Helen McKenney is the Artist of the Month for the North Augusta Artists Guild. She is originally from Pensacola, Florida. When she got married she and her husband, Hank, moved to Delaware for his first job which later took them to California. A new job brought them to North Augusta, after which a joint venture project took them to China. She remarks that all of the people that she met in China were very welcoming and friendly and she enjoyed getting to know them. Coming back from China, Hank’s job took them to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, before they returned to North Augusta.
Helen has always liked drawing and enjoyed taking art classes in high school. She took classes from well-known local artist Ruth Bridges for several years. She also attended two summer art workshops at the renowned Chautauqua Institute in New York. The workshops emphasized color theory and perspective drawing for artists. She has been taking weekly watercolor classes since 2014 with local artist Thomas Needham. This class is a very small group that allows for plenty of individual instruction. Since the group has been together for so long, the camaraderie that they share has led to the bonus of lasting friendships.
Helen’s favorite artist is the French Impressionist, Claude Monet. She especially likes the way he used color to portray light in his paintings. Helen enjoyed visiting Monet’s extensive gardens at Giverny when she and Hank traveled in France. Monet cultivated two large gardens to have his favored subject matter, beautiful landscapes and flowers, always available. The first was a large informal flower garden with fruit trees and ornamentals and the other contained Japanese inspired water gardens that became the subject of his famed “Water Lily” series. He gained much of his inspiration from his gardens and believed that it was important to surround himself with nature. Helen also enjoys painting landscapes that are inspired by the beauty of nature. She would like for viewers of her art to realize what a beautiful world we live in and to have them reflect on life experiences that are meaningful to them. Her goal as an artist is to bring joy into the viewer’s life as well as her own.
Helen has worked in acrylic and pen and ink, although she does mostly watercolors now. Her style of painting is realistic. She often works from her photos of the many places she and Hank visited during their travels. She uses the photos as a guide but she interprets the reference material to express a certain poetic mood or evocative feeling about the subject. She often includes a figure in her landscapes and architectural paintings, which adds an element of humanity and dignity. It is clear to see that Helen loves people and she enjoys including them in her compositions. She begins each painting first with a drawing then adds watercolor in a very careful and thoughtful manner. Her paintings show great sensitivity to her subjects as well as her keen observation of the visual world. Her color choices show both sophistication and subtlety. Her favorite thing about painting is being absorbed in the work. While painting, no thought is given to anything except the task at hand. She finds this process to be very calming and enjoyable. The best painting advice she has been given is to “be sure you have your darks and save your lights” since they set the tone for the painting. Although watercolor has a reputation as being very unforgiving, she has learned ways to correct any areas that get too dark.
Helen has been active with the North Augusta Cultural Arts Council as well as being a member of the North Augusta Artists Guild. She has also been active at the North Augusta Arts and Heritage Center. She has exhibited her paintings locally at the Convent of Saint Helena, the Kroc Center as well as the annual NAAG shows at the Arts and Heritage Center. She won the Peoples’ Choice Award for her watercolor “Low Country Living” at an annual show. Two of her paintings are now on display at Augusta Art and Frame. When she is not making art she enjoys reading, tending to her many houseplants and walking with her dog. She also enjoys spending time with her family. She remarks that she has an “international family”. Her son Mike’s wife, Spring, is Chinese. They met when he visited Helen and Hank in China and they live in Decatur, Georgia. Her son Keith’s wife, Alba, is from El Salvador and they live in Augusta. Helen’s son Sam lives in Atlanta. She has two grandsons, Donovan and Anderson, and two great-grandchildren, Marshall and Morgan. Helen and Hank hosted several students through the Rotary Club from such places as France, Finland and Belgium. They consider, Estelle, (French student) and her family as their French family. She maintains friendships with many of them, as well as with many of the people she met in China, and considers them part of her family too.
"artist" - Google News
November 24, 2020 at 10:24AM
https://ift.tt/3fqSTNo
McKenney is N.A. Artists Guild's Artist of the Month - Charleston Post Courier
"artist" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2FwLdIu
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "McKenney is N.A. Artists Guild's Artist of the Month - Charleston Post Courier"
Post a Comment