HAGERSTOWN, MD – Artist Rhonda Smith of Keedysville, Maryland, credits her first-place win in the “Cumberland Valley Artists” exhibition to the beauty and history of the national park near her home.
Smith’s linocut “Roulette Farm” depicts the historic farm and landscape at Antietam National Battlefield. In 1862 Sharpsburg, Maryland was the site of the single bloodiest battle in the Civil War.
Smith’s work is included among 65 pieces of art by 62 artists in this year’s juried exhibition. An annual tradition since the 1930s, the “Cumberland Valley Artists” exhibition showcases, celebrates, and supports artists of the Cumberland Valley region.
The “Cumberland Valley Artists” exhibition will be from June 15 through Aug. 26, 2024. An opening reception and talk with the award-winning artists and juror Lise Dubé-Scherr, dean of Continuing and Professional Studios at Delaware College of Art and Design, will be Saturday, June 15, 1 to 3 p.m. The event is free. Register in advance by contacting Donna Rastelli at 301-739-5727 or drastelli@wcmfa.org.
“The Cumberland Valley exhibitions are a terrific way to learn about and support the artists in our region,” said Sarah Hall, executive director of the Washington County Museum of Fine Arts. “We are very proud of this 90-plus year tradition, and I encourage all of you to come and discover the talent and vision of your artist neighbors at the museum this summer.”
Smith has been greatly impacted by her almost daily walks through the battlefield, so much so that “Roulette Farm” is part of a series “Antietam Encounter.”
“Over the years, I have found the natural beauty of the landscape, the memory of the battles fought, the lives lost, and the lives forever altered to be a recurring inspiration,” she said. “I look always for the textures,the surprises that the familiar affords. The play of light and the contrast of surfaces are the subjects of my work. Walking a place, returning over and over, gazing upon the same landscape year after year, I notice the changes that occur throughout the year, the month, the day.”
For the relief process of “Roulette Farm,” she cut into a piece of linoleum to create the landscape images. The remaining raised areas of the linoleum are covered with water-based ink and transferred to a sheet of paper. The process is a one-to-one transfer. The final print is the same size as the linoleum from which the image was cut.
Smith estimated it took her between 16 and 25 days to create “Roulette Farm,” from photographing the images she used for reference to the actual cutting process of linoleum to the final drying process.
“I am not the first to document this historic place, nor the first to feel the pull of history and timeless quality that persists among these rolling hills,” Smith said. “I celebrate this place and strive to contribute to the immortal story the landscape reveals. My art is a kind of homage to the land and its stories, as a way of preserving memories.”
Organized by the Washington County Museum of Fine Arts. This exhibition is supported by Hugh and Marty Talton, Conservit Inc., Delaplaine Foundation, and Washington County Arts Council.
Cutline:
Rhonda Smith of Keedysville, Maryland won first-place in the Washington County Museum of Fine Arts’ “Cumberland Valley Artists” exhibition.
THE WINNERS
CUMBERLAND VALLEY ARTIST WINNERS
- First Place Juror’s Award, $1,000 – Rhonda Smith of Keedysville, Maryland, “Roulette Farm,” linocut
- Second Place Juror’s Award, $500 – Jayne Gaskins of Reston, Virginia, “The Commuter,” fiber art
- Third place Juror’s Award, $250 – Sage Chandler of Lovettsville, Virginia, “Feather Earrings,” oil on canvas
- Washington County Arts Council Inc. Award, $250 – Jamie Hardges of Hagerstown, Maryland, “By Another Name,” clay sculpture.
- The Valley Art Association Award, $250. Given to honor present and previous members whose love of art and whose contributions to the Association have enriched the organization and the community: Virginia Hair and Carol B. Lovell – Susan Shalowitz of Rockville, Maryland, “Sonata,” oil on canvas
- Clyde H. Roberts Memorial Award for Best Watercolor, $250, sponsored by the children of Clyde H. Roberts – Patricia Boyst of Hagerstown, Maryland, “Time to Circle Around,” watercolor
- Director’s Award Given in Memory of Lee Weaver, $250 – Will be announced at a later date.
Cumberland Valley Artists juror is Lise Dubé-Scherr. Throughout her career, Dubé-Scherr has been a champion of the arts and has sought to innovatively engage diverse communities with art in meaningful ways. A native of Canada, Lise started her career developing and teaching art classes and workshops at community centers and museums including the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts and the National Gallery of Canada. She has been the director of education at the Allentown (PA) Art Museum, and has held subsequent positions as the executive director of the Driehaus Museum in Chicago and as executive director of the arts service organization International Arts & Artists in Washington, D.C. She is the dean of Continuing and Professional Studios at Delaware College of Art and Design. Through it all, Dubé-Scherr has remained committed to fostering the personal and professional growth and goals of students, adults, and emerging and seasoned creative professionals.
COMPLETE LIST OF SELECTED ARTISTS
All artists are included on the following lists:
Artists
Cathy Abramson of Chevy Chase, Maryland
Mary Beth Akre Seely of Parkton, Maryland
John Aquilino of Rockville, Maryland
Colette Barnett of Hagerstown, Maryland
Jeffrey Berg of Washington, D.C.
Melanie Berry of Parkton, Maryland
Patricia Boyst of Hagerstown, Maryland
Sage Chandler of Lovettsville, Virginia
Colleen Clapp of Frederick, Maryland
Rick Clement of Sterling, Virginia
Lesa Cook of Burkittsville, Maryland
Whitney Dahlberg of Hagerstown, Maryland
Steven Dobbin of Mount Airy, Maryland
Tracey Donnelly Franklin of Shepherdstown, West Virginia
Royce Faddis of Hagerstown, Maryland
Hector Fernandez of Hagerstown, Maryland
Luc Fiedler of Mount Airy, Maryland
Andrea Finch of Chambersburg, Pennsylvania
Anne Finucane of Chambersburg, Pennsylvania
Paul Gallo of Middletown, Pennsylvania
Jayne Gaskins of Reston, Virginia
Annette Gloomis of Shepherdstown, West Virginia
Jamie Hardges of Hagerstown, Maryland
Sarah Higgins of Frederick, Maryland
Jerry Johnson of Frederick, Maryland
Carolyn Leslie King of Frederick, Maryland
Cathy Leaycraft of: Parkville, Maryland
Donna Lehman of Hagerstown, Maryland
Melissa Libertini of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
Philip Lindsey of Chambersburg, Pennsylvania
Gordon Lyon of Gaithersburg, Pennsylvania
Donna Mason of Hagerstown, Maryland
Julie Maynard of Middletown, Maryland
Benjamin McAfee of Chambersburg, Pennsylvania
Abigail McBride of Chesapeake City, Maryland
Andrea McCluskey of Frederick, Maryland
Jan McIntyre-Creager of Frederick, Maryland
Keely Neubauer of Williamsport, Maryland
Lee Newman of Adamstown, Maryland
Charles Noland of Hagerstown, Maryland
Terry Pellmar of Silver Spring, Maryland
Hunt Prothro of Keedysville, Maryland
Thomas Renner of Smithsburg, Maryland
James Roberts of Westminster, Maryland
Rebecca Rothey of Laurel, Maryland
Eric Rottcher of Bethesda, Maryland
Lori Rounds of Frederick, Maryland
Paula Saneaux of Hagerstown, Maryland
Audrey Scanlan Teller of Middletown, Maryland
Sandra Schuster of Waynesboro, Pennsylvania
Susan Shalowitz of Rockville, Maryland
Jeffrey Shoaf of Hagerstown, Maryland
Rhonda Smith of Keedysville, Maryland
Shannon Thomas of Shepherdstown, West Virginia
Annette Verna of Charles Town, West Virginia
Mary Waldhorn of Frederick, Maryland
Brian Walker of New Market, Maryland
Bruce Wilder of Keedysville, Maryland
Cathy Wilkin of Harpers Ferry, West Virginia
Carol Wilks of Boonsboro, Maryland
Elaine Wolfe of Hedgesville, West Virginia
Douglas Zaruba of: Augusta, West Virginia
