Bill Bartlett was the featured artist at our August meeting. Bill’s dynamic, loose painting style took us on a fanciful downtown tour to the Chicago River. His painting captured the strength and texture of one of the many classic bridges on the river. Thanks Bill.

Oak Brook Public Library, 600 Oak Brook Road, Oak Brook, IL  60523
Saturday, August 5, 2017.  10 AM – 12 PM
Guest Artist Bill Bartelt

From the energy and drama of the great American city to the romance of the Italian hill towns, from the back roads of the Midwest to the Plains of Thrace, Bill Bartelt’s watercolors showcase his unique perspective and a lifetime of observation.

Bill began his professional career as an art director and designer for the stage, film and television. Over the years he nurtured his love of watercolor painting and studied with the late master Irving Shapiro, AWS. of the American Academy of Art. Bartelt at first applied his skills as a painter in service to his design work, developing watercolor renderings as scenic designs.
Gradually he began showing his work as pure art, and along the way MGM tapped Bartelt to provide Minnie Driver’s watercolor paintings for her film “Return to Me.” Since then, his paintings have been seen in a number of other films, and have also found an audience among avid collectors.
Join us at The Oak Brook Public Library for IWS members’ meetings for socializing, painting demonstrations by nationally recognized artists and educational lectures on materials and all things watercolor. The Oak Brook Public Library located on 31st Street, just west of York Road.

Non-Members are welcome to attend. FREE to all.
Oak Brook Public Library, 600 Oak Brook Road, Oak Brook IL,
For more information please contact: IWS Meeting Chair,
dan at dandanielson.com

On Saturday, March 25, internationally known watercolorist Ratindra Das presented a wonderful demo at The Oak Brook Public Library for a group of over 30 IWS members and library patrons. His fluid, confident style, and casual teaching method inspired many to return home and paint with a better understanding of how to achieve success in our challenging medium.

The DuPage Art League and Rolling Thunder Illinois Ch1 are partnering to offer six (6) scholarships for art classes to disabled veterans. The league will give scholarships for the actual classes and Rolling Thunder is donating monies to purchase the supplies needed for the classes.
Any disabled veterans interested in applying for a class can call the league at 630-653-7090 or visit the school and gallery at 218 West Front Street in Wheaton between 9 and 5 Mon. to Fri. and 9 to 2 on Sat.

Phyllis Kozlowski was our featured guest at the October meeting

A Super THANK-YOU to Phyllis Kozlowski for her excellent demonstration at the IWS October meeting. She took us to Italy’s Amalfi Coast with an expressive watercolor of a coastal town showing the classic architecture and beautiful rocky cliffs.

Jeanne Clohisy Demo at the August MeetingThank you to Jeanne Clohisy for an inspiring demo of a cool, winter, wooded landscape at the August meeting. Jeanne’s spontaneous style of tree shadows across new fallen snow was very refreshing on a warm Saturday in August.

Jeanne Clohisy will be giving a demonstration at the Saturday, August 6 meeting.
Starting at 10 a.m. The public is welcome.Jeanne Clohisy was raised in Wisconsin and lives in Northern Illinois. With her camera and easel in tow, she frequently explores the wilderness of Northern Wisconsin and beyond. Jeanne has studied oil, pastel and watercolor with many regional and national masters.

“I’ve always been drawn to the wide open spaces of rural and wilderness landscapes. Whenever I’m hiking, biking or even kayaking, I’m always observing, photographing and gathering inspiration for the next painting. Then I’ll go back on location to paint “en plein air” or work in the studio using a sketch or photo. I try to use a direct approach to finish the painting while the paint is still wet. I consider the painting a success if I can capture a loose impression of what I see and keep my brushstrokes fresh and spontaneous.”

Jeanne participates in regional plein air events and is a member of the American Impressionist Society, Oil Painters of America and the Transparent Watercolor Society of America.

A BIG thank-you to Catherine Nash for a fun “high-flying” demonstration at our June meeting. Cathy painted from real life bird nests, and the results were fantastic. Using only a large brush, a regular drinking straw for blowing and manipulating the colors, and a limited palette, Cathy created a beautiful watercolor that was admired by everyone.