Meet your Venice Art Center Instructors!

 

Abgott, Anne

Anne Abgott is a signature member of NWS, FWS, PWS and TWS. She has a best selling book, "Daring Color" and is currently published in American Artist's special edition, "Best of Watercolor" as well as in SPASH 11. Anne has taught at Ringling College, Cheap Joes and Art Center Manatee. She is a nationally known workshop instructor and teaches all over the USA and Canada.She is the past President of Florida Watercolor, and sits on the board of FWS and Art Center Manatee in Bradenton, Florida. 

Agresti, Francesco

Francesco's paintings and drawings are exhibited in private and public collections in such places as Germany, Russia, Italy, the U.S.A, and other locations around the world. Francesco was born and spent his childhood in Italy before moving to New York in 1956. While in New York he received his education. He earned a Master's degree of Fine Arts and a professorship at national and international universities. He enjoyed his first success as an emerging artist together with the likes of Sean Scully, Len Bellinger and David Reed. Francesco moved back to his home in Italy, where he keeps a studio and pursues his passion for painting. While living in Italy he taught at the university and also enjoys tending to his beloved olive garden.

Archer, Barbara

Originally from Swarthmore, PA, Barbara is now a full-time resident of Venice FL. She is an academically schooled professional artist with training at Rhode Island School of Design, Philadelphia University of the Arts, and Temple University's Tyler School of Fine Arts. Her prolific work includes illustrations for published books and periodicals, works in oil, acrylic, pen and ink, pastel, and miniature art. Her work is on display at the Arts Alliance of Lemon Bay where she is an exhibiting member, and in many private collections. Her teaching experience is widely varied, including beginning and advanced drawing, painting, soft pastels, color theory workshops, decorative painting and faux finishes. She received the Englewood Art Center's Ken Mitchell Award in 2008 for her acrylic achievement, adding to the many other awards and professional recognition she has received over the years.

Aylsworth, Lynn

Lynn Aylsworth recently gained national attention when she received an award from the American Artist's Professional League at the Salmagundi Club in New York City. Her work has been featured on the cover of American Artist magazine, accompanied by a feature article about the artist and her painting process. She has also shown at the Florence Griswold Museum and the Newark Museum in New Jersey. She taught at the Guilford Handcraft Center in Guilford, CT and instructs private classes in her studio at home.

Argandoña, Augusto

Since moving to Sarasota, Augusto Argandoña has seen his art blossom into a growing business. He attributes this success to the support for the arts in the community, and the quality of exposure and clientele Sarasota offers.

Previously a resident of East Aurora, NY., Argandoña was a designer at Fisher-Price Toys. Making a career change, in 1990 he developed an art business showing his art at mall shows and other venues, but it was not until he moved to Sarasota in 1998 that he began to see the potential for his art.

Currently Argandoã has prints that encompass tourist and attraction locations from Boca Grande to Anna Maria Island. His prints and other products with his art are available at galleries and gift stores.

Argandoña's distinctive personal painting style has wide appeal and continues to provide him with commissions and opportunities to use his talent. His paintings of houses, portraits, and pet portraits are in demand and together with his prints are part of private collections throughout North America and Europe. His expertise in the challenging medium of watercolors has won him a feature article in North Light Magazine, an art publication with national circulation.

Argandoña's paintings have won numerous awards including first place, and best of show awards at shows in Florida, Western New York and Ohio. For the artist all of this was once a dream.............Now he is living his dream.

Baxter, Julie

Julie is a lifetime and award winning potter. Julie's teaching career has been with the Arlington County, Virginia, Department of Parks, Recreation & Community Resources. She taught beginning, intermediate, and advanced wheel throwing classes and workshops on surface decoration. She also taught children's hand building classes at the Arlington County Elementary School. Her undergraduate degree is in pottery and she has taken many workshops over the years to enhance her skills and further her education.

Byrne, Sister Maureen Michael

Sister Maureen Michael Byrne is a School Sister of Notre Dame. She has been living in Florida since 1957 and in Venice since 1987. She graduated from the University of South Florida with degrees in Elementary Education and a Masters in Administration/Supervision. Her present ministry is at STILLPOINT STUDIO CREATING ART where she teaches both adults and children as well as creating and selling her own art work.

She is a member of the Venice Art Center where she teaches the popular CLAYMANIA class in the summer; Art Center Sarasota; Sarasota County Arts Council where she participates in The Artists in the Schools Program; The Arts and Culture Alliance where she was awarded the Muses Award for children's education in 2007. She was featured on THE GULF COAST JOURNAL with Jack Perkins and on VEE ON VENICE. Her work includes watercolor, acrylic and clay sculpture and is enjoyed by many in their homes and offices.

Buchman, Bill

Bill Buchman, an internationally represented American artist, lived and worked for twenty years in Europe, primarily in Copenhagen and Paris. Now Bill lives in Sarasota, Florida where he teaches and has his studio. Bill gives local and national workshops on both the creative process and on figure drawing and has made popular educational DVD's on both of these subjects.  He studied painting and drawing with renowned teacher Victor D'Amico at the Museum of Modern Art's Institute of Modern Art, East Hampton, NY and also with leading American figurative painter Fletcher Martin at the Albany Institute of Art, in Albany, NY. Bill attended Cornell University School of Fine Arts and Boston University School of Liberal Arts and has a Bachelor's Degree and a Master's Degree in music from the New England Conservatory of Music. Buchman's expressive figure drawings and brightly colored spontaneous abstractions may be seen in private and public collections in Denmark, Sweden, England and the US and at galleries in Sarasota, Copenhagen, New York and other locales. Bill is sponsored by the California-based Savoir Faire, importer of the European art materials and gives regular classes on how to draw the human figure at the Ringling College, Longboat Key Center for the Arts on Longboat Key in Florida. Bill's upcoming book, "Expressive Figure Drawing", will be published in 2010 by Random House/ Watson Guptill publishers.

Bill says of his work, "Harmony is my keynote." Ideas from the realm of music are my main source of inspiration. At the same time, a broad spectrum of ideas and techniques of European Modernism of the early 20th century, the artistic philosophy and methods of Chinese and Japanese painting, as well as Renaissance and Classical concepts all provide some bearings for the ongoing voyage.

Cassidy, Marilyn

Marilyn has a B.A. in Sociology and an M.S. in Education from Russell Sage College. After a full career as a teacher, she began painting. Studying with several local and nationally known artists she developed her skills. She now shares her collected knowledge of techniques with adults, conducting Workshops and Classes at the Venice Art Center. Her goal is to inspire people to create, enjoy the arts, to loose themselves in the wonderful world of watercolor. She has won several awards, her works can be seen in collections in the United States and Europe.

Christiansen, Sally

Sally received her formal art education at Endicott College and Parsons School of Design. Landscapes, portraits and portrayals of children in pastel are her primary focus and passion.

Coke, Joanna

The combination of Joanna's experiences and her artistic abilities in the commercial arts to the fine arts field makes her artworks unique in its visual beauty and in it's depth of meaning. She has received her Associates in Arts degree from Harvard University. While living in Massachusetts, she worked as a Senior Graphic Designer and Art Director for a large computer firm in which she created sales materials and exhibitory materials. She returned to school and received her fashion certificate from the School of Fashion Design in Boston where she worked as a Fashion Designer and Business Manager for the international fashion company for Victoria's Secrets Stores and Catalogs. Joanna continued her educational pursuits at the University of South Florida receiving two degrees, Bachelor of Science in Art Education and Bachelor of Arts in Fine Arts. She completed her painting education at Louisiana State University and received a Master of Fine Arts degree in 2005. In addition to her academic degrees, she has trained with nationally known artists such as Michael Del Priore in portraiture and Leonard Wren in landscape painting. She also studied art abroad in Paris in 2000 and in Venice, Rome and Florence in 2004. She also teaches at Art Center Manatee and the Venice Art Center.

Colby, Nancy

Florida artist Nancy Colby has gained a well deserved reputation for painting cats. Inspired by the love of all things cat, she expresses that love in her paintings of those fabulous felines. Cat lovers are drawn to her sensitive renderings of her own brood and request paintings of their own furry friends. She is often commissioned to immortalize client's feline family members in sensitive and expressive watercolors. Awards abound, including being voted Best Pet Portrait Artist 2010 by Sarasota Pet magazine. Nancy currently teaches at Venice Art Center and has a large following of successful students painting their choice of subject. She is the two-term Past President of Florida Suncoast Watercolor Society.

Colby, Ruth Hook

Ruth Hook Colby chooses to express her vision through the medium of pastel for its versatility, immediacy and rich, vibrant color. Her enjoyment and perfection of this medium, in both the abstract and realistic interpretations has guaranteed her numerous awards. She has attained signature membership with both the Southeastern Pastel Society and the Degas Pastel Society. Ruth is also a member of the Petticoat Painters artist group and is included in the "Best of America, Pastel Artists and Artisans of 2007". Her studies include workshops with nationally known artists such as Katherine Chang Liu, Alex Powers, Albert Handell, Richard McKinley, Doug Dawson, Allan Flattmann, Carl Dalio and Susan Ogiolvie.

Covert, Susan

Susan Covert received her BFA from Washington University School of Art, St. Louis, Missouri. An illustrator for 30 years, her drawings and watercolors have appeared in many corporate and editorial publications. She has illustrated several children's books including "Eagle Eyes, A Childs Guide to Paying Attention." In the Penfield and Victor school districts of Rochester, New York, she taught enrichment classes in art to young students. She has been the courtroom illustrator for WHEC TV 10, the NBC affiliate in Rochester.

Her current work is a return to her classical training in painting and drawing. She has attended classes and workshops conducted by Tom Insalaca, Thomas Buechner, Stephen Assael, Charles Reid and recently Clayton J. Beck. In June of 2000 she studied painting and drawing at the Santa Reparata Graphic Arts Studio in Florence, Italy.

Her paintings have been shown at the Arnot Art Museum, Elmira, New York; Regional Exhibitions, the Memorial Art Gallery, Rochester New York with the Rochester Art Club, the National Exhibit of Women's Works on Paper, Shoestring Gallery, Rochester, New York; The Mill Gallery and Art Center, Honeoye Falls, New York; The Rochester Art Club, The Art League Manatee, The Portrait Society of America, Sarasota Chapter and Alla Prima Fine Art, St. Petersberg, Florida.

Susan is represented by M Gallery of Fine Art, Sarasota, Florida.

Crafton, Chuck

Chuck Crafton is a longtime photographer and instructor with over sixty years of varied camera and darkroom experiences. He started taking pictures with a simple fixed focus camera, developing film and printing pictures in the late 1940's. He worked with his college yearbook staff in the 1950's, photographed weddings in the 1970's and was a photography and darkroom instructor in Northern Virginia for over five years. Later in the 1980's, Chuck photographed and recorded the details of several US Department of State design projects in Africa, Europe, Caribbean and the US.

He switched completely from film to digital photography about eight years ago, continues to capture digital photographs and currently teaches Digital Photography and Workshops at several venues in the Charlotte and Sarasota County areas. Chuck lives with his wife, a fine artist, in their home on the Myakka River along with two Yorkies.

Darr, Anne

Anne, a Florida Keys resident from 1961 through 1987, moved to Nokomis in 1987. She began her journey with ceramics in 1982, gaining knowledge through reading a myriad of books written by well known potters / sculptors. She has also, at every opportunity, attended workshops, seminars and/or classes at their studios. Anne's forte has been hand building. She uses coils, slabs and the pinch method to create her unique sculptures and pots She was certified to teach Precious Metal Clay in 1999. Anne has exhibited or sold her work from Miami Metropolitan Museum of Art; Miami Herald Lobby; Ceramic League of Miami; Casa Floridian, Coral Gables; Oceanic Arts, Newport, OR; Opus 5 Gallery, Eugene, OR; Santa Fe Trails, Sarasota; Kress Art Market, Sarasota; Four Winds, St Armands, FL; Encore Designs and Boca Grande, FL.

Espinosa, Josephina

Josephina studied at the Institute de Bellos Arts in Colombia, South America. She went on to teach both children and adults a wide range of media including drawing, painting, glass fusion, and stained glass. Her work is known throughout the world.

Friedli, Jamie

"I like to explore motion in my work and use bright colors, because for me, painting is a celebration of life." Jamie Friedli has been a professional artist since 1964. She attended Harris Institute of Art in Nashville and later went on to study at the Atlanta College of Art. She has studied under such renowned artists as Joseph Perrin (Atlanta, Georgia) and Wolf Kahn (Sebasco, Maine). She currently exhibits in her Main Street Studio located in the heart of the art district in Sarasota, Florida.

Farnsworth, Bill

As a graduate of the Ringling College of Art, Bill Farnsworth is a nationally known illustrator and fine artist. Born in Norwalk Connecticut in 1958, Bill is a member of The Society of Illustrators, SCBWI, Oil Painters of America, The National Oil and Acrylic Painters Society and The American Impressionist Society. Bill has illustrated more than fifty books for children that have earned numerous awards.

His fine art has been exhibited in The Oil Painters of America, NOAPS, American Impressionist society, and the 30th International Marine Art Exhibition. Recent awards have come from the Oil Painters of America and the National Oil and Acrylic Painters Society. He lives in Venice, Florida with his wife Debbie.

Havens, Suzanne

Suzanne H. Havens, creative Muse, is a life-long student and lover of visual arts, creativity and motivation. Suzanne earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts, taught art at the high school level, earned a Masters degree in International Business, worked as a communications strategist and a marketer and continues to make her own personal art. Suzanne "quit her day job" two years ago and enjoys expressing herself through painting, photography, wearable art, gardening, Photoshop, mixed media and leading "playshops" for fellow artists.

Heart, Nancy

Nancy's interest in three-dimensional art began as a youngster along the beaches of New England, building sand sculptures. It was love at first touch when her high school art instructor introduced terra cotta clay to the class. From that moment on, working in three dimensions is a passion she has pursued diligently between raising three children and completing two master's degrees.

Nancy has taught sculpture to adults and children for many years. Her work has been exhibited throughout New England in numerous galleries and art shows. She has received many awards for her sculptural masterpieces. Her energy and enthusiasm are evident in her portrait and animal sculptures.

Hitt, Karen

Karen is an award winning artist who received her art training at Parson's School of Design in New York, majoring in Illustration. Karen's classic background and training are ever evident in her style, along with her love of capturing the figure and the effects of light in all of her scenes. Notably Karen has been a participant in "Paint the Parks" & "Paint America" National Competitions, plus 2006 recipient of the Muse Award Sarasota County. Karen's paintings have been collected by private and corporate collections nationally and abroad. She is a published children's book illustrator and her works have been published and distributed nationally in a line of gifts. Karen is the founder of the Venice Plein Air Group and signature member of Plein Air Florida.

Hoffman, Terry

Terry taught art in the public schools of Kenosha Wisconsin for 32 years. Her years of teaching were spent in Junior High School, Elementary School and in an Alternative High School. She has constantly pursued her passion for learning new techniques and incorporating new media into her art that inspires her. The desire to share what she has learned with her students is her sole purpose for teaching. Her inspiration for making jewelry, ceramics, paper making, polymer clay, calligraphy, sculpture and many forms of crafts has been the focus of her work. Her art reflects the poetry of her life.

Hooper, Dr. Mary-Louise Biasotti

Dr. Mary-Louise Biasotti Hooper is a professional artist and teacher. She is an award winning oil painter of landscapes, seascapes, cityscapes and still-life. She has exhibited her oil paintings in gallery and non-gallery venues across the country-including many solo shows. Her work is in private collections from California to New Jersey. She was awarded a major national Fulbright Senior Researcher Grant; is life-juried into the Biennale in Florence, Italy; and worked with international projects. She holds a doctorate in Education and a MA in Clinical Counseling and a BA in Education and AA & BA in Fine Arts.

Hooker, Kathleen L.

Inspirational artist Kathleen L. Hooker resides in Venice year-round. As a professional calligrapher for more than twenty-five years, she served on the board of directors for both the Scribes of Central Florida, near Orlando, and the Coastal Calligraphers Guild in Sarasota. She is currently an active member in both associations. She enjoys working in acrylics, oils, watercolors, inks, colored pencils, and mixed media, which may incorporate found objects. Gestural and calligraphic marks can be seen in both her representational and abstract styles of artwork. The artist earned a degree in graphic design from Valencia Community College in Orlando. Kathleen won juried art shows at Manatee Community College (now called State College of Florida) while a student there. She is currently working toward a B.F.A. in Illustration online from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco.

Hopkins, Nanette

Nanette Hopkins graduated from Moore College of Art and Design in Philadelphia with a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree. After college she worked as an in-house still and fashion photographer for the Franklin Mint. A couple of years later, she opened a full service advertising agency outside of Philadelphia. During this time she also headed up the Public Relations for the Philadelphia Advertising Association. After ten years, she decided to leave the corporate world and pursue a career creating art from clay. She then moved to the Caribbean and started making tiles for the locals, tourists and galleries in the US Virgin Islands, "Tropical Designs with Clay". After a couple of years of bliss, she moved back to the States and continued to create with clay, exhibiting in shows on the East coast. In 1990, she moved to another paradise, Englewood, Florida, where she presently lives and continues to be inspired by the sea, wildlife and the environment. She taught art to children and adults' art for almost 20 years in schools and art centers locally. Her latest art can be seen on the wall of the Island School in Boca Grande.

Johnston, Carolyn A.

Carolyn has been teaching children of all ages for thirty-five years. She has a BFA degree from New College in Sarasota, Fl. She has spent three years teaching children at the Venice Art Center. Her primary goal is to open up young minds to the creative experience and expose them to various mediums and techniques with encouragement and praise.

Kelly, Patricia

Pat is a graduate of The Rochester Institute of Technology with a degree in Graphic Design. She also studied ceramics at the School for American Craftsmen with such notables as Franz Wildenhaim and Jim Seacreast. Her work has sold in department stores and specialty shops, among them, Dean and DeLucca and Tiffany's of New York City. Her pottery has been featured in publications such as: House and Garden, House Beautiful, and Country Living.

Larisch, Linda

Linda is the fourth generation of artists from a multi-cultural background. Her father was from Vienna, Austria and mother from Calcutta, India, where Linda was born. She grew up in the New York metropolitan area with a degree in Art History from NYU. Partially self-taught, with lots of input from her father, she also had the opportunity to study with Oskar Kokochka in his School of Vision in Salzburg, Austria. She has been painting for the past 40 years and had over 30 one-man exhibits and has also been represented by various art galleries in the US. Her medium is acrylic paint on canvas. Her style ranges from realistic to abstract. She spent several years as an educator for pre-school children with developmental delays in Vermont and taught middle school here in Florida. She taught drawing and painting, and also photo transfer to fabric for children and adults at the Venice Art Center, the Art Center Sarasota, the Countryside Montessori School in Sarasota, the Prew Academy and the Florida Institute of Fine Art in Osprey, Florida. She illustrated and hand lettered a published organic gardening book and an Activity Handbook for Parents and Children published by Head Start.

LeRoux-Dupont, Alexis

Alexis was born in New Jersey in 1982. She studied art throughout high school which led her to India where she worked with a non-profit organization teaching underprivileged children about art. Upon returning, she worked at a daycare center and was lead teacher for all art activities. Realizing her love for art and teaching, she moved to Boston to study at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts and received her B.F.A. in art education from Tufts University. She taught at many summer camps including M.F.A. Boston and the J.C.C.G.B., Newton, Mass. And most recently at the Venice Art Center, right here in Florida. She resides with her husband in Venice.

Maria, Gary

Gary Maria is a graduate of Kutztown University of Pennsylvania with a degree in Graphic Design. He first worked in the book publishing industry in New York City as a designer before commencing life drawing and painting study in 1979 at The School of Visual Arts and The Art Students League of New York. Studying with notable artists at both schools, Gary has illustrated paperback romance novels for Silhouette Romance in New York, and Barbour Publishing in Ohio; he has also worked for many years drawing pen and ink illustrations for Dell Publishing. Monitor for the Life Drawing Open Studio for the last two seasons, Gary's portrait and figure work has won recognition in recent 2009 VAC exhibitions. His aim as an artist is to continue working toward the traditions of Old Master draftsmanship and craft in portrait drawing and painting.

Martin, Liana

Liana has always loved nature and wildlife. Living and working with animals all her life has brought a variety of co-habitants into her house. Some of these came from jobs that she had, such as the zoo, veterinary clinics, and pet shops. Others either found her or took up residency or her boys brought them home. These are the inspirations of some of her art work. While attending Kennesaw State University, she discovered clay and found that she could express her love of nature in an art form. Shortly thereafter, Liana was introduced to glass. She began by making beads, but then found out about glass fusing and got hooked, big time! She has learned to combine both torch and kiln work to create unique pieces. Liana's natural curiosity leads her to constantly experiment to see what would happen if... After moving back to Florida in 2000, she founded the Suncoast Glass Guild for glass artists on the Gulf Coast. She also opened her own studio, Firebug Designs, in Venice, Florida in 2002 and now creates fused art pieces full time. She feels fortunate that she found a way to combine her two passions, nature and glass, into an art form that she can share with others.

Meyer, Katrina

Katrina Meyer is a certified secondary educator, Adult Education administrator, ballroom dancer and award-winning wire artist. She began her fascination with gemstones and minerals in 1987 when she left her hometown of Toledo, Ohio and moved to the Washington, D.C. This is where she joined the Rockville MD Rock Club. For several years, she made semiprecious gemstone beaded jewelry to sell at craft shows in D.C., MD, and VA. In 1995, she began studying wire wrapping at William Holland School of Lapidary Arts in Georgia and in private sessions with master wire artists from around the country. Katrina enjoys selling at area rock and shell club shows, juried art shows, as well as teaching wire craft jewelry workshops.

Monk, Patsy

The Monk's moved to Florida the summer of 1999. This was the smartest thing they did! Prior to the move from Virginia Beach, Virginia, Patsy was an RN and paramedic. It was a very full life with little time for creativity. She came to Florida for a new, fun life. She found it! She combined her teaching experience with her love of crafting. For several years, she worked at Michael's Arts and Crafts stores in the Bradenton, Brandon and St Pete area. She taught classes in polymer clay, knitting with needles and on a Knifty Knitter loom. She also taught Kumihimo and bead crochet. She has taught lampwork bead classes at the Ruth Morean Art Center in St Petersburg. Three or so years ago, she got the 'weaving bug'.

Palotas, Joseph

A long time ago, Joseph studied at Columbus College of Art and Design to learn the finer points on painting and drawing. He has continued to paint as a hobby and professionally since then. He specializes in portraits, famous figures, pop art, realism and expressionism, all with oils!! He has been broadening his horizons, as you would say, and he's been doing abstract, still life, landscapes, modern and contemporary paintings, and really about anything else he can try. Joseph loves to add flavor with his true, vibrant choice of colors. And he is sure you'll be doing the same soon. So let's pick up that pencil and dust off those paints and make some artwork that says something about you. He always trys to give his art a sense of being as a stand alone piece. And to produce the feeling and attitude of the subject at hand. Joseph Palotas - Come be a part of the journey!!

Parent, Roger

Roger Parent is an award winning, Signature Member and serves on the Board of the Florida Suncoast Watercolor Society. His work has attracted attention through his use of vibrant color. Roger studied at the Boston University School of Fine Arts and the Swain School of Design in Massachusetts. He holds a Masters Degree in Library Science and worked as an art librarian at the Springfield Library and Museums Assoc. in Mass. Before he retired and moved to Sarasota he served as a senior executive at two national associations, as Deputy Director of the American Library Association, Chicago, and as Executive Director of the American Association of Law Libraries, Chicago. Since retiring he has attended watercolor workshops with Don Andrews, Paul Riley, Sue Archer, Frank Francese, Nicholas Simmons, Janet Rogers, and others.

Robinson, Rob

Rob Robinson has been taking pictures, lots of pictures, since he was in grade school. An active photographer his entire adult life, he was fascinated by the magic of working in a darkroom. He began working with computers from the early 1980s and today he is still a computer power user. In his professional life Rob taught seminars in time management and best practices for professional groups. Rob is retired from a long career in public broadcasting.

Rose, Nancy

Descended from a long line of artists, with art training since eleven years old, Nancy Rose is a professional award-winning artist listed in “Who’s Who 1992-1993” for American Art. She has exhibited at the New Britain Museum of American Art, is a juried member of the Connecticut Watercolor Society, and Sarasota’s Women Contemporary Artists. As an Individualized Learning Specialist who taught Teens with learning disabilities, Nancy began to take this same individualized approach to the Art Classroom. For 22 years she has entertained and encouraged students to paint as a unique individual. She is a nurturing teacher with an enthusiasm and optimism that is contagious.

Sanders, Ron

Ron Sanders is a Signature Member of the Paint America Association and the National Oil & Acrylic Painters Society and an Associate Member of the Oil Painters of America. The winner of numerous national and regional awards and honors, the artist's work hangs in private and public collections throughout the United States, including the Indiana State Museum Collection. Ron's expansive career through illustration, fine art and graphic design has equipped him to take on his latest challenge working on coin and medal design programs as an Associate Designer for the United States Mint through their Artistic Infusion Program. While in college Ron received training as an illustrator and went on to produce images for such clients as Spike TV, Doubleday Book Club, Chase Financial, The Boy Scouts, BF Goodrich and others through agents in New York and Chicago. But his training also included a strong foundation in academic fine art. After graduation, Sanders continued studying oil painting with award-winning artists Huihan Liu and then-president of Plein Air Painters of America, George Strickland. Ron's original oil paintings have been sold through numerous galleries throughout the United States as well as being published as limited edition prints, including extensively researched historical images. Ron Sanders is a native of Fort Wayne, Indiana . He graduated Magna Cum Laude in 1989 from the Columbus College of Art & Design in Columbus, Ohio, with a BFA in illustration and minors in advertising, photography, and fine art. He currently lives with his family on the Gulf Coast of Florida.

Singer, Bob

Bob Singer (MNEC), a juried artist and a fine art photography instructor at the Cape Cod Art Association, is a fresh face in our Venice Art Center instructors' roster this winter.  Bob has been honored with hundreds of awards and medals from around the world for his unique contemporary and beautiful traditional images.  His pictures have appeared in national publications such as Pan Am Clipper, Computer Graphics World and Electronic Publishing as well as in the consumer press and online, in advertising, in video productions, brochures and on packaging, and hang as limited edition fine art prints in galleries, homes and offices across the United States and in Europe. A popular judge program presenter and instructor at photo conventions, associations and clubs up and down the East Coast as well as at the annual Provincetown Photography Workshop on Cape Cod and at the huge NECCC Photography Conference at the University of Massachusetts, Bob teaches digital photography, Photoshop, Lightroom and advanced techniques. Bob spends spring, summer and fall on Cape Cod and winters in Venice where he has been a featured artist at Abbacino Galleria. His archival limited edition images are exhibited each year at Venice Art Center's annual Venice Fine Art Show (February 26-27, 2011) and are also available through the VAC Store as well as on Cape Cod at the Cape Cod Art Association, Osterville Fine Art and Samuell-Day galleries. Bob can be reached via e-mail at bobsinger@comcast.net.

Smith, Frances

Frances attended Boston Museum of Fine Arts School and Ringling School of Art. She has been a freelance artist for over 30 years specializing in acrylic, watercolor, and pastel; also stained glass, calligraphy, and wall murals. Her animal art is featured in Ann Jacobs Gallery in Highlands, NC. Frances has taught both children and adult art classes for many years and won numerous awards for her work.

Soileau, Hodges

A native of southwest Louisiana, he left Louisiana after graduating from the University of Southwestern Louisiana in pursuit of his art. His journey took him to Texas and Connecticut. After 25 years of successful illustration and executing ideas and concepts of others, he now paints subjects that are of interest to him. His work hangs in private collections as well as the permanent collections of the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Coast Guard and the permanent collection of Golf Digest Magazine.

Turconi, Sue

A versatile artist, Sue received her BA in art at William Patterson University and MFA at Pratt Institute, New York. She works in mixed media and photography. Her works are in corporate and private collections as well as museums. She is an adjunct professor of art history and art appreciation at State College Florida in Venice and has lectured throughout the U.S. and Europe.

Webber, Amy

Amy is a graduate of Illinois State University. She holds a degree in Communicative Arts and a certificate of Architecture. She has over 20 years experience in commercial art and 15 years in the residential architecture field. Her art work is a reflection of the beauty she observes in nature. She is a freelance, award-winning ceramic artist who has designed decorative and commissioned art work. As an instructor, she teaches adults as well as children at Booker High School in the Visual Performing Arts program, summer outreach programs and at the several art leagues within the Sarasota/Bradenton community. Amy is not limited to just ceramics. She is a painter and an award winning photographer, selling her work commercially.

Whitmore, Caroline

Caroline began oil painting in an adult education course in the Hudson River Valley, New York. Her continued study, at home and with noted artists: Lee Hockberg, George Peter, Robert Gary, P.J. Steadman, Richard Ochs. This has enabled her to become a very effective and well rounded artist and teacher. Her love of nature and the desire to perpetuate moods that are "pleasant and romantic", led her naturally to floral and garden paintings. Her work is in a number of private collections in the New York area and she has done many commissioned pieces. Beginners will be delighted with the ways to see values and shapes, and become familiar with a simple palette of nine colors. Students will learn all the basic techniques of watercolor.

Yovaish, Walter

Walter received his BFA in art from DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana and also studied art and art history at the University of Illinois. After receiving his MFA in ceramics, he taught at Westchester Art Workshop in White Plains and the Silvermine School of Art in New Cannan, Connecticut and became head of the Ceramics Department at the City College of New York. After working in the academic world, Walter and his wife, Pat established Depot Creek Studio in upstate New York. His work can be found in the homes of the rich and famous and has been sold by Tiffany & Company, Saks 5th Avenue, and various galleries and shops throughout the U.S. His work is also in the Smithsonian permanent collection in Washington, D.C.