25th Anniversary Show At McBride Gallery I was honored to have Cynthia McBride recognize my 25 years of exhibiting in her beautiful Annapolis gallery with a solo show in July. It was also an honor to be selected for her 2012 Best of the Chesapeake show and the Autumn Celebration. Over the years McBride's has been my most successful gallery, and my paintings are always on exhibit there. In addition, Cindy continues to add new giclees of my work for publication.
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New California Paintings. I traveled much less this year because a badly arthritic knee limited my mobility. However, I'm now fully recovered from a total knee replacement this summer and celebrated with a trip to California in October. I had a wonderful time painting near Half Moon Bay and Pescadero Beach and in San Francisco and from sketches and photos from Lake Tahoe. (Painting en plein air there had to be cancelled due to early winter weather: 50 mph winds and horizontal snow flurries while we were at the lake and a foot-and-a-half of snow due the evening we left!)
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Other Activities. While I didn't do exotic trips this year, I was busy with various art activities.
Commissions. I was selected to do four commissions: an Annapolis harbor scene as a remembrance for a businessman returning to France after working in the States for several years, a street scene for a couple who were retiring and possibly moving from the area, a scene along the Potomac for a major collector, and a favorite scene being given as a gift to a friend. (To obtain more information about commissions, click on contact or call any of my galleries.)
Demonstrations. I did two different types of demonstrations this year, and both were well received. For the Olney Art Association, I worked up an oil painting "from scratch" based on a photo of a scene I liked. Because of limited meeting time, the painting was not completed that night, but the group got to see some of the techniques I use. The second, a "dry demonstration," was for the Montgomery Art Association, and here I showed all the steps I follow in creating a painting through the use of prepared boards or canvasses. This method works especially well for meetings in closed spaces since no oil, turpentine, or "smelly stuff" is used. Please call if you'd like to arrange a demo or workshop for your group. The dry demonstration is suitable for general meetings, non-art as well as art groups. (See more information below.)
Facebook. I've also moved into the 21st century by setting up a Facebook page! Go to facebook.com and search for "Bill Schmidt - Rockville MD" to find news items and some recent paintings. No blogs or tweets yet, but you never know.
Juried and Invitational Shows.
Salmagundi Club, New York City. Two paintings were accepted into the SUNRISE/SUNSET show at this prestigious New York institution that was founded in 1871. (See "Red Sunrise over Annapolis" at left.) Its members over the years have included many of the most prominent American landscape painters such as William Merritt Chase, Childe Hassam, N.C. Wyeth, and others.
Bryan Memorial Gallery, Jeffersonville, Vermont. I am delighted to continue my relationship with this lovely gallery in New England with this painting of the Annisquam Lighthouse juried into the 2012 LAND AND LIGHT show.
American Painting Fine Art, Washington, D.C. I participated, along with other members of the Washington Society of Landscape Painters, in the summer WASHINGTON SCENES show, the fall EUROPEAN ADVENTURES exhibit, and the end-of-year SMALL TREASURES show that continues to January 26, 2013.
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Washington Society of Landscape Painters. This year I participated in group shows of the WSLP at the lovely Lorton Art Center in Virginia as well as at Prince George's Community College. One of the oldest active plein air organizations in the country, the WSLP will mark its 100th anniversary in April 2013 in cooperation with the Arts Club of Washington, DC. Activities will include exhibits of historic paintings by early members as well as contemporary painters, demonstrations and talks open to the public, and a celebratory dinner. If you would like to be on the mailing list for news of the Centennial, just let me know.
Galleries and Reproductions. I bring new works to all my galleries throughout the year; the galleries are listed in About the Artist. In addition, both McBride and Gleedsville publish fine art giclee reproductions of my paintings, with new editions added periodically. Other sections of my website are being updated "as we speak" and at various times, so please return to see more new images.
What makes it "a Bill Schmidt painting"? People have asked me how I developed my style and create paintings that are so easily recognizable as "a Bill Schmidt." My distinctive paintings are the result of inspiration, planning, and a colorful palette. I'm inspired to paint a scene by the colors, contrasts, light effects, and design elements I see before me. I then make numerous pencil sketches to develop the composition I want and proceed to paint the image en plein air in most cases. The colors on my palette enable me to paint bright, lively scenes as well as react to overcast skies, fog, and even rain. Later I review the painting in my studio, make any corrections, and add the little touches that finish the painting while still keeping my style of loose realism.
BILL SCHMIDT, AIS*
* Indicates Signature Member of the American Impressionist Society.