April Issue 2002
Paint in the Mountains of Beautiful Western North Carolina at Willow Wisp Farm Studios
If you
enjoy plein air (on location) painting but are tired of having
to fly out west or up north to study with the country's best known
plein air instructors you should plan to take a workshop at Willow
Wisp Farm Studios, between May and October of each year and save
the cost of airfare and rental cars. The school is the only school
in the southeast specializing in plein air painting; drawing participants
from as far away as California and Bermuda, and instructors from
the far corners of America and beyond.
Willow Wisp Farm Studios on Hwy. 74-A in Fairview, NC, is just 5 miles southeast of Asheville, NC. Strategically located, Willow Wisp Farm is easily accessible from I-40, I-240, I-26 and the Blue Ridge Parkway.
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Views abound for miles around; from mountain tips to valleys with wild flowers galore. The famed Biltmore House, Chimney Rock and Lake Lure are all within 20 minutes of the art school. Housed in a two-story yellow barn shaped building, Willow Wisp Farm Studios is situated on 6.5 rolling acres with two creeks, weeping willow trees, apple trees, wild flowers, and fenced pasture land. Painting sights can be found around the property, and there is certainly enough space to go around. For those who want more, there are hundreds of painting opportunities throughout the area; from waterfalls, to secluded country lanes, to mountain views.
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Peggy and Mike Taylor, owners of the school have worked hard for the past three years gaining respect in the art workshop world from both instructors and participants alike. Instructors who were out of their grasp a few years ago are now happy to say "yes" when asked to teach at Willow Wisp Farm Studios. Participants are returning to take workshops over and over again because of the instructors available and the pleasurable experience of painting in the mountains. Though the schools main purpose is to offer plein air workshops in this beautiful part of the state, some classes are offered in the studio; including a number of portrait workshops by very sought after instructors. All two dimensional media is offered including oil, pastel, watercolor, acrylic drawing, and collage. Workshops offered this year are: May - Peggy Taylor and Jeanie MacKenzie; June - Mel Stabin, Diane Johnson, & Kenn Backhaus; July - Brian Stewart & Timothy C. Tyler; August - Peggy Taylor & Joyce Moon; September - Camile Przewodek & Bob Rohm; and October - Margaret Carter Baumgaertner, Alan Flattmann, Lois Griffel, Doug Dawson, and Zoltan Szabo.
If none of those pique your interest , future instructors
will include: Nita Leland/collage, Charles Gruppe/oil, Louise
DeMore/oil, Kitty Wallis/pastel, Cathy Goodale & Ellie Weekley/oil
& watercolor, Susan Ogilvie/pastel, Larry Blovits/oil&
pastel, Tom Browning;oil, Robinson/oil, and Elizabeth Mowry/pastel.
In addition to art workshops, the school has a line of handmade wooden artists items ranging from oil painting palette boxes to pastel boxes, to hand held palettes and more. They also offer a selection of other gear and supplies specifically for plein air painting.
To get more information about Willow Wisp Farm Studios check out their website at: (www.willowwispfarmstudios.com) or call 828/628-0401 and request a brochure.
Mailing Address: Carolina Arts, P.O. Drawer
427, Bonneau, SC 29431
Telephone, Answering Machine and FAX: 843/825-3408
E-Mail: carolinart@aol.com
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Carolina Arts
is published monthly by Shoestring
Publishing Company, a subsidiary of PSMG, Inc.
Copyright© 2002 by PSMG, Inc., which published Charleston
Arts from July 1987 - Dec. 1994 and South Carolina Arts
from Jan. 1995 - Dec. 1996. It also publishes Carolina Arts
Online, Copyright© 2002 by PSMG, Inc. All rights reserved
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