Several months ago, local artist Amanda (Kitty) Smothers contacted me about activating a local group of visual artists. We weren’t looking for something grandiose, but rather to simply discover a group of area artists who would want to share their knowledge and talents with one another as a means of growth, encouragement, and fellowship.
It’s not like Troy doesn’t have a robust arts community. Actually, there is a healthy number of active artists within Troy and the outlying area.
First session with “Sarah”. I chose to work in pencil then mix in watercolor washes and strokes with some dry-brush speckling for texture.
Subsequently, several of us discussed the feasibility and the need for this. We decided to launch this past spring and then ran head-first into the pandemic. Regardless, with support from the Johnson Center for the Arts and a range of interested artists from the area, we safely (and loosely) began what is known as the Pike County Art Guild (PCAG). Nothing is particularly formalized yet other than we have created a Facebook Page and have recruited a modest number of interested artists and patrons.
This past summer, Pike County Art Guild offered a plein air workshop at The Studio in downtown Troy, a couple of plein air painting days on the downtown square, and most recently, three portrait drawing/painting sessions hosted by the studio of Sienna Cloud Creative. You can read a little more about these sessions in The Messenger. Included in this brief blog are my personal solutions for the portrait sessions. Amanda brought in three wonderful, patient, and diverse models to sit for us.
Oftentimes, artists love isolation or exclusion as a means to hyper-focus on their craft and process. However, like all humans (creative and not-so-much), there is an intrinsic need for community and fellowship. I would have to say that this tentative beginning of an arts community (due to COVID) has already proven to me and to a few others that WE NEED THIS!!! What joy we got just spending a few painting/drawing sessions together engaged in art conversation and simply sharing in the resolution of a common subject—a portrait. Each artist had their own style, their own medium, and their distinct set of problems to solve. IT WAS EXHILARATING!!! And, I can’t wait until we can eventually remove our masks, not be so far apart, AND continue adding to the number in these sessions so that more people can share in this collective joy. :)
If you are reading this and you are in the Troy-Pike County Area, check out our Facebook page and stay tuned regarding the forthcoming activities of PCAG because we hope to generate many more opportunities to work and learn together.
Enjoy some of the images from our sessions below.
