Serving Boone, Blowing Rock, Banner Elk, and other towns of the North Carolina High Country | Founded 05-05-05

|| High Country Press Newswire

May 8, 2008 issue

Art Mart Students Celebrate Show Opening and Gifted Instructor May 16

The spring show for adult Art Mart students opens Friday, May 16. Pictured left to right from the top row are Lisa Pepper, Marie Hosefield, Phyllis Miller, Sharon Moore, Cree Scudder, Melanie Hawthorne, Julie Allen and Vicki Kennedy. Not included in photograph are Abby Brown and Kerry Carpenter. This May, adult students of the Art Mart Academy of Boone will exhibit their works and celebrate the talents of their instructor John Bond. Opening night is Friday, May 16, from 5:30 to 8:00 p.m.

“This show isn’t just about production; it really is about what we’ve learned,” noted Marie Hosfield, a longtime student of Art Mart owner John Bond. “Our show emphasizes the individuality of each student.”

Bond’s approach is to work with each student independently—from the early stages of mixing paints to taking paintings to another level.

“John has opened my eyes to look more critically at my work and to learn to resolve my paintings so that I am satisfied,” observed Julie Allen.

“John’s theory at Art Mart is to approach each of us as an individual, with delicate critiques and thought-provoking comments which help us grow,” shared Melanie Hawthorne and Vicki Kennedy.

Others highlighted John’s strength in sharing the process of painting. “His vocabulary has put all of us on the same page—so ‘speaking art’ has become a common language of the students. Classmates learn from one another on a daily basis,” agreed Abby Brown, Kerry Carpenter and Cree Scudder.

Personal attention has made a difference for these students. New to the class this winter are Phyllis Miller and Lisa Pepper. Both commented that their comprehension of the color wheel has made their paintings so much more fluent and has improved their confidence level. “John’s approach simply works for us.”

Another longtime student, Sharon Moore, pointed out that “my moving from oils to pastels to collage at the suggestion of John has broadened my feeling for the various media while sharpening my awareness of my paintings’ compositional elements.”

Art Mart is located at 188 Boone Heights in Boone. For more info, call 828-264-3135.