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Artists who paints in oil en plein aire. Member of the three member Plein Aire Cottage Artists. Members: Mary Rose Holmes, Violetta Chandler and Helen Tilston

Thursday, March 20, 2008

Suncoast News Article published March 19, 08


Displayed At PHCC
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By Scott E. Smith of The Suncoast News

Published: March 19, 2008

NEW PORT RICHEY, Fla. - NEW PORT RICHEY, Fla. - Your friendly postman isn't the only one who braves the elements of Mother Nature.

Environmental artists – the practitioners of outdoor, or "plein air," painting – brave sun, wind and rain to deliver their appreciation of their surroundings and personal sense of the community in which they reside.

Through April 15 the Pasco-Hernando Community College Art Gallery is presenting a collection of artwork by the Plein Air Cottage Artists. The exhibit features works by Mary Rose Holmes, Violetta Shtumeyzen and Helen Tilston.

The three met when Holmes and Tilston studied under Shtumeyzen at the Gulf Coast Museum, in Largo.

Holmes, a fifth-generation Floridian, understands the beauty of Florida and how to bring it to life on canvas. She gained knowledge from her grandmother and obtained a degree in fine art at Agnes Scott College, in Atlanta.

Shtumeyzen studied under her father, Yakov Tsatskin, an artist. In addition to teaching at Gulf Coast Museum, she teaches at Ringling School of Fine Art, in Sarasota.

Tilston, is a native of Galway, Ireland, where she discovered her love of color and form. This fondness developed into a passion for painting – particularly plein air.

Tilston studied at Canada's Ontario College of Art and Design and at The Gulf Coast Museum.

The trio can be seen in the community capturing their surroundings on canvas.

The subject matter of their artwork includes Florida landscapes, mostly around St. Petersburg and Tampa. They focus on the shores and streets of Indian Rocks Beach.

They concentrate on the cottages and small businesses that are rapidly disappearing during a wave of redevelopment in the southern Pinellas beach communities and have been collaborating together for five years.

While she was painting a cottage, an onlooker told Holmes she couldn't save the cottage by merely preserving its image on canvas.

Thus, the Plein Air Cottage Artists were born. The community has since responded to their efforts and a yearly calendar, "Save Our Cottages," is a result.

The history of plein air painting can be traced back to the mid-1800s, when Impressionism was born. Impressionist style of art is when the artist captures an image or object as if someone catches a glimpse of it.

The paintings possess a strong use of color, are bright and vibrant, with subject matter primarily limited to landscapes.

True to form, their artwork reflects rapid, vibrant strokes of color that capture Florida of yesteryear.

The PHCC Gallery is part of the Alric C.T. Pottberg Library on the PHCC West Campus, 10230 Ridge Road, New Port Richey.

Viewing hours are 8 a.m. - 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

For more information on the Plein Air Cottage Artists visit its href=http://www.pleinaircottageartists.com> Web site.

Friday, March 14, 2008

Old Florida Paintings by the Plein Aire Cottage ARtists





triptych by Mary Rose Holmes, Violetta Shtumeyzen and Helen Tilston, the Plein Air Cottage Artists, who met in an art class in ’99.
[Special to the Times]
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NEW PORT RICHEY — Anyone who loves Old Florida's quaint beach cottages on sand paths leading to the Gulf of Mexico will enjoy paintings by the Plein Air Cottage Artists.

The exhibit is coming to Pasco-Hernando Community College's art gallery.

"Plein air" refers to artists who work in sun, rain, fog or cold to capture the light of the outdoors (think Vincent Van Gogh in Arles).

The Plein Air Cottage Artists are Mary Rose Holmes, a fifth-generation Floridian; Helen Tilston, born and educated in Galway, Ireland; and Violetta Shtumeyzen, who was born in Ukraine and educated at the Repin Academy of Art in Russia, and teaches at the Gulf Coast Museum of Art in Largo and the Ringling School of Art in Sarasota.

The three met in an art class in 1999 and began working together in 2002, concentrating on what they have called "an endangered species," the cottages of Indian Rocks Beach.

Their colorful work is impressionistic; they sometimes create works individually that can be displayed together as a triptych.

The three have used their art to pressure government bodies to preserve the quaint neighborhoods along the barrier islands of Pinellas County that are making way for high-rise condominiums.

"They put a face ... on the cottages," Indian Rocks Beach Mayor Bill Ockunzzi once said.

The three have gone to Italy together to paint and were invited to exhibit their work in the International Biennale in Florence in December.

Their work is permanently exhibited at Guppy's restaurant in Indian Rocks Beach.

Information from Times files was used in this report.



>>check it out

Plein Air Cottage show

Where: Pasco-Hernando Community College Fine Arts Gallery in the Alric C.T. Pottberg Library on the New Port Richey campus, 10230 Ridge Road.

When: Thursday March 13 thru April 15 2008. Opening reception, 4:30-6:30 p.m. Thursday. Hours are 8 a.m.-9 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays. Call 816-3229.

Admission: Free.


[Last modified Thursday, March 6, 2008 5:54 PM]



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Monday, March 10, 2008

Pasco Hernando Community College Exhibition-Plein Aire Cottage Artists 2008






Today, we enjoyed meeting Carol our expert picture hanger and Doug Butler who is responsible for the beautiful library at Pasco Hernando Community College. Our exhibition hangs at thr Alric C.T. Pottberg Library Gallery with an opening reception on Thursday March 13 commencing at 4.30 p.m. The exhibition run through April 15th. The Gallery enjoys spectacular light with long windows and a pink flowering tree is the backdrop to our paintings.Live oaks cast shadows on our art work. The subject of our paitings is Indian Rocks Beach, Italy and Ireland. Thirty two paintings will be on display.
We look forward to welcoming friends and meeting you in person on Thursday, March 13th.