Season’s Featured Artist Dianna Shomaker

Dianna Shomaker is a Placitas Treasure, a past board member of the Placitas Artists Series; above all, a consummate artist with incredible talent. We are pleased to announce Dianna as our Featured Artist for the 37th season, and encourage you to visit her September exhibit and to view in person the stunning artwork, valued at $2,000, she has donated for the annual art raffle to benefit Placitas Artists Series. Raffle tickets can be purchased online by clicking on the single ticket or three ticket button below. Tickets are $20 each or 3 for $55. The winning ticket will be drawn during the December concert. Tickets purchased online will receive a confirmation of purchase via email. Online tickets will be entered into the raffle manually by the visual arts chair. Single Raffle Ticket $20: Three Raffle Tickets $55:

The 2023-2024 Visual Arts

September 2023

Exhibiting artist this month is Dianna Shomaker - Paint and Cold Wax. Diana’s exhibit will be available for viewing beginning September 17 through October 14. Come meet and visit with this season’s Featured Artist at the visual artist reception, 2 p.m. on September 24th. View the artwork Dianna has donated for the PAS annual art raffle, and purchase raffle tickets. Then stay for the concert that day at 3 p.m.

November 2023

Exhibiting artists this month are Lisbeth Moores - Sculpture & Mixed Media; Ann Blankenship - Tapestry, Shibori Silk Scarves; Mary Dereske - Gilded Photography on Vellum; Karen Melody Shatar - Fused Glass. The exhibit will be available for viewing beginning November 12 through December 9. Come meet and visit with these amazing artists at the visual artist reception, 2 p.m. on November 12th; stay for the concert that day at 3 p.m.

December 2023

Exhibiting artists this month are Larry Schulte - Mixed Media based on Fibonacci Sequence; Tom Wise - Photography and Hand-Made Prints (Kallitype, Cyanotype); Connie Falk - Studio & Plein Air Oils; Rick Hatfield - Beaded & Found-Art Sculpture. The exhibit will be available for viewing beginning December 10 through January 13. Come meet and visit with these amazing artists at the visual artist reception, 2 p.m. on December 17th; stay for the concert that day at 3 p.m.

January & February 2024

Exhibiting artists for January and February are Janet Bothne - Acryclic and Mixed Media Painting; Karl Hofmann - Prints and Pastel Painting; Katherine Irish - Pastels; Carol Allen - Jewelry and Clothing. The exhibit will be available for viewing beginning January 14 through March 9. Come meet and visit with these amazing artists at the visual artist reception, 2 p.m. on January 21st; stay for the concert that day at 3 p.m. A second artist reception will precede the February 11th concert, beginning at 2 p.m.

May 2024

Exhibiting artists this month are Tony Mattson - Landscape Photography; Lynn Kearny - Pastel Painting; Deb Evans - Oil Landscape Painting; Lynda Burch - Mixed Media and Collage. The exhibit will be available for viewing beginning May5 through June 8. Come meet and visit with these amazing artists at the visual artist reception, 2 p.m. on May 19th; stay for the concert that day at 3 p.m.

March 2024

Exhibiting artists this month are Lyndia Radice - Mirror-Image Photography; Allen Bourne - Photography; Roger Preston - Preston Photography. The exhibit will be available for viewing beginning March 10 through April 13. Come meet and visit with these amazing artists at the visual artist reception, 2 p.m. on March 17th; stay for the concert that day at 3 p.m.

April 2024

Exhibiting artists this month are Nancy Schrock - Oil Painting; Michelle d’Amour - Oil Painting; Sandy Langlier - Oil Painting; Colleen Gregoire - Oil and Watercolor Painting. The exhibit will be available for viewing beginning April 14 through May 4. Come meet and visit with these amazing artists at the visual artist reception, 2 p.m. on April 21st; stay for the concert that day at 3 p.m.

October 2023

Exhibiting artists this month are Chris Miller - Plein Air Oils; Shelley Miller - Acrylic on Paper; Jeri Burzin - Photography/Mixed Media; Christiane Couvert - Ceramics. The exhibit will be available for viewing beginning October 15 through November 11. Come meet and visit with these amazing artists at the visual artist reception, 2 p.m. on October 22nd; stay for the concert that day at 3 p.m.

A near native of New Mexico, Christopher Miller grew up appreciating the vast, colorful vistas of New Mexico. Love of the landscape and his desire to bring it to life on canvas led to his career as an artist. He regularly is juried into shows and has shown his work in art galleries in Taos, Santa Fe and Albuquerque. He is a member of Plein Air Painters of New Mexico and is past president of the Rio Grande Art Association. He paints regularly with a group of plein air painters and in the studio. Chris say: “I paint to evoke viewers' feelings of awe and joy and a longing to embrace the landscape as I do. I am inspired by the movement of light across the landscape, particularly the interplay of sunlight and shadows. My aim is to capture its beauty in oil.”

Shelley has been drawn to the arts her entire life, especially the visual arts and dance. She was encouraged to teach an art lesson to her fourth grade class and loved sharing her skills with others. This likely set the stage for her to eventually make a profession of teaching art and practicing art therapy. A life-long commitment to studio work has been the enduring constant, always leaning toward a non-representational genre but holding value for the practice of figurative and landscape. Shelley says: “My works are strongly influenced by the Asian tradition of art philosophy and brushwork. It is simply the beauty of the brush stroke itself that appeals to me. With paint I investigate ‘movement and not form’ and ‘gesture and flow’.”

The desire to capture and bring back beautiful images while sailing in the Caribbean years ago first sparked Jeri’s interest in photography. Photography workshops in beautiful places such as Yosemite, Monterey, the White Mountains, Sequoia National Park, Ghost Ranch and training with the CSU Summer Arts program enhanced Burzin’s knowledge, confidence, and passion for photography. Jeri SAYS: “I am a photographer and mixed media artist whose challenge continues to be finding beauty to photograph in my ‘backyard’ as well as in my travels. ’Designs in Nature’ are often the subject of my work.

Lisbeth Moores is a contemporary Santero and mixed media artist living in Santa Fe, New Mexico She builds her art pieces with found items and a bit of humor. Making this whimsical and spiritual art since 2014, Lisbeth has been selling to collectors in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Boulder, Colorado as well as California and her beloved New Mexico. Lisbeth says: “My art depicts modern day patron saints reflecting those stories that touch me. I believe there is spirituality in everything and that everything is connected. The bits and pieces that I have collected and put in my art continue to tell their stories.”

Ann Blankenship was born in Rapid City, South Dakota. She spent most of her time climbing trees, hiking, camping and experiencing outdoor sports and activities. Graduating from Stevens High School in 1974, Ann went to Black Hills State University to get a degree in art and special education teaching degree. Ann taught at North and South Middle School, and Rapid City Central High School when she lived in Rapid City. She was an art teacher for 30 years. She taught beginning art classes, AP art. Ann says: “The process of tapestry focuses on the artist’s interpretation of color, design, and fiber. My weavings are based on imagery from my experiences, seasons of life, and love of nature. The interaction of color and fiber expresses light in a way no other media does.”

Placitas photographer Mary Lee Dereske finds images in nature, travel, and life. She has exhibited in New Mexico and Washington states, and sells prints internationally online. Each year she attends workshops with master photographers to expand her skills. During the time of COVID she began working with gold leaf to add a new dimension to her images, and took a course with a traditional gilder. She produces only one gilded work of any image, assuring that each piece is one of a kind. Mary Lee says: “I find gilding my images results in a lustrous artwork which melds the ancient art of gilding with modern digital photography. I love producing an artwork by hand. Each piece is a surprise to me; the gold reveals a deeper aspect to the scene.”

"Born of sand, shaped by hand" is the motto of fused glass artist Karen Melody Shatar. She has been passionately experimenting with fused glass for 8 years and is inspired by nature and the beautiful surroundings of New Mexico. After a career of welcoming babies with gentle hands and a tender heart, she uses those skills in creating works of reflecting light both playful and functional. Karen Meody says: “I am intrigued and exited with expressing creativity through this medium; the colors, the light reflected, the manipulation of the various states of glass has filled my life with delight and joy as I continue to learn and expand glass boundaries.”

Larry Schulte is a mixed media visual artist who has been creating art works for the past 50 years. His work is in museums as well as international private collections. His first degree was in mathematics and much of his work is based on the Fibonacci Sequence, a mathematical structure found throughout nature. Larry says: “I grew up on a farm, and the cycles of nature were impressed upon me at an early age: planting, cultivating, reaping; spring, summer, autumn, winter. Nature and her structures are an important part of my creations.”

Tom Wise is a photographer currently living in New Mexico. He creates hand made photographic prints using processes that date back to the 19th century. Tom says: “I like the challenge of taking a digital image, which consists of pixels illuminating a screen, and turning it into a hand crafted print that is imbued with my sensibilities and outlook.”

Connie Falk paints in oil both in the studio and en plein air. She moved to Placitas in 2016. She has shown paintings at the Albuquerque Museum ArtsThrive Show, the NM Cancer Center Gallery with a Cause, the Jemez Fine Art Gallery, Ghostwolf Gallery, and the NM Art League. In 2021, Southwest Art Magazine featured her work in their Aug-Sept issue focusing on 10 NM painters. In 2022, she won the Wilson Hurley Enchantment award at the Masterworks of New Mexico show. Connie says: “I paint in oil both in the studio and en plein air. I love bringing to life my neighborhood in the foothills of the Sandias and sharing the joy of beautiful colors. I am always experimenting with new ways to paint.”

Rick Hatfield moved to New Mexico from Austin in 2004 and currently lives in Placitas. He is a carver, musician, mosaic artist, and furniture maker, After attaining a MEd. in Educational Psychology, from Texas State University, he spent most of his career as a mental health provider, in public schools, non-profit agencies, and private practice. His interest in the natural world, folk and indigenous art, and spirituality has lead to exploration of wood carving, painting, bead work and mosaics. Rick says: “My philosophy is that life is way too important to take seriously. I seek to bring ‘playfulness’ to my work. After doing play therapy with clients, I am now ‘playing’ on my own.”

Janet Bothne's focus on the paint itself being the subject matter has taken this former realist into a practice that balances gut vs. brain, and results in works that straddle the familiar and the enigmatic. Born near Boston, she studied art at U/Mass Amherst before moving to Los Angeles and beginning her professional career. In 2013 she moved to New Mexico where she taught abstract painting for 6 years. Ending classes during COVID, she focused on new works that sparked more experimentation. Janet says: “My passion is working with color contexts. I see color akin to musical notes; they can be soft, loud or bright. I experience muted colors as chords and saturated colors as crescendo. It’s alive and ever-changing, and I see it as a universal language.”

Karl Hofmann taught humanities and art at universities around the country. In 1976 he found himself in Placitas in a community of artists. He taught at Sandia Prep for 19 years and worked on his craft of pottery. He thinks of his pots as New Mexico landscapes in clay and hopes that, like the mesas, they will last in their beauty and usefulness. Since retiring from teaching,Karl has had time to explore other interests. He has attended printmaking and pastel workshops. Karl says: "My work is based on personal experiences. I am 'process oriented' reveling in the material itself, like when a lump of clay turns into a shape or blocks of linocut come together to make an image or pastel layers merge into a landscape."

Katherine Irish, IAPS/MC, PSA, PSNM/DP, APAA/DP, PSWC, SEPS/MOE, PSSW, knew she was an artist form an early age. She studied art in New York and Europe and moved to New Mexico to paint professionally. Katherine enjoys painting skies due to changing abstract patterns and layers of beautiful color. Katherine traded oils for pastels in 2002. Katherine is an award- winning artist who exhibits in national juried and invitational shows. Katherine says: “As a landscape artist, I join the league of painters who point to nature as the embodiment of truth. I have made a conscious decision to contribute beauty to the world through my art. Experiences in nature enrich and inform our lives.”

Carol Allen started A-llen Creations after discovering agates on the shores of Lake Superior and took a wire wrapping class in MPLS. Carol tumbles and polishes her agates and wraps agates plus an eclectic assortment of gemstones, antiquities, and beach finds. Carol has been knitting since grade school and enjoys working with colorful yarns to create an assortment of wear-ables. Carol says: “My primary focus is to experiment with ideas to enhance my work, while learning by creating with fiber, wire and stones. My necklaces tend to have an earthy vibe and my knitwear is colorful and fun.”

Originally from NYC, Lyndia Radice was a classical musician in the US and Europe for 10 years. She provided child therapy services in NYC, Alamo Reservation and Albuquerque for over 30 years. Her work has been exhibited in solo and group shows in NM, TX, WA, NY, CO, NJ, and PA. In 2016, the Las Vegas, NV Cultural Commission chose 3 photos for street banners. In 2017, a painting was used for the Silver City, NM Dia de Los Muertos poster. Her work is shown at Tularosa Gallery of Photographers. Lyndia says: “My meditation practice includes long silent walks on my land. In my photographs. paintings and drawings, I attempt to capture each mountain, plant, rock, animal or bird’s essence. I hope my art can help viewers communicate with nature.”

Roger began his interest and journey into photography in the mid-70s in Kansas City, Missouri. He and Roxanne moved to NYC in 1981 where he began a career as a commercial photographer, all the while shooting landscapes, abstracts, stills, landscapes, wildlife, and humorous photos off the clock. National and worldwide travel has presented him with many subjects to explore. Making New Mexico his home for 20 years now, he pursues the craft for enjoyment and the quest for that great photo. Roger says: “In my time in Placitas, I have moved increasingly into wildlife photography-mostly birds, though not exclusively. One hopes to find a balance between the season, my availability, weather, quality of light, and the whim of the subject.”

As a relative newcomer to Placitas (since 2019), Nancy has been inspired by Southwest landscapes and their rendering in pastels. She has shown her work and won awards in galleries from Texas to Michigan to Florida. Although she started in oils, her primary media are colored pencil and pastel. Nancy is a member artist at The Gallery ABQ (8210 Menaul Blvd. NE, Albuquerque), the Colored Pencil Society of America, and the Pastel Society of New Mexico. Nancy says: “Artists capture things fleeting and gift them to us in their work. For me, that rendering and giving are what I try to do with my art. I love this Frida Kahlo quote: "I paint flowers so they will not die."”

Michelle A D’Amour was born in upstate New York and for many years was a school educator and principal. She began painting in the 70’s in Southern France at the Lacoste School of Art, part of Sarah Lawrence University. She later attended the New Orleans Academy of Fine Arts. Her works have been exhibited at the SouthHampton Arts Show, New Orleans Academy of Art, Palmer Park Art Market, New Orleans National Art show, Mid City Studios, New Mexico Art League,Central Gallery. Michelle says: “My paintings are inspired by my natural surroundings, particularly flora and fauna. I love to capture florals and organic subjects up close and in a personal way rendering them sensual and inviting. It is more about form, shapes and colors.”

After years of being a single working mom, Sandy Langelier began taking art classes when she retired at age 55. Her studies included time at both CNM and the NM Art League. She enjoys simple realistic paintings often featuring food, dishware, flowers, animals and other beautiful objects. Sandy says: “I explore both traditional & modern expressions of classical still life subjects using the old masters’ techniques of building color and form through transparent layers of oil paint. I’m attracted to shiny objects, bright colors and full round shapes.”

Colleen Zacharias Gregoire grew up in the Midwest and studied drawing and painting privately before attaining her MFA in painting. Thus began a life-long love for the local landscape. Her work also focuses on architectural themes that may reflect the intimacies of daily life. Colleen explores the various knickknacks we display outside of our homes for the purposes of nostalgia, decoration or to share an appreciation for kitsch, and how these displays can provoke specific memories or emotions. Colleen says: “My architectural paintings focus on the stage-like setting of porches, made unique with the items on display; the snapshots of moments in daily life, cast with the seasonal light and local colors that illuminate a personal and very intimate space.”

Tony Mattson had a 26 year long career in the audiovisual field, working at the Department of Energy and at TVI/CNM. He also taught Digital Photography Classe at CNM’s Emeritus Academy. Although Tony has been photographing for many years, he joined a local camera club (Enchanted Lens) several years ago and began to see photography in a much different way. The club provided much appreciated training and Tony’s photos improved as he put those skills to use. Tony says: “I developed my love of wide open landscapes when I was growing up on a farm on the plains of northeastern Colorado. The landscape was flat, but I loved the look of the wide expanses, the great skies, the clouds and the changing light.”

Kearny grew up in Los Alamos, New Mexico, spread out on mesas below the Jemez Mountains and divided throughout by deep canyons. Behind town the Jemez rise to a great caldera, the Valle Grande. The mountains, cliffs and canyons of northern New Mexico are in her blood. Her studio is in a hundred-year-old Albuquerque adobe near the Rio Grande. From here she does plein air paintings or finished studio pieces based on her field sketches or reference photos she takes throughout the Southwest. Lynn says: “I express my love of the natural world in pastel paintings of western landscapes with a strong sense of light and rich, layered color. I want to translate the beauty and power of the natural world into a visceral experience for others.”

Deb is a landscape painter working primarily in oils. Most of her career was in the laboratory industry in Florida, Texas and Colorado. Her retirement fostered a deep love of nature, photography and most of all painting. She paints full time in her studio and on location in the field en plein air. Deb says: “I see many potential paintings in nature that inspire me. I paint because I love it, it's fun and I enjoy the process. I am always learning something new and my goal is to create works that touch the soul and help you feel the place or situation.”

Lynda is basically a painter who had always loved putting textures into her art. When she had the opportunity to use postage stamps from her husband's old collection, that started her on a new path about 12 years ago. It has created a niche for textured art. Lynda says: “I have always loved texture in my acrylic paintings, and using mixed media to create it was a natural. Then came stamps, maps and wine labels followed by an audience who really appreciated the uniqueness of this art, after 25 years of painting.”

Christiane Couvert was born into a family of artists and fostered her own artistic inclinations through multi-cultural travel experiences in Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. Her ceramic work is noted for its style and functionality, and pieces are influenced by great European artists, often blended with creative wood highlights. She is formally trained in Japanese Arita Porcelain techniques. Christiane says: “You will find my ceramic pieces are often playful, as well as, functional for daily use.”