Receptions are common when art exhibitions open, but “The Magic of Watercolor” will give viewers a different kind of access to the artists.
On Friday, to mark the opening of a combined show by the Tennessee Watercolor Society’s Chattanooga and Knoxville artists, four members will take part in a panel discussion about the works on view.
“It’s something new,” says artist Helen Burton, who will serve as one of the panelists, along with fellow Chattanooga chapter artist Marie Spaeder Haas and the Knoxville chapter’s Spencer Hudson and Judy Lavoie, the organization’s reigning Best in Show winner.
“People come to a show and look at the paintings and probably have questions – how did the artist do that and why did the artist paint that particular subject? – and there’s nobody there to answer them,” Burton explains. “The main idea [for the panel discussion] is to educate the public about watercolor.”
The Tennessee Watercolor Society is a statewide organization with members centered in five major cities: Chattanooga, Knoxville, Nashville, Memphis and the Tri-Cities. The organization has a biennial exhibition in which all areas are represented, but this is the first time the Chattanooga and Knoxville chapters have exhibited together. The show is set up at The Arts Center in Athens, Tennessee, which is midway between the two larger cities.