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IGW’s March featured artist shines with pastels

IGW’s March featured artist shines with pastels

Written by Jason Schaffer on . Posted in Art, Entertainment.

HOLMES BEACH – Like many artists in the area, Island Gallery West’s March featured artist, Terri Westbrook, is inspired by nature and places she has lived and traveled, including Charleston, South Carolina and the Gulf Coast of Florida.

Working primarily in pastel media, she brings brilliant color to her nature scenes, including landscapes and waterscapes.

“My paintings are journal entries, revealing my response to what I see when I’m out in nature, or my emotions about a place I visited many years ago,” Westbrook said. “Making art is like meditation for me. I hope people enjoy my pieces that come from my heart.”

While many artists have been practicing their craft for a great deal of their lives, Westbrook discovered her love for creating art later in life. Through both in-person and online instruction, she learned the basic principles and honed her skills from there. Her featured work is currently on display in the front window of the gallery, and all art is available for purchase.

Westbrook will be on hand to discuss her work and answer any questions at the Art Walk on Friday, March 10 from 5:30-7:30 p.m., the final day to visit IGW before it closes its doors on the Island permanently and moves to its new location in downtown Bradenton. Many other member artists will also be there as well. Make sure to enter the raffle for a chance to win one of Westbrook’s paintings. There will also be complimentary wine, snacks and live music.

Island Gallery West is located at 5368 Gulf Drive, Holmes Beach, Trolley Stop 15. Gallery hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Friday, with March 10 as the final day. Visit the gallery website or call 941-778-6648 for updates about the art and 30 member artists of the gallery.

Realistic watercolors portray Gulf coast

Realistic watercolors portray Gulf coast

Written by Jason Schaffer on . Posted in Art, Entertainment.

HOLMES BEACH – Stepping into Island Gallery West is always a visual treat, with works from 30 member artists that offer something for everyone. Every genre, medium and subject matter evokes a visual and emotional response with every gaze.

For those who are fans of realism, the work of the November Featured Artist is nothing short of striking. 

A transplant from the Midwest, Marg Williamson – like many artists who move to the Gulf coast – was inspired by the beauty of the flora and fauna. The only logical thing to do was to paint it and share it with those that share her passion.

“I have a strong desire to preserve in paintings the beauty of the world around us,” said Williamson, who prefers to paint in plein-air in the manner of the 19th-century style of painting outdoors that became a central feature of French Impressionism. She also paints from photographs taken in her travels in Europe and the Caribbean.

Williamson’s medium is watercolor, which she elevates to a level equal to the elite watercolor artists. Vibrant and detailed, her paintings pull the eye of the observer into the work with a sense of sitting where she sat when the art was conceived. Her work has been featured in galleries in Sarasota, Bradenton, Pine Island, Naples and Holmes Beach at Island Gallery West.

Williamson will meet visitors to the gallery on Saturday, Nov. 19 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. to answer any questions about her work and inspiration. Island West Gallery is located at 5368 Gulf Drive, Trolley Stop 15. Gallery hours are Tuesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information, visit the gallery online or call 941-778-6648.

IGW featured artist ‘walking on clouds’

IGW featured artist ‘walking on clouds’

Written by Jason Schaffer on . Posted in Art, Entertainment.

HOLMES BEACH – Each month, Island Gallery West displays the work of a featured artist prominently in the front window of the gallery, and October offers striking acrylic paintings by Charlotte Sorsen.

A Massachusetts native who relocated to Florida a decade ago, Sorsen uses bright colors to bring the Gulf coast to brilliant life with works of art that pull the eye into local flora, fauna and nature. Her display titled “Walking on Clouds” is a visual step into the beauty of Anna Maria Island and the Gulf coast she so dearly loves.

IGW Featured Artist “Walking on Clouds”
Charlotte Sorsen, Island Gallery West’s October Featured Artist’s work titled ‘Walking on Clouds,’ is currently on display at the gallery in Holmes Beach. – Jason Schaffer | Sun

“These birds are a continuation of thought,” said Sorsen, speaking about birds in some of her paintings on display that seem to fly off the canvas. “They are birds, but they could be anything you would like them to be. When you take a picture of birds, you see parts of them, but they continue beyond the frame. That’s what I wanted to portray, the continued flight of whatever you want them to be in your mind. It could be the flight of your life, a flight of adventures; it could be anything you want it to be.”

Sorsen studied in Boston at the Museum School of Fine Arts and the New England School of Art and Design, using oil as her preferred medium in her early years as an artist, but later switching to acrylic for a very practical reason.

“I started with oil when I was considerably younger, then I had babies,” Sorsen said. “Acrylic paint was just starting to become a bit popular, but not really liked. I was painting on top of my washing machine at the time, and having small children around I was worried the toddler could pull the palate – which had turpentine and oil on it – off the machine; it was dangerous, so along comes acrylic paint and it just made sense.”

Like many area artists, Sorsen’s inspiration is drawn from her surroundings. She loves to paint nature, birds and other Gulf coast scenes with vivid oranges, blues, pinks and other colors she says just didn’t exist in her native Massachusetts. While she will always have a fondness for her native home, she has no desire to return to the north, where she says there is much more grey than the vivid colors that continue to inspire her in Florida.

Island West Gallery is located at 5368 Gulf Drive, Trolley Stop 15. Gallery hours are Tuesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information, visit the gallery website or call 941-778-6648 for updates.

IGW Featured Artist brings out the color in nature

IGW Featured Artist brings out the color in nature

Written by Jason Schaffer on . Posted in Art, Entertainment.

HOLMES BEACH – Each month the front window display at Island Gallery West focuses on the work of their featured artist, and July showcases the colorful pastel work of Terri Westbrook.

A painter whose work leans toward impressionism, Westbrook brings nature forth in a way that captures the eye with color.

“I paint from photographs I have either taken myself in my travels or from photographs friends have provided,” Westbrook said. “I started painting pretty late in life, around 2014. I started with oils and loved it, but they began to bother me. I was allergic to oils, so I switched to pastels and have been using them ever since.”

Westbrook switched to pastels five years ago in 2017 and says she likes using an impressionistic loose style with lots of color. Her love of painting landscapes and waterscapes led her to name her company Serene Scapes.

A unique feature of Westbrook’s work is the stories she writes about each piece of art. She says many people find the stories as interesting as the art. Visit her personal website to see her art with the accompanying stories.

IGW Featured Artist brings out the color in nature
The work of Terri Westbrook is on display at Island Gallery West in Holmes Beach. – Jason Schaffer | Sun

Westbrook will be in the gallery on Saturday, July 23 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. to chat and answer questions about her work, on display through July 31. All of the artworks are available for purchase at the gallery, located at 5368 Gulf Drive. Gallery hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Visit the gallery online or call 941-778-6648 for updates about the art and the 30 member artists of the gallery.

IGW featured artist paints what he loves

IGW featured artist paints what he loves

Written by Jason Schaffer on . Posted in Art, Entertainment.

HOLMES BEACH – Island Gallery West’s January Featured Artist, Darryl Goldman, paints what he loves and draws inspiration from his life experiences and his strong faith. A display of Goldman’s art titled “Simple Memories” takes center stage in the front window of the gallery in Holmes Beach. Oil paintings of animals range from exotic birds to farm animals including sheep.

“I like to paint sheep because of my faith,” Goldman said. “The Bible is full of sheep, and I really enjoy painting them. The mules come from growing up around farms. My relatives had farms in Mississippi and growing up, there were always mules.”

IGW featured artist paints what he loves
Oil painting by Darryl Goldman. – Jason Schaffer | Sun

Goldman is a retired Army Chaplain who served for 25 years in the U.S. and Europe. Spending a great deal of time in Germany, he often found time to paint the beautiful sights of Bavaria, but since there was never enough time for oil to dry, his Army days were spent painting with watercolors, which dry much faster. After retiring, Goldman and his wife, Linda, spent more than two years traveling the country, which allowed him to work many plein air scenes (paintings done outside, on location). There are multiple examples of Goldman’s plein air works on display, ranging from farm life in the upper Midwest to nautical scenes in Cortez.

IGW featured artist paints what he loves
“Simple Memories,” art by Darryl Goldman currently on display at Island Gallery West in Holmes Beach. – Jason Schaffer | Sun

“I really like to paint from old black and white photos,” said Goldman, who pointed out examples on display at the gallery which he painted from old photographs that caught his eye. “I painted that trailer court down there. I imagine you don’t see too many trailer park paintings, but being new to Florida, I just found it fascinating.”

“Simple Memories” will be on display until the end of January, and all works on display are available for purchase. You can meet Goldman on Friday, Jan. 14 from 5:30-7:30 p.m. at the monthly Holmes Beach Art Walk reception. There will be drinks and bites, live music by Chip Ragsdale and plenty of art.

Island Gallery West is at 5368 Gulf Drive, Holmes Beach. Gallery hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. For more information call 941-778-6648 or visit www.islandgallerywest.com.