Letter from PWS President

Welcome to the 45th International Juried Exhibition

From the first physical show at Strawberry Square around 1979 in Harrisburg to today’s 2024 juried show at the Lancaster Museum of Art; we all have come a long way!

Originally there were 12 founding artists who sought to create an association that would support and advance the watercolor medium for artists while promoting the beauty and appeal of watercolor to the public. I think those founding artists would be proud to see it continuing today. There are talented exhibiting artists from Pennsylvania, around the USA and the world that makes me excited to welcome you to this show.

Congratulations to each artist whose individualistic style was accepted from among the number of entries and to those who have won an award. Your talent, interest and support of this Pennsylvania society is appreciated when you enter your works.

Thank you to Jeannine Swartz, coordinator of the International Juried Exhibitions. She takes time out of her work schedule to set up the show schedule for entries from start to finish. From the artwork entered, the juror of selection makes the decision to choose the entries that go into the show. Then, before the show officially opens, the juror of awards does his important job of choosing the paintings for the top prizes. Additional thanks go to Nick Mohler who also works after his fulltime job to set up the album online for anyone to see and maintains the website. Ideas mostly come from the board members and committees for the public information on the website.

My thanks go to Chris King, the awards coordinator, who personally contacted corporate donors for prizes alone. I appreciate your diligence and effort. To the Friends of PWS, board of directors, members and all who contributed, you are greatly appreciated for your donations this year.

Best wishes in your future endeavors,

Linda Young, President

Pennsylvania Watercolor Society

Letter from Juried Show Chairperson

Kudos to everyone who submitted work for consideration for the Pennsylvania Watercolor Society’s 45th Annual International Juried Exhibition and thanks to the Lancaster Gallery of Art, Lancaster, PA for hosting our 2024 show.

Juror of Selection, Catherine O’Neill had the extremely difficult task of selecting just 80 paintings for the exhibit. This exhibit was open worldwide to artists representing many different styles and subject matter. We received 331 images from 258 artists.

Congratulations to the 80 artists selected for the exhibition. The show includes artists from 21 states plus the District of Columbia and the following countries: Canada, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Singapore, Bulgaria and Japan.

Our Juror of Awards, Mick McAndrews, judged the show in person and selected our 20 award winners. We thank him for his time and thoughtful consideration and congratulate our winners.

Thank you to everyone who had a hand in making the exhibit possible, with special thanks to PWS President Linda R. Young, Awards Chair Lela King, Membership Chair Anni Matsick, Webmaster Nick Mohler, and the entire PWS Board of Directors. And a heartfelt thank you to those who donated to awards and to the catalog printing. Your support is vital to presenting this top-quality show.

To those whose work was not accepted for this exhibit, it should not be taken as a defeat but simply as a challenge along the way. Continue to create and to take the risk of showing and sharing your art.

The exhibit may be viewed in person between August 2nd and September 15th at the Lancaster Museum of Art, 135 Lime Street, Lancaster, Pennsylvania 17602, or on our website www.pawcs.com. A downloadable version of the show catalog will be available on our website.

Cheers to another successful International Juried Exhibition! We look forward to seeing your entries next year!

Best regards,

Jeannine Swartz

PWS Juried Show Chairperson

Awards

• #1 Charlie Frances -1st Place
• #2 Laurie Goldstein-Warren -2nd Place
• #3 Thomas Bucci -3rd Place
• #4 Judith Hummer -4th Place and Blick Art Materials Award
• #5 Kathleen Giles -President’s Award and Blick Art Materials Award
• #6 Christine Misencik-Bunn -PWS Board Award and Blick Art Materials Award
• #7 John James -Free Spirit Watercolor Class Honoring Jeanne Hartman, Matboard and More, Silver Brush Limited and Jerry’s Artarama Award
• #8 Ken Call -Silver Brush Limited and Jerry’s Artarama Award
• #9 Z Feng -Baltimore Watercolor Society, Armadillo Arts and Crafts and Jerry’s Artarama Award
• #10 Lynne Magee -Pittsburgh Watercolor Society, Hahnemuhle USA, Jerry’s Artarama and Chroma, Inc. Award
• #11 Lana Privitera -The Bettye Slagle Memorial Award, Matboard and More, Jack Richeson & Co, Inc. and Jerry’s Artarama Award
• #12 Francis Lee -Cheap Joe’s Art Stuff and Silver Brush Limited Award
• #13 Jeannine Swartz -M. Graham and Co. and Friend of PWS Jean Spicer Award
• #14 Chris Krupinski -Philadelphia Watercolor Society, Blick Art Materials, Friend of PWS Francis Lee and Guerilla Painter LLC Award
• #15 Robert Steedman -Golden Artist Colors Inc, Matboard and More, Dixon Ticonderoga ART ULC USA and Jerry’s Artarama Award
• #16 Pam Wenger -Silver Brush Limited and Masterpak Award
• #17 Ron Thurston -Legion Papers Inc, HK Holbein Inc and Jerry’s Artarama Award
• #18 Svetlin Sofroniev -Award sponsored by Rosemary & Co, Jackson’s Art Supply, Blick Art Materials and Jerry’s Artarama
• #19 Han In Huang Wong -West Carlton Frame Co, Matboard and More, American Frame, Jerry’s Artarama and Jack Richeson & Co Inc. Award
• #20 Diane Cannon -Air Float Systems, Silver Brush Limited, Blick Art Materials, Matboard and More and Jerry’s Artarama Award

OUR JURORS

JUROR OF SELECTION STATEMENT
Catherin O’Neill

“Wow. I expected a daunting task, but not one quite so challenging. I am honored and humbled to serve as Juror of Selection for the Pennsylvania Watercolor Society 45th Annual International Juried Exhibition. I spent a great deal of time viewing the diverse subjects, techniques and styles portrayed in the many beautiful entries. In the end, I selected pieces I hoped would make an interesting and varied show, and ultimately, those that most drew my attention again and again. Of course, my final list represents my personal opinion, and a tenuous one at that. I suspect my choices might be different on a different day.

As an artist, I am grateful to all the folks who work so hard to showcase our art. I am especially grateful to all the artists who enter their work for consideration. It takes courage, confidence and resiliency to participate in the jurying process. Sharing artwork is an intimate way of communicating, a way of saying “Look what I see” or better yet, “Feel what I feel”. What a generous gift is offered by these artists, and what a privilege it is for those who view these works. Congratulations to all who entered and thank you for sharing your creativity!”

Catherine O’Neill began painting over 20 years ago, after taking a beginner watercolor class at the local art center. She paints a wide variety of subject matter using transparent watercolor, but her favorite images often include Adirondack landscapes and scenes of her family life. O’Neill is an exhibiting member of the Buffalo Society of Artists and holds signature membership in several watercolor societies, including the American Watercolor Society and the National Watercolor Society. She has achieved master status in the Transparent Watercolor Society of America. She has had paintings published in many of the Splash: The Best of Watercolor, North Light Books series. She has written a chapter in the book Watercolor Secrets: An Inside Look at the Techniques of Award-Winning Splash Artists. Her work is featured in the Spring 2010 edition of Watercolor Magazine and in the December 2016 issue of Watercolor Artist. O’Neill has participated in juried exhibitions across the country, and has had solo exhibitions in Hamburg, Syracuse, Old Forge and Rome, NY.

JUROR OF AWARDS STATEMENT
MICK MCANDREWS

I would like to offer my sincere thanks to the leadership of the Pennsylvania Watercolor Society for the honor of judging the 2024 PWS International Watercolor Exhibition.

I also offer my thanks and appreciation to Catherine O’Neill for selecting 80 outstanding pieces for this joyous and dazzling show.

Judging an exhibition with such a variety of approaches, techniques and artistic vision allowed me to focus on originality of concept and solid design in my selection of award winners. I also looked for paintings that are visually exciting, regardless of subject matter, and that tell a compelling story using visual language, the only way that an artist can speak to their audience.

I offer my personal congratulations to every artist whose work was accepted into this exhibition. And for the award recipients, I offer heartfelt congratulations on your outstanding work and for the special recognition that you richly deserve.”

Mick McAndrews’s award-winning paintings strive to capture the mood and atmosphere of a subject combining the magic of watercolor with reverence for composition and design to create works of sophisticated simplicity. Mick is a signature member of the Philadelphia Watercolor Society (Crest Award recipient), the Pennsylvania Watercolor Society (Sylvan Grouse Guild inductee), the Baltimore Watercolor Society, the Whiskey Painters of America, and the Mid-Atlantic Plein Air Painters Association. In his work, Mick strives to simplify life’s complexity down to only the most important shapes, value patterns and edge variations. He enjoys painting outside where he can take advantage of surroundings, natural light, and the sights and sounds that influence his creative nature. Mick believes that with watercolor there is a partnership between the artist and medium to balance the knowledge, technique and skill of the painter while leaving room for the magic that makes watercolor so distinctive.