The Mary Bishop Memorial Gallery at the Crawfordsville District Public Library invites the public to view a new exhibit by the internationally recognized artist, Jerry Smith. His work is on display now through early February during regular hours of operation at the Crawfordsville District Public Library. This exhibit includes more than 40 paintings in watercolor and oil.
Sugar Creek … ever changing, everlasting, pays homage to the endless beauty this natural feature has to offer. Sugar Creek, in its various moods and seasonal variations, has provided inspiration for Smith since he began painting in the early 1970’s. He frequently paints on-site along the creek. Bachner’s Preserve and the Rail to Trail are a couple of his favorite painting locations. He also acquires visual input via photos and sketches which can be used as reference material for studio painting.
“Sugar Creek is a treasure for Montgomery County,” Smith said. “Every stretch and every bend offers new opportunities for appreciation. I have returned many times to the same locations on the creek, and no two experiences are ever the same. The creek is a living, ever changing environment providing unlimited beauty and inspiration. It is my hope that we can protect it and pass it along to future generations of canoers, fisherman, nature appreciators and artists.”
Smith has had a life-long interest in art, yet he pursued a business degree in college. He began oil painting as a hobby in the early 1970’s, switching to watercolor shortly thereafter. Primarily through self-training and workshop study he left his business career behind and has been a full-time artist since the mid-1970s. Smith was introduced to plein-air painting in a 1976 workshop taught by Don Stone in Rockport, Massachusetts. That trip inspired a fascination with the painting opportunities offered by the New England coastline and it has had a major impact on his work. Annual painting trips to Maine’s coast compliment his Indiana landscape paintings.
Smith is a Dolphin fellow of the American Watercolor Society and maintains signature memberships in the American Society of Marine Artists, the National Watercolor Society and the Transparent Watercolor Society of America among others. He is an active member of several artists’ organizations and has been featured in multiple publications, including International Artist Magazine and Watercolor Artist. He offers limited hours and appointments at his studio, the Green Street Gallery, which is located in Crawfordsville.
For more information about CDPL’s hours of operation, online at www.cdpl.lib.in.us. If you are an artist or a member of an artists’ group and are interested in displaying your work in the gallery, contact the gallery coordinator at 765-362-4618 for more details.
