Art at the Center demos Above, left; Evan Cantor demonstrates his process for painting Grosvenor Arch. Above, right; One of Wolfy Wolf’s painting on display during Art at the Center. PHOTOS BY ELIZA DUBOSE AND ELISABETH GROVE[/caption]

On Thursday, June 16, 2022, the Nederland Community Center was transformed into an art gallery to be able to host its Annual Art at the Center Demo Show.

The fluorescent hallways were turned into an elegant gallery complete with wine samplings and finger foods. This year, the Demo Show featured a watercolor workshop with Greg Marquez and demonstrations of watercolor painting by Wolfy Wolf, oil painting by Evan Canter, and ink and scratchboard drawings by Brent Warren. Also featured were Roxana Astemborski and John Shively demonstrating a painting “duet.”

Viewers were encouraged to walk the gallery and vote for their favorite artists and pieces of art using voting slips provided at the community center entrance. The winners were announced at the end of the evening.

On the second floor of the Community Center in the multipurpose room, artists demonstrated their processes. Several guests stopped by Greg Marquez’s watercolor workshop in the corner of the room. Marquez leaned over each participant’s piece, taking care to explain the strengths of each would-be artist’s work. Others stopped by to try their hand at sketching with Brent Warren.

Annie Thayer, the Art at the Center coordinator, likes to see people participating, “It’s important to experience the arts hands-on. I think you appreciate it more when you try it yourself.”

Painter Evan Cantor demonstrated the colorful re-creation of a picture of the Grosvenor Arch in Utah with oil paints. Cantor takes his role as educator seriously, carefully noting each step of his process as he painted. “I want to capture the ‘feel’ of a place,” Cantor explained.

Located in Boulder, Cantor began painting during his retirement when he took a week-long painting seminar at Ghost Ranch. Mostly self-taught, Cantor is happy to be part of the Nederland Art Show. “It’s a good thing for the community and it’s flattering to be asked,” he said.

In the opposite corner, Astemborski and Shively made a dynamic pair as they leaned around each other, adding paint to the canvas, their focus palpable. The painting was a winding abstract piece of work. This is only their second work of this kind – the first is part of the show and was hanging on the wall beside them.

Shively, who has been painting for 45 years, suggested they paint as a pair, seeking to expand his own work by adding someone to refresh his process and bring new life to his work.

“It’s hard for me to disentangle it from the communication/relationship process, broadly speaking,” said Astemborski, who is training to be a therapist. She views their artistic process as an exercise in letting go. “He made decisions, I made decisions and certain things are gone forever.”

“You have to adapt quickly,” Shively agrees.

Wolfy Wolf cuts a much quieter figure, bent over his canvas with intent focus. Once someone sat down, however, Wolf explained his process without prompting, describing how each of the four panels represented a different step in painting his characteristic watercolor “Starry Nights,” which is partially inspired by the views from his house just outside Nederland.

“If I don’t paint enough, I usually get more cranky and crabby at life in general. It’s more of a psychological and emotional release” Wolf explained as he painted. Wolf’s works line the hallways outside and capture a feeling that can only be described as being part of the mountains with its log cabins and star- studded skies.

“I feel like a fuller person than I was before I started painting,” Thayer, a painter herself, agrees.

Thayer teaches watercolor painting to students across the country through Zoom. She also teaches Madeline (Maddie) Perry, a twelve-year-old painter whose work is also on display in this art show.

“At twelve years old she has already found her own voice,” Thayer said. “Once she got a grasp of the medium and the technique, she just started painting what she loves, which to me is really exciting.”

Perry’s watercolors have a striking ability to capture the character of her subjects, making the painting feel alive despite its pastel dimensions. “After I was diagnosed with dyslexia, I transferred to art. It just spoke to me,” Perry explained.

Perry won first place for her art, with many voters commenting specifically on a painting titled “Sis in the Sand,’’ a beautifully rendered watercolor portrait of a girl on the beach. Vicki Payne, represented by her daughter Hana Smith, won second place for her photography. Sam Hauser, a new artist to Art at the Center, won third place for her acrylic and textile paintings. Coordinator’s Choice Award was given to runner up Wolfy Wolf.

Perry was delighted by her win, but also made sure to recognize her fellow artists. “[Winning] feels pretty good but all the artists are so talented,” she said.

The next Art at the Center show will take place on October 6, with digital submissions due by September 21, 2022.