The Gallery @ Barr Photographics announces the summer installment of the Corner Gallery’s 2019 exhibition series

The Gallery @ Barr Photographics announces the summer installment of the Corner

Gallery’s 2019 exhibition series, with the return of Abingdon, Virginia artist, Thelma Blake.   Ms. Blake is exhibiting some of the finest paintings of her career with a collection of watercolor florals and still life works entitled "The Presence of Water”.  A portion of "The Presence of Water” is presented as traditional, framed water colors utilizing mats and glass but the vast majority of the thirty seven works are presented utilizing an innovative glazing technique. This technique gives the watercolor media a richer, deeper color presentation, preserving the opaqueness of the media while eliminating the need for mats and glass in the frames. This elimination of framing components allows for a lesser price point making the art more affordable! "The Presence of Water” exhibit is reminiscent of the Georgia O’Keeffe style of florals, with wonderful rich detail and color.

Thelma Vannoy Blake is a native of the Lodi community In Washington County, Virginia, Thelma reveals in her personal biography,” I entered this world on May 18^th, 1944! Being nurtured and cared for on a wonderful farm, in the county of Washington, I had the best of all worlds. A wonderful, devoted set of parents who saw to the needs of 5 children was not an easy task. Having two brothers and two sisters, I was the baby girl, so therefore my father doted on me. My oldest brother, now deceased, shared with me the reason for my father’s dotage was that he thought I might die, because I was very sickly. My brother said my dad would walk the floor at night holding me in his arms…that was the beginning of bonding for us. I was truly a “Daddy’s Girl”, Dad was always taking me with him wherever he went and splurging on me while the other four siblings remained with my mother. One of my early memories with my father is him feeding me cheerios when my youngest brother was born……I was an extremely picky eater then. Another memory very clear in my mind after all these years, was Dad taking me to the drugstore in Damascus, VA, sitting me upon a swivel stool and buying me ice cream one cone after another until I was full and could eat no more. On one of these trips he found a little golden locket there and bought it for me. I still have that little locket today!  As I grew up, I loved playing in the water. Each winter, when I was young, I ended up with Pneumonia and had to have penicillin shots. I can distinctly remember when penicillin came out in tablet form…no more shots. I always tell everyone I was raised on Cheerios, Ice cream, and Penicillin.  My youth on the farm was a wonderful experience with lots of happy memories.  My mother and father were both creative people; therefore it seemed natural for 3 of the 5 children to explore the arts. I can easily remember making Easter and Christmas decorations and just painting in general. Adolescent years were filled with chores on the farm, homework, and sports. My high school was small, each student knew the others and each teacher knew all the students. I lived in a world where education was very important. Having graduated Valedictorian of my class, we became the last class to graduate in 11 years in Washington County”. 

            Upon graduation from Liberty Hall High School Thelma began her matriculation at Emory & Henry College in Emory, Virginia. Thelma left Emory & Henry, after the death of her mother, during her junior year. After some time of working and trying to find a center to myself and balance in my life, I met a confirmed bachelor by the name of William (Bill) Blake aka Jim Nasium. After a year of dating, we married and later had one son who is now William Blake, II. Because my husband was in radio broadcasting, we moved throughout his career. Bill’s career took them to six different states and while in Texas, Thelma finished her undergraduate with a BA, University of Texas ’86. As life began to move full circle, Thelma and Bill came back to Virginia and she earned a MA in Education, Tusculum University ’97.  Thelma taught art for the public school system in Washington County, Virginia where she was the head of the art department at John S Battle High School, until her retirement in 2011.

Thelma also reveals in her personal biography where she states, “My career has been dedicated to teaching our youth about Fine Art and the proper discipline that it is. Now that I am retired, a widow, and a grandmother, I make frequent trips to Texas to visit my son, his lovely wife and my three grandchildren who are joys to my life. I continue to participate in education by offering private art classes, in my studio, to those interested. The sharing of technique while relating to real world experiences during instruction is the secret to my success. The mentor / single student instructional model has also given me personal time to focus on my art and the creation thereof”.

            In her Artist Statement, Thelma reveals some of the motivation behind her art with this quote, “Art is a biological necessity” – Laszlo Moholy Nagy – “This is why I create art. It is a biological necessity for me! I am drawn to the media of watercolor for its fluidity on paper and the magical presence as it moves about on paper. Sometimes I force the paint to do what I want and see in my mind; other times I allow the paint to do what it wants to do, always watching for those “happy accidents” to develop.” Thelma has always been prolific in her production of art and has garnered critical acclaim throughout her career. Now in retirement these attributes have never been more pronounced!

"The Presence of Water” will be celebrated with a reception and demonstration of technique by Thelma Blake, to which the public is cordially invited, on Friday, 14 June from 7 - 9:00 PM in The Gallery @ Barr Photographics, 152 E. Main Street, Abingdon, Virginia.  “The Presence of Water” will hang, and be offered for sale, 01 June through 31, July 2019.   The Gallery @ Barr Photographics is housed in the Greenway Trigg Building, located in the heart of Abingdon’s main street historic district.  Please call 276- 628-1486 or visit http://barrphotographics.com for further information.  

Photo #1: “Large Iris”, Watercolor by Thelma Blake

Photo #2: “Glads”, Watercolor by Thelma Blake

Photo #3: “ Summer Beauty II” Watercolor by Thelma Blake