The Larson Gallery hosts The Northwest Pastel Society Member Show
One of three artists from the Larson Gallery’s summer exhibition, Inside Out, Darcie Roberts, returned to the gallery in the fall. Roberts was part of The Northwest Pastel Society Member Show which was on display mid-September through late October.
Incorporated in 1988, The Northwest Pastel Society is a nonprofit dedicated to promoting pastels as a fine art medium. Through open juried international exhibitions, juried members’ exhibitions (like the one hosted at the Larson Gallery), workshops, email newsletters and meetings, members share knowledge, learn new painting techniques and pass on published information. Membership has grown from a small core of Seattle-area artists to include those from throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico.
This exhibit was juried by American colorist Casey Klahn, who is known for his unique abstracted landscapes.
“Klahn creates with intense color and invokes the Modernist imperative that art be made for its own sake. He offers new types of color expression,” said Larson Gallery Director David Lynx.
Born and raised in Washington state, Klahn is self-trained and has worked professionally as an artist for 30 years and favors the figure, portrait, landscape, still life, abstract non-objective and abstracted realist subjects.
Over 100 entries were received for the show. From those, 60 paintings by 38 artists were chosen for inclusion in the exhibition. The exhibition demonstrated a broad range of what can be done with the soft pastel medium.
Prior to the opening, Klahn taught a sold-out two-day workshop in the Larson Gallery titled “Strengthen Your Color in the Landscape: A workshop on seeing color in nature and in the abstract.”
Each of the two days started with a morning lecture and demonstration and plein air painting in the afternoons. Klahn helped artists strengthen their color sense and encouraged them to say something new while allowing them to feel “free and liberated.”
Visit the Larson Gallery website for upcoming events and exhibits.
