Here's how you'll kinow you're almost there...

I almost had a wreck when I got off Ohio 32 east of I275 at Batavia to drive up to UC Clermont College to visit my gallery show – Nikki Vargas has done a fantastic job promoting the show and the reception for Ronald Keith and I this Friday night from 5-7 pm!

We were thrilled by the comments people who’ve visited the show wrote in the guestbook and by Nikki telling us how much people seem to have enjoyed the show and found our work very “relatable.”

It's easy to find: take the Eastgate Mall/Ohio 32 exit from I275 and drive less than 5 miles east. At the first Batavia exit, follow the signs pointing to University of Cincinnati Clermont College. When you enter the campus, Snyder Hall is on the left where the red umbrellas are. For easy handicapped access, drive around to your right past the large parking lot. Continue on until you see the ramp and motorized doors. Once you enter, the gallery is just down the hall on the same floor.

 

Early in his life, Ronald Keith was fascinated by the hand-painted “Chew Mail Pouch Tobacco” barns that dotted Ohio and Kentucky landscapes. Like me, he painted in oils, watercolors, and acrylics while still in high school and got into the graphic arts industry after college. Ron painted large scale billboards for an outdoor advertising agency and today he still enjoys painting old barns and old trucks or farm machinery in fields. He’s an international artist, represented by Penny Lane Publishing.

“Relatable” seems to be one of the threads that makes our work so compatible in the Park National Bank Gallery. I certainly relate to Ron’s subject matter – it reminds me of the drawings of Scott Sherman, a fellow art student at Findlay High School. And most people around here relate to familiar and well-loved Cincinnati landmarks like the Tyler Davidson Fountain, Krohn Convervatory and Union Terminal.

Color is another thing our work has in common. Ron’s truck paintings look so alive to me because of the colors he’s used in his paintings. I think you’ll really enjoy the show if you’re able to come.

We’ll both be there and will have refreshments this Friday night and the gallery is open through next Wednesday, June 26 from 8 am to 5 pm. This is UC Clermont’s 40^th year and it’s been a joy to get more familiar with the campus. I’ve been impressed by it and its students.  Moreover, I am grateful to have had my first gallery show here and appreciative of Nikki Vargas’ help and support.

See you Friday night 5-7 pm?