection of nuts. “The beauty of the natural world has always been my creative inspiration,” Senack adds. “From the undisturbed natural woodlands to my own backyard, the wildlife I encounter provides the subject matter for my art. The native plants in my suburban backyard draw a surprising number of species. In a world that is becoming increasingly distanced from nature, I find real joy in creating and sharing artwork that celebrates the beauty in even the most common creatures with whom we share this earth.”
Clockwise from left: Lloyd Voges, Sunlit Morning, oil on panel, 24 x 19 in. Desirée Rose Zaslow, Walking the Docks at Dawn, oil, 18 x 24 in. Lara Restelli, Rocks in a Box “Blue”, oil on canvas, 18 x 24 in.
Lara Restelli explains that her painting Rocks in a Box “Blue” is part of series of five paintings highlighting different stones and crystals. “These paintings intend to evoke a feeling through color and composition,” she says. “The palette of warm blues with discrete touches of reds brings calmness and serenity to the viewer without boring the eye. The sparse glimpses of red stimulate interest and activate the brain. Through this careful orchestration of form and color, I invite a slower way of seeing, a moment of introspection and a deep connection to the natural world.”
Find a sense of calm and serenity in works like Sunlit Morning, by Lloyd Voges, who was inspired to create it during a photo shoot along Meridian Creek in Texas. “With the morning sun illuminated through the leaves of the trees and reflecting shadows in the shallow water, [the scene] beckoned to be painted with all the value shifts,” Voges shares. “As a final touch, the contrast of the dead reddish/orange leaves, still hanging, really made this peaceful composition come to life, giving it all the drama I was looking for in a landscape composition.”
Artist Sherry Mason also offers a bit of respite in her piece Pier to Forever,inspired by a view from the artist’s hotel window in Daytona Beach. “I observed the pier stretching quietly into a glowing horizon as the sunrise unfolded in unexpected, sunset-like colors,” she says. “In that stillness, I felt both movement and calm—like a mother rocking her child, a moment suspended in light and reflection. As I painted, building through a brunaille underpainting and unifying the tones with Venetian red, I sought to hold onto that sense of quiet awe…”
Top: Patsy Lindamood, Great Blue on the Bow, graphite on cradled Claybord, 30 x 36 in. Cher, Phoebe’s Fire, acrylic on gesso board, 15 x 24 in.
Bottom: Sherry Mason, Pier to Forever, oil on Belgian linen panel, 20 x 24 in. Fio Lombardi, Desolate, oil on panel, 16 x 12 in.
Fio Lombardi presents her moody portrait Desolate, featuring a young woman looking off to a place outside of the frame. Lombardi provides insight into her enigmatic subject. “She longs for the moment when no one is around—just the moonlight and the land it touches. Alone, she becomes whole; away from the routine, demands and expectations. Deep into her silenced words, she finds the courage to confront them, to release them back into the world. She blooms in a quiet rebellion. She’s far from desolate.”
Artist Cher is deeply inspired by her passion for wildlife, capturing not just the physical beauty of animals but the quiet spirit they embody. Through her work, as in Phoebe’s Fire, she reflects a reverence for the natural world, where each creature becomes a symbol of resilience and connection. Her art invites viewers to slow down, to notice and to feel a renewed sense of responsibility toward the fragile ecosystems that sustain us.
To view these impressive works and so many others in the realism tradition, head to Principle Gallery in Charleston for the opening reception on Friday, June 5 from 5 to 8 p.m. During the reception, 13 awards will be announced, including the coveted Best of Show award. Works will hang at the gallery through June 30. —
International Guild of Realism: 20th Annual Juried Exhibition
When: June 5-30, 2026
Where: Principle Gallery, 125 Meeting Street, Charleston, SC 29401
Information: www.realismguild.com
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