We don't often invite non-photographers to give presentations at our Third Thursday programs, but this month we're making an exception in order to get a designer's view of the art of composition. Kris Mitchell, a local colored-pencil artist who has been exhibited throughout the Pacific Northwest as well as nationally, will be our guest speaker at the March 18 meeting. She brings not only years of experience as an exhibiting artist but also experience teaching art and design, most recently at LBCC's Benton Center. She quotes Leo Monahan in describing "art" as a "Logical selection and arrangement of visual elements for order with interest." She adds: "As artists we strive to communicate something to our viewer; we want our viewer to feel something about our subject. We want to engage them. To do so the artist must feel something about the subject. How else can we expect the viewer to feel an emotional connection to our art? But how? How do we convey to the viewer that which inspired us to produce the art in the first place? The principle and elements of design are the building blocks to the language of the visual arts. By understanding the elements and applying the principles we can begin to speak this language to our viewer." The PAG meeting will be in the basement of the Corvallis Arts Center on March 18. Business agenda starts at 7pm and Kris' presentation at 7:30pm. Be sure to check out Kris' challenge (click on the 'more' link below). It's designed to get the creative juices flowing in anticipation of her talk.

'The Flavor of Rhubarb', colored pencil by Kris Mitchell

The next Digital Group meeting is on Monday March 15 at 7pm in the Community Room at Ray’s Supermarket in North Albany. Bruce Beicke will show some of his work and share some of his ideas and approaches to creative expression through digital photography. A projector and laptop will be available for demonstrations or presentations. As usual, bring work to show, questions to ask, and new experiences to share. If you have any questions, email Dave at saxojazz@comcast.net.

'Lower Yosemite Falls' by Harold Marx

Color landscapes by PAGer Jack Larson will grace the walls of the Woodman Gallery at the Corvallis Arts Center March 6 to April 3. Originally scheduled to show B+W prints, Jack decided he'd rather exhibit recent color images, such as the one at left of Olive Lake, which he and Phil Coleman visited on the PAG's Sumpter Trip last October. Most of the photographs were taken in the past year in Oregon, with the exception of a couple of images from SW Utah and one from the east side of Carson Pass in the Sierras.


'Fishing at Olive Lake, 2009' by Jack Larson

The Upstairs Gallery at the Newport VAC is showing Rich Bergeman's series on "place names" in the Coast Range through March 27, with a reception scheduled for Friday, March 12, from 4 - 7 p.m. The 20 platinum prints explore remnants of vanishing settlements founded in the Coast Range in the late 1800s, and are accompanied by brief bits of history on the origins of each location. Only a handful of these places remain as communities today; most are no more than sites that at one time were important enough to earn a place on the map.


'Chitwood, Lincoln County, Oregon' by Rich Bergeman

'Chance to Flourish' at Lasells
Justin Williams, Rich Bergeman, Nancy Hagood and Gary Tepfer are among the photographers represented in "Chance to Flourish: Wild, Public and Private Gardens" at the LaSells Stewart Center this month. That's Justin's pic, "The Cut", at left. Shelley Curtis, curator of OSU's Art About Agriculture collection, invited 35 artists who are already part of the permanent collection to submit recent work to this themed show; it replaces the annual Art About Ag juried show, which was the victim of budget cuts. The show runs through March 30, with a reception and awards presentation on March 17 from 6 -8 p.m.

Baugess retrospective at Blue Sky
An exhibit spanning four decades of the work of Eugene area documentary photographer John Baugess will be at Portland's Blue Sky Gallery, 122 NW 8th, through March 28. Baugess, who was a PAG guest speaker a few years ago, is known for his B+W photographs of daily life and noteworthy events in the mid-valley. An artist's talk will be held Saturday March 6 at 3pm.

Aviation photos at (where else?) PDX
Next time you're up at the Portland Airport check out "The Sky's the Limit: Photographs of Aviation, Air Travel and Airports" in Concourse A. The exhibit features seven Portland area professional and amateur photographers' interpretation of the theme, and remains on view through July, 2010.

Isaak's China photos at UofO Law School
"A Core Sample: China," an exhibit of over 40 color photographs by Portland photographer Carol Isaak, is at the UofO Law School's 2nd Floor Gallery (1515 Agate St., Eugene) through July 21. Carol was one of the photographers in the PAG's Photography Guild Invitational Exhibit at the Corvallis Arts Center last spring. A reception is on March 17 from 5 - 7 pm.

Amazonia photos at UofO Museum
National Geographic photographer Sam Abell and Danish wildlife photographer Torben Nissen are showing more than 50 large color photos of the land and creatures at the headwaters of the Amazon River at the UofO's Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art through May 2. The museum is open Tu 11-5; Wed 11-8; and Thu-Sun 11-5.

The coming of spring marks the inevitable bloom of photography workshops around the country, but as the glitzy brochures from the likes of Anderson Ranch and Maine Photo Workshops pop up in your mailbox, don't forget there is a wide variety of both traditional and digital workshops being offered close to home. One-day, weekend and week-long sessions on everything from HDR and Lightroom to Pinhole and Platinum/Palladium are being taught through the Newport Photo Workshops, the Sitka Center for Art and Ecology on Cascade Head, the Lightbox Gallery in Astoria and others. Some are even being led by members of the PhotoArts Guild. Click the 'more' link for a rundown of some of the offerings coming up

'Newport Bridge', hand-crafted gelatin silver print by Denise Ross

Instructions for viewing events using the Calendar

The PhotoArts Guild was originally formed by five photographers in 1988 who wanted a forum for feedback and critique to encourage their growth as image makers. It became affiliated with the Corvallis Art Center in the early 1990s and currently has over 40 members. For information on the PAG's goals and membership, click 'more'