Month: September 2019

Local artist Mary Horrigan will offer Watercolor Classes for All Levels at the Marlborough Arts Center, 231 North Main Street, Marlborough, Ct., starting Tuesday, October 22 and continuing every Tuesday through November 26. Classes meet from 10 AM until Noon. Cost is $120 for the six-week session.

Download the registration form from the Arts Center website: marlborougharts.org or contact Mary for more information at mehorrigan@comcast.net.

This course is designed for the watercolor student who may still feel like a beginner, even after having painted and taken lessons – as well as for the student who has never picked up a brush. As the title indicates, it’s for all levels. Experienced students are encouraged to bring in what they’re working on, and to advance at their own speed. Inexperienced beginners will get a crash course in the basics, from applying washes to color mixing and brush handling. All of this happens in the same class; each person works at his own pace; all learn from each other.

This course starts you off. Those who are just beginning will be able to paint a simple landscape by the end of the six weeks and will have learned enough to build on (so that they can go on and practice on their own and create their own paintings). It is a good review for those with some experience.

Dianne Gorrick is the artist whose artwork is gracing the walls of Marlborough, Ct. town Hall through December of this year.  Her background is extensive and shows through the degrees, awards and associations with various museums in the area.  Her resume follows.

Plein air painter Dianne Gorrick creates vibrant works of art depicting the beauty of the natural world.  Although Gorrick selects peaceful subjects, her paintings are invigorated by bright colors and impasto painting (paint applied in very thick layers).  Gorrice explains that the thick application of paint gives the paintings a “three dimensional quality” which enhances the sense of depth within her compositions.  Concerning her technique, she writes, “I would say my style is Romanticized Realism.  I want the viewer to be drawn into the scene and enjoy looking at the painting

Gorrick’s paintings display skill and knowledge, which she has acquired from years of study and exploration.  After earning a batchelors degree from Purdue University and a masters degree in Studio Art from Wesleyan University, she continued her education in painting at the Lyme Academy of Fine Art, Dartmouth College, and the Scottsdale Artist School with Plein Air Painters of America.  Gorrick’s artwork has been exhibited throughout the state of Connecticut, earning numerous awards and grants over the years.  She is the recipient of two National Endowment Fellowships, a research grant concerning the Hudson River School of Painters and a fellowship to attend Dartmouth College, where she studied the art and culture of New England.  Her work has been included in exhibitions at the Wadsworth Atheneum, the New Britain Museum, the Slater Museum and the Ward=Nasse Gallery, SoHo, N.Y.C.  She is an Elected Artist of the Essex Art Association and the Mystic Art Center.  Currently she teaches painting and drawing at the Glastonbury Art Guild.  Gorrick had a long and rewarding career as an art teacher in the school system at Bacon Academy in Colchester, Ct. where she also served as department head.