John Scarffe, Central City. The Colorado Watercolor Society is hosting the 30th Annual State Watercolor Exhibition and juried competition from April 6, 2021, to May 24, 2021, at the Gilpin Arts Association Gallery in Central City. Society President Beatrice Trautman said this is the annual exhibition state show for the society.

The Society often selects a juror from out-of-state, but this year selected a knowledgeable artist on all forms of water color painting, Stephen Quiller. All of the entries must be watercolor.

Quiller is an internationally known painter who works primarily in water media, monotypes and intaglio printmaking. He is best known for his innovative approach to water media painting including watercolor, gouache, acrylic, casein and their combinations, and for his use of style. 

His research and development of a color wheel for painters, called the Quiller Wheel, is used by thousands of painters throughout the world. His work has been selected for the Gold Medal of Honor in 2014 and the Silver Medal of Honor in 2018 in the American Watercolor Society International Exhibition.

Quiller awarded the Best of Show in the 2021 Exhibition in Central City to Rosemarie Lohnert for her painting, Dawn. Second Place went to Theresa Shepherd for Sun Tea, in honor of Olive and Walter Green. Carla Stoltzfus received third place for her Iguana painting.

The Golden Artist Colors Award went to Carol Newsom for A Beautiful Moment, and the Francis Olsen Memorial Award went to Randy Hale for Parmelee Gulch. Dianne Widom received the Evergreen Center for the Arts Award for Maximum Focus, and Pamela Hake received the Mountain Art Guild Award for Figs in Arizona.

The Pikes Peak Watercolor Society Award went to Jessica Lanan for Valley of Light, and the Creative Catalyst Award went to Cindy Brabec-King for Chickens. Linda Renaud received the Guiry’s Art Supplies Award for Rainy Days and Mondays, and Eric Fisher received the M Graham & Co Award for Sunset Rails.

Trautman said the best of show received $1,000, and artists do well just to get into the show. Trautman, who lives in Morrison, has been painting all of her life, and she entered Saguaro Sentinel into the show. 

She has been with the Colorado Watercolor Society (CWS), based in Denver, for about 18 years. She said CWS includes artists from the whole state of Colorado, including Metropolitan Denver and from Fort Collins to Grand Junction. 

A non-profit 501(c)(3) fine arts organization, the mission of CWS is to uphold the highest standards and principles of art and to promote, encourage, educate and foster an interest in fine art in all media, especially watercolor. CWS has monthly meetings where members see demonstrations on new techniques. 

CWS supports scholastic arts and provides awards to students from all over the state in watercolor media. CWS is open to painters from beginners to advanced and professionals who make their living by their art. “It’s a great group of people,” Trautman said.

Other state officers attending the opening of the exhibition were Vice President Carol Newsome and Sandy Day-Selbert, who entered the painting, Contours.

 According to the website at https://www.coloradowatercolorsociety.org/, the CWS was first established as an art group in 1954, led by Walt and Olivia Green, and held its first public exhibition at the Mile High Center of Denver in 1957. In 1997, the CWS became a member of the Western Federation of Watercolor Societies (WFWS). 

The CWS has grown over the decades and now counts more than 400 members. The CWS donates to Foothills Art Center in Golden, Colorado, to educational and scholastic programs, and to other worthy art-oriented projects in the State. The CWS organizes workshops with nationally renowned artists. 

The Gilpin Arts Association Gallery is located at 117 Eureka Steet, Central City. For more information check out their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/GilpinCountyArtsAssociation

(Originally published in the May 6, 2021, edition of The Mountain-Ear.)