Friday, September 10, 2010

Ruth Edstrom - Artist of the Month for Springfield Art Guild

Congratulations to my mother for being selected Artist of the Month for the Springfield Art Guild!

Our house is filled with great oil paintings she has done of our three sons.  After getting the dogs out of the house and my Vette out of the garage :-) I told my boys to make sure to grab Grandma's paintings off the walls in case of fire.


 This is the background on my mother's painting (in her words):


I grew up on a farm in Minnesota and always loved to draw.   In 1972, when my husband was stationed in Vietnam, a young officer's wife at Richards-Gebaur AFB in Kansas City, MO, an art major, offered oil painting classes to members of the Officers Wives Club.   I signed up and discovered I could paint.  I continued taking classes with Adeline Mayfield, an Artist  teacher at a Community Center in Kansas City, KS for the  next three years until we were transferred  to Northern Virginia.   I took a series of oil painting classes through the Fairfax County Park Authority.
 
In January 1986 I enrolled in drawing and oil painting classes at the Torpedo Factory in Old Town, Alexandria.  In the Fall of 1986 I started classes with Suzanne French Luker at her gallery in Occoquain, VA which I continued until she moved to Florida the summer of 1998. 

I continued classes under the direction of Karen Galleher starting the fall of 1998 until the spring of 2002.  I have been part of the Wednesday Art Group with Susan Norman as the instructor since the beginning.  I enjoy the camaraderie of painting with the ladies in  the Wednesday group so very much!    

In 1993 I joined the Springfield Art Guild for the first time.  During October 1993, one of my oil  paintings "Springtime in Virginia"  was showcased in ARTSFAX by the Arts Council of Fairfax County  at the  Fairfax County Government center representing SAG.   I had a one woman show in Alexandria, VA. I also displayed and sold several paintings at a shop in Old Town, Alexandria, as well as several golf scenery paintings in the US Army Ft. Belvoir Golf Club.   During that same time frame, one of my paintings at  a  SAG show at the Northern Virginia Community College received an honorable mention.

I have displayed my paintings at the Fairfax County Government Center, numerous county libraries,  Green Spring Gardens Park, Goodwin House, and the Springfield Mall Exhibit. The majority of my sales have been  commissions.  In the past, I was giving many of  my paintings  to family and friends as gifts for  various occasions.  At last count, I realized I have paintings in 18 states and two in the District of Columbia. 
 
I truly enjoy painting and feel so blessed and thankful that God granted me talent in this endeavor.