December Artist of the Month: Virginia Goesch

Virginia Goesch was selected as December Artist of the Month and has her artwork exhibited at the Cheyenne County Community Center and the Sidney Public Library through Monday, January 13, 2014.  Goesch’s focus is landscapes rendered in oil and acrylic paints and the things included in the landscapes.  She also paints people and animals.  She finds herself drawn to old things--their function, imperfections, their shadows and their impact on the land.  She states, “I’m influenced by how I grew up, where and when I grew up in rural Nebraska—the Depression, being poor, the wars, storms, and being alone in the rural parts of Nebraska.”  These are reflected in Goesch’s work, which show the sensitivity of having grown up during hard times and yet with the delight of color, wonderment, and happy times, too.

She finds she’s still amazed at taking a flat piece of paper or any surface and creating distance and depth with paint.  As a child she was interested in distance, changing skies and clouds, colors in the sky, plants in the pasture and the trees.  She grew up around horses and cows and she tried to draw the horses.  “I knew there was a way to know how to draw and I finally found it,” she said.  Goesch said that she is still challenged by color, the seasons, and the time of day.  She remains amazed at summer lightening revealing a storm, of the depth of light and the reflective quality of it.  She continues to question, observe, and learn.  She describes her work as somewhere between realistic and impressionistic.

Goesch has been a member of the Cheyenne County Art Guild since she moved to Sidney in 2003 upon her retirement from the teaching profession.  She has attended numerous workshops on watercolor, oil, and pastel.  Her works have been shown at Kearney, Neligh, Sidney, Holyoke, CO, murals in local businesses in Sidney, and the Cheyenne County Fair.  Her work has won many awards and been in the Association of Nebraska Art Clubs Conference Annual Show.  One of her special awards was winning the People’s Choice Award at the 2013 CCAG Spring Show with her artwork titled “Red Barn”.  Great things are coming from this fine artist, Virginia Goesch!

Chuck Borcher: Artist of the Month ~ Oct/Nov

The Cheyenne County Art Guild has selected Chuck Borcher as the October/November Artist of the Month.  Chuck began drawing and painting while in grade school.  Throughout his life, Borcher has always maintained a love for creating works of art.  Even when college and career choices--Engineering and Computer Science--led him in other directions, he has dedicated much of his free time to drawing painting and photography.

Borcher's artwork and photographs have won many awards including several Best of Shows, Association of Nebraska Art Clubs awards, and People's Choice Awards.  His love of photography has led to a lucrative secondary career that he likes to call his working summer vacations.  Over the years he has been selected three times as the official photographer of the Nebraska High School Rodeo Association Finals Rodeo.  He has also served as photographer for the Wyoming Professional Rodeo Association, the Colorado Professional Rodeo Association, and the Nebraska State Rodeo Association.  

"Getting to mix my love for rodeo with my love for painting makes a very enjoyable and rewarding experience," Borcher stated. "With my photography I get to add another aspect to the creative mix."  On display through Monday, November 11th are thirteen photographs--one at the Sidney Public Library and twelve at the Cheyenne County Community Center.  The public is encouraged to view these fine photographs by Chuck Borcher, CCAG President.

Paul Adkinson: Artist of the Month ~ Sept/Oct

Imagination plays a big part in his paintings, collages, and photography. He will see or read something or someone will say something that will spark an idea for a painting or an altered photographic artwork.  His artwork evokes emotion in viewers and helps them remember events and good times.  Adkinson states, "Art should give the viewer a sense of feeling." He believes that people "should experience the sense of imagination, beauty, wonder, and feeling that went into the creative process of an artwork, no matter the medium or the subject."

Adkinson's artwork has been displayed at the Governor's Mansion in Lincoln; the American Art Association Regional Invitational Exhibit in Denver; the Artel State Show in Omaha; the Art and Gift Gallery in North Platte; and the Nebraska Gallery  in Bayard; to name a few. 

His artwork has also won many awards including the Museum of Nebraska Art's Purchase Award at the 2009 Association of Nebraska Art clubs' conference.  He has won Best of Show and many other awards including the People's Choice Award at the CCAG Spring Show, several Honorable Mentions at the annual ANAC conferences, Grand Champions at the Cheyenne County Fair, and the Audrey Towater Award for Colored Photography at the West Nebraska Arts Center's 2007 Photography Competition in Scottsbluff.

He is a charter member of the Cheyenne County Art Guild and has served as an officer and on many committees throughout the years.  Adkinson is a role model to many in the guild for many reasons--one of which is by continuing his pursuit in striving to improve his artwork by taking workshops, studying, and painting on a regular basis.  Also, he is always optimistic and encourages others in their artistic endeavors. 

Patrick McNabb - August/September Artist of the Month

The Cheyenne County Art Guild has selected Patrick McNabb of Chappell as Artist of the Month. 

Born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, McNabb came to western Nebraska to fulfill a request by his late father to watch over his mother. Bringing his family and his artistic talent with him, he is currently exploring America's oldest past time; romanticizing our own mortality in a series of artworks entitled "Pavement Ends", bringing a glimpse of his travels beyond where the pavement ends.  It is a taste of American's Heartland and a celebration of life through art using street art on street signs and painted skulls.

McNabb, a self-proclaimed cynical surrealist, uses stencils, brushwork, and aerosol paint worked with a specially prepared reflective background to create the packed ambiance Georgia O’Keefe-like desert skull images that come to life with light effects capable of crazy psychedelic extensions.  His internally reflective and revealing light produced paintings capture the attention of the viewer.  At a show in June in the greater Philadelphia area, he received the following comments:  "I was seriously impressed at the gritty, thought provoking, "modern" art," and "Buck's County's (PA) creative genius, master of light and medium and social commentary, reknowned loveable rascal does it again!  Hidden light effects and meanings produced by mastery of concepts and material.  The depth of Patrick's expression is mastery."

Patrick McNabb's artwork can be seen at the Sidney Public Library and the Cheyenne County Community Center through Monday, September 9th.  The public is encouraged to view this fine artwork.

Margaret Evans: Artist of the Month - July

Margaret Ann Evans has been a Cheyenne County Art Guild member since 2010.  This is the second time she has been named Cheyenne County Art Guild “Artist of the Month” (the first being in April 2011).. Aargaret would again like to dedicate her “artist of the Month” showing this year to her dear mother, Betty Evans, who died in January 2011.  Margaret’s mom loved to see her photos and often said to be sure to bring the camera, when she visited the farm.  Margaret became the “family photographer.”

Margaret liked to draw as a child and with that interest, enrolled in her high school’s art classes.  She learned to work with different media such as oils, regular and colored pencil, pastel, watercolor and ink.  Oils, regulare and colored pencil were her favorite media.  With the shortage of one’s time these days, she hasn’t painted or drawn pictures for twenty years.  Her artistic creations are now solely photography.

Approximately in 1972, she got a Kodak 110 pocket camera for her Dad for Father’s Day.  He never used it, so thought someone should and began taking photos.  Her beloved Grandpa liked taking photos, nothing creative, just snap shots.  He showed her how to use the camera.  The one recollection that he taught her was to hold your breath when you’re pushing the shutter button, so the camera wouldn’t shake (and cause a blurred photo.  She discovered right away that photography was fun, especially with the anticipation of seeing what the photos looked like after they came back from the photo lab.  Of course, as all photographers know, there are disappointments with major catastrophes missed in between…  Margaret realized that photography is her artistic passion.  When digital cameras became popular in the 1990s she got on board and has never looked back on the film medium.  Currently Margaret’s favorite digital cameras are the Panasonic FZ28 and FZ60.

For the past several years Margaret has entered photos in the Cheyenne County Fair and won many ribbons.  She also entered photographs in the 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2013 CCAG annual spring show in which she has received one first and one second place ribbon plus several Honorable Mentions.  In 2012, her CCAG second place entry “Breaking Through the Darkness” was chosen to be in the Association of Nebraska Art Clubs show in Aurora, NE.  This was an incredible honor!!!  Other art shows that Margaret has displayed photos include the Carnegie Art Center CCAG show in Alliance, NE, and the Phillips County Art Show in Holyoke, CO, in which she received a second place ribbon.

Margaret took a digital photography class at Western Nebraska Community College in 2010, and continues to see great improvement in her photographs.  Margaret has had photographs published in Western Nebraska Community College’s “Emerging Voices” Journal of Literature and Art publication since 2010.

It is a great honor for Margaret to be chosen as the July 2013 CCAG “Artist of the Month”

Margaret’s  photographs are displayed at the Sidney Public Library and the Cheyenne County Community Center (in main hall to the left)

May 13 Meeting

The next CCAG meeting is this coming Monday, May 13, at the Community Center, starting at 7:00 p.m.  Judy M. and Pat M. are hostesses for the meeting.

 

There are several things on the agenda:

• Officer elections
• Silent auction
• Scholarship selection report
• ANAC Conference in June
• Summer Kids Art program at the Community Center

Hope to see you there!!!

Sheila Phelps,  CCAG President

Ben Ramsey - Artist of the Month

    The Cheyenne County Art Guild has selected Ben Ramsey of Sidney as Artist of the Month. Ramsey recalls drawing at a very young age and has been drawing all of his life. He had the good fortune in having parents who encouraged him and who later augmented a scholarship to the Art Instructions School when he was fourteen years of age. It was then that the young artist began to paint.

Art continued to be a part of Ramsey's life throughout the years and in the early 80's he and another gentleman had a commercial art business in Laramie called Islands Bound Graphics. He also took drawing classes at the college and painted art for friends. He stated that since at one time he was hopeful of becoming an engineer, most of his drawing skills were in mechanical drawing. Then for twenty years he stopped doing much art in order to raise a family.

(Family Dinner - 2nd place 2013 spring show)

Three years ago Ramsey came back to what he loved to do: painting in acrylics and drawing in pencil and ink. He was a member of the Cheyenne (Wyo.) Artists Guild and exhibited in their monthly shows. Then upon moving to Sidney a couple of years ago he became a member of the Cheyenne County Art Guild. "I was totally amazed at the amount of talent in Sidney as seen in the CCAG," he said. "I feel lucky to be amongst that much talent." And Ramsey has added his talent to the mix and last year won First Place in Acrylics at the CCAG Spring Show and this year won Second Place in Pencil and in Acrylics.

(Lookin' For Love 2nd place 2013 spring show.)

He continues to study and apply ideas and things he has learned to his artwork. He has been inspired and appreciates the artwork by Disney and Van Gogh, the drawings of DaVinci, and the details and concepts created by the Brothers Hildebrandt whose work has been seen in the original Star Wars movie posters and JRR Tolkian Lord of the Rings calendars. With such artists for inspiration Ramsey is sure to have fun and keep busy with his new goal--Ramsey related, "I am wanting to "break out of my (artistic) box a little bit and try to use more color in my paintings and possibly do more expressionistic work." He eventually would like to have his artwork in the open market and exhibit in galleries, too.

(My Spot first place 2012 spring show)

   

On his way to artistic excellence and his goals Ramsey is thankful for his parent's encouragement and guidance and remembers the interest and talent his dad had for drawing. Following in his father's footsteps Ramsey encouraged his own children and is proud that his son, daughter, and daughter-in-law all have Bachelors in Fine Arts degrees and all three work in art for personal enjoyment and for their jobs.

(The Moment)
 

So while Ben Ramsey continues his artistic journey the public is encouraged to see his painting titled "Water Fun" at the Sidney Public Library. It was done in acrylic paint mostly with an airbrush. Twelve other artworks of Ramsey's can be seen at the Cheyenne County Community Center. The public is encouraged to view these fine artworks.

(Life's Reflections)