Oil Painters of America Eastern Regional Exhibition

We are thrilled to announce that "Gold Elephant" has been accepted into the Oil Painters of America's 2007 Eastern Regional Exhibition of Traditional Oils!

There are only about 100 pieces accepted into this show from member artists who reside in the 26 states and 5 Canadian provinces which make up the OPA's eastern region. Membership into Oil Painters of America is itself juried - the member roles read as a who's who of fine art. To make the cut into the regional show is a tremendous accomplishment!

The exhibition will hang at the beautiful Weatherburn Gallery in Naples, Florida from November 24 to January 5, 2008, opening with a gala champagne reception on Saturday the 24th.

Oil Painters of America hosts four intensely competitive exhibitions per year - three regionals and one national. Within their relatively short 16 year history, the organization has become a gathering place for the best artists in the field. They are, as their website declares, "dedicated to the preservation of representational art."

First Place at Atlanta Artists Center!

One of Charles' newest paintings, "Takin' it Easy - a study", was awarded first place at the Atlanta Artists Center's second annual open juried exhibition "Synchronicity".

The reception this past Saturday was very well attended. Submission to the exhibition was open to non-members, and this resulted in almost 300 entries, of which only 76 were accepted. It was a very nice show with a wide range of styles and subject matter. The exhibition will remain up until the end of November at the Atlanta Artists Center's Grandview Gallery.

(The painting is a little dark in this photo because I had to shoot at an angle to avoid glare from the flash. For a better picture of the painting, scroll down to the previous entry about it that I posted last week.)

Painting Demonstration at Lakeview Academy

On Monday, October 22, Charles visited Lakeview Academy, a private K-12 school in Gainesville, Georgia, and presented an oil painting demonstration to the AP Studio Art, Painting, and Art Exploration classes. Charles worked from a still-life and kept the full room informed and entertained for most of the afternoon.

The school's weekly parent email included this wonderful little blurb the following week:

The Upper School Visual Arts classes had a fantastic painting workshop last week, conducted by guest artist Charles Young Walls. Students, faculty and staff were in attendance to watch and listen to Mr. Walls as he painted and lectured for two and a half hours. Trained at the Art Students League in NY, Walls spoke with witty passion as he lectured on art history, painting fundamentals, and principles of light and space. We are already planning for him to return for another workshop next year.

Many thanks to Upper School Art Teacher Clayton Santiago for the photo.

New Works: "Takin' it Easy - a study"

This new piece is a quick study, done in just a few hours one afternoon. I love the life and immediacy of the brushwork. The sitter was thrilled as well, and especially liked how Charles had captured her "sassy attitude." (14 x 18, oil on panel)