By Karen Stopnicki, WAS-H President

Dear WAS-H Friends,

Summer is here! I hope you have fun activities planned, and maybe even travel to new places. The WAS-H community is here for you during the summer – we have classes, show receptions, open studio, model lab and more! So, if your plans are more local, check the WAS-H calendar for some fun activities.

Our Gallery Show reception will be this Sunday, June 4^th at 3pm. Judi Coffey is judge for the June show with an open theme. As a reminder, we do not have General Meetings during the summer - June, July and August. In July, we will have our Student/Teacher Show, so make plans to enter that popular show, and attend the reception.

Our summer classes are open registration -- see our full class list HERE. Registering for a class is a great way to enjoy the camaraderie of other artists and enhance your artistic skills. Our standard events such as Open Studio, Model Lab and Senior Group are going strong and welcome you to join in during the summer.

Please renew your membership today, if you haven’t already done so. Membership dues are so important to funding WAS-H operations. You can go to the website HERE to renew. If you would rather pay by phone or in person, contact Laura Mossman, our Artist Liaison. The office is open Tuesday – Saturday, 10am – 3pm, and the number is 713-942-9966.

I look forward to seeing you soon at WAS-H! hope you find time to paint and enjoy art activities this summer.

Warm Regards,

Karen Houston Stopnicki

WAS-H President

Don't forget to submit your work to one of these two upcoming exhibits!

June Monthly Exhibit: General

The theme for this month is general, so this is your opportunity to submit your favorite subject. 

Deadline to enter: May 31, 2023

June Prospectus HERE

Register HERE

July Student/Teacher Show

If you've created a masterpiece in one of our WAS-H classes, including Senior Class, Open Studio, Zoom, Paint-ins, or any other instructor-led WAS-H event - this is your opportunity to show it off.

Students do not have to be WAS-H members, but the class must have been with a WAS-H instructor. WAS-H instructors will participate but will not be considered for prizes.

Registration opens: June 9, 2023

Deadline to enter: July 5, 2023

July Prospectus HERE

WAS-H is saddened to share the passing of past member, Leng Leng Garcia. 

Leng-Leng Chang Garcia was born in Amoy, China on May 24, 1942. Leng was the youngest daughter of five children born to Sou-Lin Chang (father) and Chon-Iuen Tsai (mother). Leng’s father was engaged with the pearl trade in Japan where her oldest sister, Lillian (Liang Liang) was born. During the turbulent years of World War II, their family moved to Jakarta (Indonesia) where her sister Binnie (Bing Bing) was born, Tainan (Taiwan) where her brother Janson was born, and Xiamen (Amoy, China), where Leng and her brother Leslie were born. After the war, they moved back to their family home in Tainan, where her father inherited a sugar production and fish farming business.

Leng was a dedicated scholar, graduating as valedictorian of her high school, earning her Bachelor of Science at Tunghai University, Taiwan and her master’s degree in microbiology at George Washington University in Washington DC.

In 1967, Leng met her husband, Luis F Garcia, Jr who was stationed in Taiwan during the Vietnam War and was married shortly after. They moved back to Texas in 1970 where they settled in Corpus Christi. There, she worked as a hospital microbiologist, and with her husband, raised their three children, Luis Rene, Luis Felipe III and Mae Behe. In 1991, Leng relocated to Houston, Texas, where she pursued her passions for choral music and the fine arts. As a long-time member of the choir at Saint Anne Catholic church, she was able to express her love for singing; and as a member of Willy Wei Li Wang art group, she was able to experiment and hone her artistic talents in diverse media such as watercolors, oils and bronze sculpture. In 2011, she moved to College Station, TX to be closer to family.

She is survived by her ex-husband, Luis Jr.; her son Rene, his wife Karen and their children Tobias and Naomi; her son, Luis III, his wife Katja and their children Fynn and Saydee; her daughter, Mae Behe and her husband Emanuele.

By Cissy Geigerman and Katie Steck, WAS-H Gallery Co-Directors

May 2023 Gallery Conversations

The month of May is a season of sentiments. These emotions are bound to come out of our paintbrushes. The theme of Kids, Toys and Playfulness has provided an outlet for us to express the joys of just being. The Directors are grateful for the enthusiasm of our members to grab an idea and convey it through watercolors and for their ability to adapt to the many different themes for this term. The May show was dazzling and easy to present with the help of our unfailing volunteer Mansueto Fabugais, and the gallery director team.

Next month we will have 2 wonderful new Gallery Co-Directors.  Leisa Patin has taken classes at the Glassell School and joined WAS-H during Covid. She endeavors to learn to paint more loosely and likes the versatility of the watercolor medium. Linda Flowers has been a member of WAS-H for about 5 years.  She has spent time living in Brazil and even was brave enough to take art classes in Rio De Janeiro as the only American student.  She loves painting faces, especially women.

Our judge this month was Bradley Kerl. He is from Beaumont Texas and holds degrees in Fine Art from the University of North Texas and the University of Houston. He has been the solo focus of gallery exhibits in New York, Houston, Austin, Los Angeles, Galveston, and Beeville Texas. He has participated in group exhibitions in Lyon, London, Amsterdam, Sydney, Oslo, New Orleans, and Dallas.  His work has been published in Artnews, Financial Times, Texas Highway Magazine, Texas Monthly, and others. 

First Place: Laurie Hammons “Summer Daydreams”

BK: I love the layers, the simplified trees. Trees are hard to paint, I know!  Good treatment of the washed out background depicting high summer. The figure is draped in a fantastic pose. This painting works well from a distance and up close.

LH: This is my daughter from a few years ago. She is now a second grade teacher. She always loved to be outdoors and climb trees. This image shows her in her own world.

Second Place: Adam Zhao “Happy Times”

BK: I am impressed with the composition and the depth in the scene. This seems to be a dreamily remembered time and place. This artist appears to have comfort and skill in the application of paint and color.

AZ: This is my first entry at WAS-H! I feel very lucky. It took me about 16 hours to complete this painting and I felt a bit rushed as the deadline was approaching.  The scene is a local beach and this is my granddaughter. The two larger figures in the foreground are actually both her in different poses. To achieve perspective, I painted smaller figures to recede into the distance. They were actually much bigger in my reference photos. I adjusted the colors in the figures for balance and value.

Third Place: Katherine Rodgers “Melting Marbles”

BK: I love the playful composition and concept. This shows a combination of representation vs. abstraction. Very good technique and color saturation. At first I did not know what it was, but then the marbles appeared with colors that mingle and drip away.

KR: I have a set of marbles at home and I love them for the colors.  Thank you for the chance to paint to this theme, it was fun.

Honorable Mention: Susan Collins “My Darling Ophelia”

BK: As I reviewed the paintings along the curved wall, this one jumped out at me.  It is a small sweet painting of loose watercolor, done with a simplistic style.  I can feel the emotion in this one.

SC: There is plenty of emotion in this painting of my granddaughter.  I am thrilled to be recognized in a show that took some courage to enter. I started painting as I retired to challenge myself to try something new. It is thrilling to learn to express myself without language, just art. This child and her family is here to join us today, and I hope you can see the resemblance!

Honorable Mention: Joanie Hughes “Discovery”

BK: This painting is a little different with the scale of the figures filling up the composition. The scene has direction, action, focus and reflections. There is a slight awkwardness in the hunched poses that draw your attention in. I am particularly intrigued with the skin tone showing the beginnings of a sunburn, just like me when I have lost the sense of time from having fun on the beach.

CG: Joanie Hughes is away for this show. She frequent contributor to the Gallery and can paint to any theme the Gallery Directors dream up. Congratulations to her for this well deserved recognition.

Honorable Mention: Beth Graham “Cousins Week at the Beach”

BK: The water is fantastic! The wave are done in a painterly, loose application.  There are overlaps and edges in the figures and the water. This artist has included feet which can be difficult to get right, well done. 

BG: These are my twin grandsons and their cousin who is also a twin.  I am sorry to miss the reception this weekend, but I am at the ARTS Festival in Fayetteville Texas. The festival is wonderful, and I hope to share my experience when I return. 

We're excited to share that WAS-H member Robin Avery has been selected to receive a Watercolor USA Honor Society Award of Excellence for her painting, "Springtime" (pictured below)!

"Springtime" is 22 x 30 inches and painted mostly with Holbein and Da Vinci watercolor paints. Avery's painting will be featured in the Watercolor USA exhibition June through September.

WAS-H is looking for an Administrative Director to join our Board of Directors for the 2023-2024 fiscal year, beginning this June. 

The Administrative Director is responsible for WAS-H Policies and Procedures, including the Procedures Manual and the bylaws, WAS-H Officer elections, as well as holdings such as our book and permanent art collection. This individual will serve as a general resource to the Board on the Society’s policies and procedures.

If you have legal or operational experience or just a thoughtful attention to detail, this could be a wonderful way to contribute to our volunteer run organization. Please contact Karen Stopnicki at president@watercolorhouston.org. Thank you for your consideration!

May's New Member Orientation is scheduled for Friday, May 26th from 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm.

While this session is designed for new members, everyone is welcome to attend. There is no fee, but online registration is required. 

Click HERE to register!

by Karen Stopnicki, WAS-H President

Dear WAS-H Friends,

As we head into summer, I have been reflecting on the past year at WAS-H. I am so thankful for all that we offer and most especially appreciative for our members who make us the wonderful community that we are. If you can, please come to the May General Membership Meeting, to enjoy a great art demo, camaraderie with fellow members and delight in the new exhibit in our gallery.

May is the last month of our fiscal year, which means we are looking to members to renew. If you have not renewed your membership for the upcoming year yet, please do so. Membership dues are a key part of our financial support.

Beginning later this month, you will recognize some new faces at WAS-H leading activities as the Board of Directors and key volunteers transition with the beginning of our fiscal year in June. Incoming volunteers include Kat Rodgers, AME Director; Yvonne Sternes, Building Director; Kelly Medrano, Communication Director, Cheryl Evans and Susan Giannantonio, Education Directors; Linda Flowers and Leisa Patin, Gallery Directors; Paula Fowler, Membership Director; Tosha Gibson, Paint-In Coordinator; and Richard Tabor, Communications Coordinator. Some volunteers are also transitioning into new roles: Kathleen Cooper will be our Secretary, Janet Traylor will be our Treasurer, and Nancy Moody, Volunteer Coordinator.

Our upcoming General Meeting will be on May 7th. Kat Rodgers, professional artist and WAS-H teacher, will be our demo artist. Our Gallery Exhibit theme is Playfulness with juror Bradley Kerl. The Awards and Reception will follow our General Meeting. There are no general meetings during June, July, and August, but we will have monthly Gallery Exhibits. As well, we have a Paint-In with Carla Gauthier scheduled for June 3rd.

Our summer classes open for members’ registration on May 15th – see our full class list HERE. Registering for a class is a great way to enjoy the camaraderie of other artists and enhance your artistic skills. Our standard events such as Open Studio, Model Lab and Senior Group are going strong and welcome you to join in during the summer.

Please join me in thanking the following magnificent people who have contributed so much to WAS-H this past year. Irene Sheytman, Co-Vice President; Marion Friedman, Administrative Director; Diane Trepagnier, AME Director; Darlene Dittoe, Building Director; Beth Graham, Education Director; Cissy Geigerman and Katie Steck, Gallery Directors; Maureen Lewis, Membership Director; Philip Weigand, Past President; and Bridgett Vallery, Paint-In Coordinator. As a largely volunteer run organization, we could not be able to offer everything we do without those who contribute to WAS-H.

I hope you will join with everything going on at WAS-H – thank you for being a part of our arts community at WAS-H!

Warm Regards,

Karen Houston Stopnicki

WAS-H President

Come enter WAS-H's upcoming show all about playfulness. Painting is an art of joy (though sometimes of frustrations), and we hope in painting for this show that you'll feel a spark of playfulness yourself as you create! Register and turn in your playful paintings by May 3 at 3 pm.

Click here for the prospectus.

Click here to register.

Kat Rodgers will be our demo artist at May's general meeting on Sunday, May 7 @ 2 pm.  Kat’s subjects – owls, foxes, raccoons – are a nice compliment for May's show theme, “Kids, Toys, and Playfulness”.

“During my recent time in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, I became an avid birder and started to photograph my own bird images around the island. In the demo, I will demonstrate how I approach bird compositions, feathers, and finishing work. “

Kat teaches an Introduction to Watercolor class at WAS-H, in addition to online watercolor classes on SkillShare.   You can visit her website HERE