Annual Visual Arts Exhibition by Cheshire Art League (2010)

Posted on April 17, 2010 by John O'Keefe Jr.

It was time again for the 2010 Annual Visual Arts Exhibition by Cheshire Art League. I was busy taking photographs for the Cheshire Art League website assignment I was given. But, more interesting was Jennifer O’Keefe submitted a photograph to the exhibition and won an award!

Event Literature – Annual Visual Arts Exhibition

Annual Visual Arts Exhibition, Event Brochure — **Event Brochure**

Receiving, Hanging, and Judging (3/10/2010) – Annual Visual Arts Exhibition

Exhibition Receiving Crew: Joan Shackford — **Receiving Crew**

Exhibition Hanging Crew: — **Hanging Crew**

Opening Reception and Award Ceremony (3/27/2010) – Annual Visual Arts Exhibition

Annual Visual Arts Exhibition, Reception and award ceremony - image 1

Annual Visual Arts Exhibition, Reception and award ceremony - image 3

Annual Visual Arts Exhibition, Reception and award ceremony - image 5

Annual Visual Arts Exhibition, Reception and award ceremony - image 2

Annual Visual Arts Exhibition, Reception and award ceremony - image 6

Annual Visual Arts Exhibition, Reception and award ceremony - image 4

Annual Visual Arts Exhibition, Reception and award ceremony - image 7

Visual Arts Exhibition, Reception and award ceremony - image 8

Short Video: Award Ceremony
(A short 1-minute and 43-second video documentary of the Cheshire Art League 2010 Exhibition.)

Short Video: “Old Fashion Winter”
(A short 2-minute and 5-second video documentary of Jennifer O’Keefe’s Award in Photography for best photograph at the Cheshire Art League 2010 Exhibition award ceremony.)

Concluding Thoughts

As is always the case with Chesire Art League exhibits, there was a nice crowd of friendly faces, many good conversations and laughter, food and drink, and a really good time. It is very generous that the Cheshire Public Library hosted the 2010 Annual Visual Arts Exhibition by Cheshire Art League.

About the Judge – Annual Visual Arts Exhibition

Beth Ellis publicity photograph — **Beth Ellis**

Beth Ellis is a dedicated en plein air artist and instructor who paints and teaches outdoors year-round along the Maine coast and in Connecticut, alongside rolling farmlands and Connecticut River sites. After graduating from Paier College of Art in Connecticut, Beth worked as a designer and illustrator. Today, Beth has a thriving gallery at Perkins Cove in Maine, where she exhibits paintings of rural and coastal New England. She has received many awards for her paintings, which she exhibits in various select and prestigious outdoor-juried shows, such as the Bruce Museum Show in Greenwich, CT, and the Armonk Outdoor Art Show in Armonk, NY. Her works in oil can be found in private and public collections from coast to coast and various Northeast galleries. 1, 2

Footnotes:

Image of Beth Ellis from www.legacy.com ~ 2014
Bio information for Beth Ellis from the exhibition brochure.

Jennifer O’Keefe’s Award in Photography (2010)

Posted on March 31, 2010 by John O'Keefe Jr.

In 2010, the Cheshire Art League sponsored its Annual Exhibition. Jennifer O’Keefe entered one of her photographs, “Old Fashion Winter.” To Jennifer’s great surprise, she won an award for her photograph. The exhibition judge was Connecticut artist Beth Ellis. Beth commented on the photograph, saying, “So much warmth for such a cool image.” Therefore, congratulations were for Jennifer O’Keefe’s Award in Photography.

Jennifer’s O’Keefe’s Award in Photography at Cheshire Art League Exhibition

Jennifer captured the image while she and I were stuck in traffic during a snowstorm. The photograph came out so good that she decided to frame it and enter it into the exhibition. Here is the photograph.

Old Fashion Winter, Award in Photography, Photograph, 8x10, Jennifer O'Keefe, 2010 — ***“Old Fashion Winter”***
Photograph, 8×10,
Jennifer O’Keefe,
2010

Jennifer O'Keefe and Old Fashion Winter, Award in Photography — Jennifer O’Keefe and *“Old Fashion Winter”*

Our daughter Danielle took a short video clip of the award ceremony. The award ceremony was at the Cheshire Public Library in Cheshire, Connecticut. When the awards were being handed out, Jennifer was asked to describe to the attendees the circumstances surrounding the creation of the photograph. She explained how we passed by the house almost daily for decades without ever noticing it. Jennifer continued, “we got stuck in traffic directly in front of the house, and the house was the only interesting thing to look at.” The scene was quiet, serene, and captivating. At that moment, she pointed her camera at the house and took a photograph.

She never expected the photograph to look the way it did, having the snowflakes appear frozen in place as they lay across our windshield. Her story makes a person ask, how many exciting things around us do we never stop to notice? How did that one random event and the resulting photograph affect us? Ever since that day, we always take notice whenever Jennifer and I pass by the house. The award ceremony was a nice experience for Jennifer. Good job!

Also, check out the entire exhibition.

Spring Auctions by Salmagundi Club (2010)

Posted on March 18, 2010 by John O'Keefe Jr.

Important news to announce, I was recently accepted as a member of the Salmagundi Club! I thank Claudia Seymore and Christine Ivers for sponsoring me. My first member event is the Spring Auctions by Salmagundi Club. I decided to submit two small paintings at this event, and I included two short videos showing me going through the auction process.

Event Literature – Spring Auctions

Spring Auctions by Salmagundi Club, Brochure front — **Front View of Event Brochure**

Spring Auctions by Salmagundi Club, Brochure back — **Back View of Event Brochure**

Exhibition Drop-Off (2-27-2010) – Spring Auctions

We made it safely to the drop-off for the 2010 Spring Exhibition and Auction at the Salmagundi Club. Recently I participated in a local auction near my home, but this was a much bigger event. I am very excited to go through this process at the Salmagundi Club. I entered two early and more miniature paintings, “New England River” and “The Road Home.”

*“New England River”* by John O’Keefe Jr.

Spring Auctions by Salmagundi Club, John O'Keefe Jr. with paintings 'New England River' and 'The Road Home'

Spring Auctions by Salmagundi Club, John O'Keefe filling out entry form

Opening Reception (3-5-2010) – Spring Auctions

I had one of my paintings accepted into the Exhibition/Action (“The Road Home”), so we planned to take the family to the opening reception. However, due to poor planning on my part, we did not make it to the opening reception on time. We left Connecticut too late and hit heavy traffic upon entering New York, which proved fatal for us, making it to the opening reception on time. We did film the day’s events and produced the following video.

Salmagundi Auction Part 1 of 2
(A short 11-minute and 15-second video documentary of John O’Keefe Jr. at the Salmagundi Club 2010 Spring Auctions. Opening Reception Day!)

John O'Keefe's painting The Road Home at The Salmagundi Club — John O’Keefe Jr. painting “*The Road Home.*“

Salmagundi Club post reception main gallery — **Salmagundi Club main gallery – post reception**

Auction Day (3-18-2010) – Spring Auctions

The auction day went better than the day we had for the opening reception. We arrived in New York early enough to have dinner and be at the auction well before the auction start time. I was nervous when my painting came up, but that soon turned to excitement when it sold. After the auction, Jennifer and I mingled for a while, and we met several well-known artists, including Del-Bouree Bach and Charles Bierman.

Salmagundi Auction Part 2 of 2
(A short 10-minute and 2-second video documentary of John O’Keefe Jr. at the Salmagundi Club 2010 Spring Auctions. Auction Day!)

Jennifer and John O'Keefe eat at Knickerbocker's Bar & Grill — Jennifer and John O’Keefe Jr.
at Knickerbocker’s Bar & Grill in New York City

Helen Dayton and her award winning watercolor 'Old Door Renewed' — Helen Dayton and her award-winning watercolor “*Old Door Renewed.*“

Charles Bierman and John O'Keefe talking after the auction — **Charles Bierman and John O’Keefe Jr.**

Danielle O’Keefe’s Year of Watercolor (2009)

Posted on December 31, 2009 by John O'Keefe Jr.

Danielle O’Keefe’s Year of Watercolor represented a giant leap forward in her artistic skills, compared with artworks she had produced in her younger years. Motivated by her positive experience with the 2008 Art Exhibit and Fundraising Event for National EB Awareness Week, Danielle started creating more art in 2009. This was the year she learned how to work with watercolor paints. As you look at her 2009 watercolor paintings you can literally see her progress with the medium from month to month. Her favorite subject was portraits and she used photographs of close family members and some of her good friends as her baseline reference material.

Danielle O’Keefe’s 2009 Watercolors and other Artworks

Little Boy Joshy, Watercolor on Paper, Danielle O'Keefe, June, 2009 — ***“Little Boy Joshy”***
Watercolor on Paper,
Danielle O’Keefe,
June, 2009 (13 years old)

Nora, Watercolor on Paper, Danielle O'Keefe, July, 2009 — ***“Nora”***
Watercolor on Paper,
Danielle O’Keefe,
July, 2009 (13 years old)

The Eyes of Dina, Watercolor on Paper, Danielle O'Keefe, August, 2009 — ***“The Eyes of Dina”***
Watercolor on Paper,
Danielle O’Keefe,
August, 2009 (13 years old)

Pinwheel Flowers, Watercolor on Paper, Danielle O'Keefe, August, 2009 — ***“Pinwheel Flowers”***
Watercolor on Paper,
Danielle O’Keefe,
August, 2009 (13 years old)

Guess Who!, Finger Paint on Canvas, Danielle O'Keefe, August, 2009 — ***“Guess Who!”***
Finger Paint on Canvas
Danielle O’Keefe,
August, 2009 (13 years old)

Lady Blue, Watercolor on Paper, Danielle O'Keefe, September, 2009 — ***“Lady Blue”***
Watercolor on Paper,
Danielle O’Keefe,
September, 2009 (13 years old)

Green Eyes, Watercolor on Paper, Danielle O'Keefe, September, 2009 — ***“Green Eyes”***
Watercolor on Paper,
Danielle O’Keefe,
September, 2009 (13 years old)

Danielle’s watercolor titled “Pinwheel Flowers” was one of her first true original compositions. Thus, still life compositions and abstract compositions were among her themes. After having worked in watercolors for most of the year, with some experimental use of graphite outlining in her watercolor paintings, an interest was expressed in developing skills with graphite and ink by themselves, along with a desire to create additional works using other mixed media. By the end of the year Danielle had a significant number of artworks that she produced and her family called this period of her artistic development, “Danielle O’Keefe’s Year of Watercolor”.

Art Show & Sale at Cheshire Nursery by Cheshire Art League (2009)

Posted on November 18, 2009 by John O'Keefe Jr.

After the good time I had at the Ives Farm fundraiser, I was ready for another local event. I signed up for the Art Show & Sale at Cheshire Nursery by Cheshire Art League.

Show Drop-Off (11-18-2009) – Art Show & Sale at Cheshire Nursery

The artwork dropoff was scheduled for the day before the show was open to the public. Here is a picture of my simple setup. Nothing is fancy; only five of my smaller paintings are nicely displayed.

Art Show & Sale at Cheshire Nursery, John O'Keefe painting display wall — **John O’Keefe Jr. at his display wall.**

Opening Reception (11-19-2009) – Art Show & Sale at Cheshire Nursery

Unfortunately, I was not able to attend the opening reception. My friend Joan Shackford took the following pictures of the event.

Art Show & Sale at Cheshire Nursery, Dale Spaner — **Dale Spaner**

Art Show & Sale at Cheshire Nursery, Ron Gagliardi and Karla Koch — **Ron Gagliardi and Karla Koch**

Concluding Thoughts (…and Cheshire Nursery plug)

The Art Show & Sale at Cheshire Nursery by Cheshire Art League was another lovely experience. My wife and I have bought many plants for our garden through the Cheshire Nursery. They have even specially ordered plants we researched. Here is a photo of some plants from the Chesire Nursery.

One More “Provocative” Comment about the Art Scene

I want to discuss another feeling I had during this Art Show & Sale at Cheshire Nursery by Cheshire Art League. Some might consider doing an art show at a local “garden shop” detrimental to their “artistic resume.” I don’t hold that view. I’ve been around the bigger, more reputable galleries and art associations, and there is a definite attitude shift among patrons between the two that I’m uncomfortable with. I can only be blunt about my observations in terms I relate to upper-class versus middle/lower-class mentality. Please don’t hate me for saying that because I get both perspectives.

Do I have a bias? Yes! I’m not in the upper class and have never been there. I find that middle/lower-class folks are more personal and easy-going, and upper-class folks are more egotistical, snobby, and worried about the financial aspect of art collecting. (I’m not saying all rich people are this way… but there is a noticeable percentage in my experience.)

Once, I debated with the owner of an upper-class galley about reproduction giclee prints I was offering on my website. Partway through the exhibition, we argued about me selling giclee reproductions of my paintings. Their client didn’t want to buy one of my original paintings because the idea that a “copy” of the painting existed elsewhere in the world was a deal breaker. I was shocked that someone could demand I not let other people also have access to my art, albeit in a reproduction form at a much cheaper price than an original painting.

Ultimately, the client bought the original painting because it was beautiful, and I genuinely appreciate them for that, but the experience left me with a bad feeling. I saw a significant attitude shift between people with money and people just getting by. The view of art between the two was obvious, an “investment” and prestige versus something beautiful you want to hang on a wall and look at. This is my honest observation and opinion. This experience changed my feelings about pursuing the “big league” art scene as hard as I had been.