State of the Guild Message – May 22, 2023
Kay Sullivan as our Past President presented via Zoom the State of the Guild message. She was happy to let us know that the guild is in good shape. Kay recognized the new board members and key positions members and thanked all our members/volunteers that help keep the guild running. It takes a village to run SAWG! She covered what important things happened this past year in the guild and the forward-looking ideas that the board is working on. If you were not able to attend the Zoom meeting below is a recording of it.
The 2023 Experimental Show Reception was great fun! Betina Fink, our awards judge did a fabulous job explaining why she picked each painting for an award, and we listened attentively to every word. You can see what Betina said on the Experimental Show webpage.
Well done indeed! To all who came, to Lauve for an outstanding centerpiece and hors d’oeuvres, and all who helped make this year’s Experimental show exceptional.
Thank you!
SAWG celebrated the Southern Arizona art community through the annual Scholarship Award ceremony on Monday May 8th at the SAWG Gallery.
Chairperson Perianne Grignon and SAWG members Leslie Grignon and Tracy Lynn Ross presented a program that celebrated the accomplishments of student artists from around Southern Arizona and presented them with scholarships awards to continue their art education.
Art education is at the heart of SAWG’s mission to advance and develop watercolor as an important painting medium and to provide educational and cultural benefits for our members and interested supporters of our community.
In addition to the SAWG Scholarships, awards were presented for Hollander and Schwartz awards along with the Jennette award. Robert and Helen Jennette attended the ceremony and were recognized for their contributions.
An evening with these very deserving students, their families, and their teachers was a heart warming and fun event filled with some good food, mingling among the wonderful artwork at the Gallery, and congratulations to the scholarship awardees.
The Signature Show Reception was held on Thursday, April 13th. Kat Manton-Jones, a SAWG Saguaro Fellow member was the Juror for this show. Kat put a lot of thought into how she picked the winners of this show. Make sure to read her Awards Statement on the Signature show page to see her process, what she was looking for, recognizing additional paintings that were considered for awards, and the winning paintings, why they stood out.
Fun was had by all who attended. Thanks to Tracy Lynn Ross, Joy Ellsworth and Lauve Metcalfe for all they did for this show. A special thanks to our award sponsors: Bob and Helen Jennette, and our SAWG Membership.
General Meeting, April 10, 2023 - Kay Sullivan led our General Meeting. Renne Pearson had the honor to announce that Ray Goodrow reached his new Signature Member status. Congratulations!
Kay as our Past President presented the slate of candidates for the new board. Voting will take place online in May. Karen Brungardt, VP of Programs, introduced Roberta Rogers, who presented a demo for our general meeting.
The 55th Annual Show Reception was held on Thursday, March 16th. Sarah Yeoman, as the Juror for this show, picked a really good representation of SAWG's talented artists. As our Judge for the show, it must have been difficult to choose; there were so many wonderful paintings. Fun was had by all who attended. Thanks to Tracy Lynn Ross, Joy Ellsworth and Ray Goodrow for all they did for this show. A special thanks to our award sponsors: Margaret Erath's family, SAWGs Past Presidents, and our SAWG Membership.
Update Regarding Possible Gallery Relocation
At the March General meeting, Kay offered another PowerPoint presentation with an update regarding a possible gallery move. The bottom line is that we cannot afford to move at this time. We secured a lease extension until December with the same rent, so we have time to plan. See the slides below to see the details, dollars, and decisions that the board has experienced since the February meeting.
The Fiesta Sonora Point Show reception was well attended affair, that brought many new faces into the Gallery. We had over 44 paintings accepted from 36 artists that displayed their colorful and impressive interpretations of our beautiful Sonoran Desert.
It was a delight to have Robbie Laird jury and judge the show, and her commentary on what she appreciated about the awardees paintings was insightful to all in attendance. She also expressed her appreciation of the overall depth of talent within our Guild!
Thank you to the SAWG membership for sponsoring the awards, and to Robert and Helen Jennette for sponsoring the Margaret Erath Tribute Award. And to the SAWG members who volunteered their time in every aspect of this show to ensure my first Chair experience was a positive one.
Until the next show, keep on painting!
My best, Lauve Metcalfe
48th Western Federation of Watercolor Societies Exhibition
Congratulations to SAWG Members Mary Bubla, Ray Goodrow, Dru Hill, Kat Manton-Jones, Karyn Vampotic, and Bess Woodworth. Their paintings were accepted into the 48th Western Federation of Watercolor Societies Exhibition, hosted by Southwestern Watercolor Society, to be held in Grapevine, Texas in May!
News about Possible Gallery Relocation
Meet the Artist
Our first Meet the Artist was held on January 18th with Artful Creations (an art club) from Del Webb Rancho del Lago in Vail. A big thank you to Tracy Lynn Ross, Kay Sullivan, Carolyn Streed, and Linda Allen for hosting our Meet the Artist at the gallery. This wonderful group from Vail were treated to a demo by Tracy Lynn, and an introduction to SAWG by Kay Sullivan and then the Vail group had lunch at the Dutch. What a wonderful outing everyone had.
Betsy Dillard Stroud Workshop
Betsy Dillard Stroud workshop was held January 10-13, 2023. Betsy insisted the students use full sheets of 140lb paper, and each day they did something different: exploring colors, using collage papers, painting a large black shape with gesso, layering transparencies, and trying the unique painting style of Matisse. Betsy really had you loosen up your painting techniques the first day by pouring and throwing your paint at your paper then you had to find your story with a painting of a mask and your astrological playing card. It sure looks like the attending student artists had a good time!
Lasting Impressions Show Awards Reception
On January 12, 2023, we held our Lasting Impressions Show Awards Reception. Premier Artist, Betsy Dillard Stroud, was our juror and judge for this beautiful show.
Visit our Tucson art gallery exhibition which runs until February 4th. Shop locally for your wall art from our assortment of fine art, watercolor, acrylic, and mixed media.
General Meeting, January 9, 2023
This month’s Acting President, Tracy Lynn Ross, led our General Meeting and had the honor to announce our members who reached their new membership status. Ray Goodrow and Beverly Holaday received their Juried Member status. Marilynn Davis, Nancy Johnson, Judith Kohn, and Madeleine Shulman received their Signature Status. Congratulations!
Tracy Lynn also mentioned that the board is exploring the possibility of moving the gallery to a new location. We are still in investigation mode to see if we can do this. We will present to the membership the board’s findings.
Kay Sullivan held a vote with our attending members at the General Meeting to approve the proposed new By-Laws. We unanimously passed the 2023 By-Laws with 57 members as a quorum.
Karen Brungardt, VP of Programs, introduced Betsy Dillard Stroud, our premier artist, who presented a demo for our general meeting.
Sip and Paint - Poinsettia Painting Party
On December 4th fun was had by all 20 member artists who joined SAWG’s Poinsettias painting Party! The Gallery was transformed into a studio with stunning Poinsettia plants from Mayfield Florists to inspire the artist to paint something to Deck the Halls, Holiday cards or place mats for the holiday table! We sipped, shared goodies, and enjoyed our fellow SAWG artists! Thank you to everyone that helped make this event happen.
Color My World Show Awards Reception
On November 17, 2022, we held our Color My World Show Awards Reception. Premier Artist, Tony Couch, was our juror and judge for this beautiful show.
Visit our Tucson art gallery exhibition which runs until December 3rd. Shop locally for your wall art from our assortment of fine art, watercolor, acrylic, and mixed media.
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All Members’ Show Awards
Our All Members’ Show Awards reception was held on October 13, 2022. Ellen Fountain, SAWG Saguaro Fellow artist was our judge for this beautiful show. To all who make our gallery shows successful and so much fun THANK YOU!
Visit our Tucson art gallery exhibition which runs until November 5th. Shop locally for your wall art from our assortment of fine art, watercolor, acrylic, and mixed media.
Voted 2022 Best Art Gallery
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WE WON! WE WON! Cindy Engquist and Judy Constantine attended the Tucson Daily Star Readers’ Choice award ceremony. Imagine their delight and surprise when the Best Art Gallery Award came up and SAWG was announced as the winner! SAWG sends a great, big THANK YOU to our members, families, friends and supporters who voted us one of the top three art galleries in Tucson! We are honored! This is a public validation of how great our gallery and guild are. Thank you everyone! |
KGUN9 Morning Blend Interview!
Watch Tracy Lynn Ross and Kay Sullivan who gave SAWG's second interview on the KGUN9 Morning Blend program July 11, 2022. SAWG's first interview, last year on June 24th, talked about how SAWG survived the pandemic and announced our post-pandemic-shutdown grand reopening. During this new interview, Tracy Lynn and Kay update viewers about our non-profit's ambitious and dedicated efforts to build momentum and thrive since our reopening and to share news about our exciting recent Encore & Debuts Show Reception.
KGUN Morning Blend Interview!
Watch Kathy McLean and Kay Sullivan who gave an interview on the KGUN9 Morning Blend program on June 24, 2021. They talked about how our non-profit survived the pandemic and enthusiastically announce our grand re-opening.
The SAWG Collection
In a climate-controlled storage unit here in Tucson, there are nearly forty very special paintings that rarely get to see the light of day.
Over the years, our founding members and Premier Workshop instructors have donated paintings to SAWG. On occasion, a few have been displayed in the gallery on a rotating basis. We are pleased to tell you that now, for the first time, you are able to view the entire collection on this six-minute video.
We hope you enjoy it!