Meet Our New NSAA Artist Members!

This 2015 Exhibition season, we are eager to introduce the North Shore Arts Association's newest artist members and warmly welcome them to our community! The New Members Show, Jun. 4 - June 27, showcases these sixteen artists and their work. Opening reception will be held Sunday, June 7 from 2 - 4 p.m. Please seek out our new members, introduce yourself and others to them. We want all of our membership to feel at home and supported in our galleries and at our receptions. First and foremost this is "The Year of the Artist"!

Introducing the North Shore Arts Association's new juried artist members:

J.E. Daly is a full time artist who lives and works at his studio in Hudson, MA. He was born in Glens Falls, New York, and earned B.S. and M.S. Ed. degrees from

Siena and St. Rose College, respectively. He received early training from his mother, regional artist P.A.Daly. His formal art training came under Michael Dowling at the UMASS Danforth Museum School of Art, in Framingham, MA. Daly has also studied with Bruce Bachman Turner, Don Stone and Charles Movalli. He has shown his work in numerous national juried exhibits. Daly's work resides in numerous northeast corporate and private collections. He works primarily in oil. Daly believes that growing up in the Washington County region of upstate New York creates a unique appreciation for rural and mountain environments. "I am most inspired in the creative process

when painting from life", he says. "I try to find the human connection in nature, from the exotic to the mundane. I hope to portray the 'sense of landscape' and the never-ending human relationship with the earth. This is a timeless emotion". Daly travels extensively and has painted in Europe, North America and Asia. His work is represented in the Adirondack Art (Association) Gallery in Essex, NY, The Blackburn Gallery in Queensbury, NY and John Zaccheo Fine Arts Gallery in Manchester, VT. www.jedaly.com

Gary Davis was born in Saugus, MA. Gary draws his inspiration from personal experience, and his New England surroundings. As a young boy, Gary spent much of

his time outdoors, whether on his grandfather's fishing boat, or with his father at the ballpark, and later on the golf course. Encouraged by his high school art teacher, Gary followed his passion, and in 1980 he earned a BFA from Massachusetts College of Art. His oil landscapes, marine art and sports paintings have been exhibited at various galleries, and placed through corporate art buyers. In 1991, Steuben commissioned Gary to create the image for, "The Pitch" which was translated into a limited edition, crystal sculpture. Gary is a member of the Copley Society of Art in Boston. A few times a year, Gary joins friends to paint en

plein air, in Booth Bay, Maine. Many days he can be found among the marshes and shorelines of Essex, Ipswich, and Gloucester where the light offers a new landscape every minute. Gary lives in Wakefield, MA, with his wife Cindy, and their recently adopted dog, Dixie.




F. Michael Dorsey Mike is a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design in Illustration and Animation. His animation, "Twilight" (no vampires) won 5 National

and International Awards. He studied illustration with Chris Van Allsburg and Animation with Amy Kravis and Yvonne Andersen. His work is collected in the U.S.A. and in Canada. Years ago he heard that... “Plein Air painting is God’s prank on the artistic soul: lured into the beauty, or the mystery, or the intrigue of a landscape, the artist sets up their easel and goes at it for hours. Sometimes the moment is captured. More often, the lighting changes more and more, and finally beaten, he/she packs up thinking, “I’ll get it tomorrow”… and so the ruse goes on and on”. Mike, with his wife, long
time NSAA member, Janet Sutherland calls Ipswich, MA home. Most days he can be found “livin’ the ruse” and thanking his lucky stars for an artistic soul.
www.fmdorseyart.fineartstudioonline.com

Cynthia Dunaway was born in Excelsior, Minnesota. From the beginning, she had a keen interest in putting down onto paper what she saw in nature and loved to

draw from life. After meeting Stapleton Kearns in 1986, Cynthia moved to Cape Ann to pursue her interest in painting. Since then, she has been deeply committed to the development of her artistic expression through the use of charcoal and pencil in life drawing and as a "plein air" painter. Cynthia has studied with numerous Cape Ann artists: Stapleton Kearns, Bernie Gerstner, Ruth Hagstrom, Debbie Clarke, David Curtis, Don Stone and Paul George. She also attended Montserrat College of Art and Mass. College of Art in Boston. Cynthia has been the recipient of many awards, such as the Earl Merchant Memorial Award for excellence in portraiture, the C. Bruce Brown Memorial Award in oil painting, the
Gerald Epstein Memorial Award for innovative graphic work and the Marguerite Pearson Gold Medal. She is a returning artist member of the North Shore Arts Association, the Rockport Art Association and a former member of the Local Colors/Artists Co-op in Gloucester, MA.









Michael S. Foley grew up in Beverly, MA and attended public schools there. He worked at various part time jobs during his teen years, and pursued wood carving, hiking and guitar. He attended Lowell Technological Institute in Lowell, MA, where he earned his Bachelors of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering. While following a career in Mechanical Engineering

Design and Management, Mr. Foley and his wife, Anne, raised their two children. He continued his interest in relief wood carving and guitar over the years and in 2003 took a three year sabbatical from engineering to start his own company, Northshore Home Repair Co., which he ran for three years before returning to his career in engineering. For many years, Mr Foley had planned to pursue a second career in Stone Sculpture and upon his retirement in 2013, he put his plan into action. The advent of readily available industrial diamond tools enabled his transition from woodcarving to

stonecarving, working as M. S. Foley Stoneworks in Gloucester. The majority of his work is in local granite, and to a lesser extent, Berkshires and Vermont marble. He had had gallery exhibits and shows on Cape Ann, MA and in Nashua, NH and has displayed his work in several Cape Ann establishments. "Geometry and the love of natural materials are the driving forces behind my work. As a lifelong carver and career machine design engineer, I find beauty in both the gifts of the earth, as well as the wisdom of mathematics, which helps us to see our humble place in the universe. My sculptures, in their small ways, attempt to transform the fusion of these beauties into expressive forms, frozen in time, but warmed by each human hand which reaches out to touch them." www.msfoleystoneworks.com


Deborah Geurtze  www.rockyneckartcolony.org/_artists/geurtze.php



Jim Gibbons  "The most creative people in this world are children. For most, as

they mature that spark for creating and imagination fades. Being an artist is an extension of that childhood, but with the fine skills to express and capture the imagination". Growing up in Gloucester, Massachusetts with its rich art and fishing history, and being surrounded with the sheer beauty of Cape Ann was the key to open Jim's desire to capture all that is beautiful. "Being able to take a blank surface and push paint tactfully around to create an illusion of three dimensions is magic". One hundred percent self taught, from the basics of observing to

the complexities of brush quality, for Jim, "It's been a tremendously patient and passionate journey which only grows stronger with the passing of time". www.jimgibbonspaintings.com





Michele J. Kenna, a transplanted Canadian, has lived in Massachusetts for over 30 years. Growing up in a family involved in art and theater, Michele pursued her

own artistic aspirations by completing her degree in Fine Arts at the University of Toronto. After raising two children in Beverly, MA, Michele continued to study with nationally known American artists who taught and mentored her in the pastel medium, her primary influences being Frank Federico, PSA 2012 Hall of Fame Honoree and internationally renowned painter, Wolf Kahn. Michele has also studied with renowned American painters, Betty Lou Schlemm, Charles Movalli, Ted Minchin, Barbara Moody, Masako Kamiya and many more. Classes at Montserrat College of Art in Beverly, MA have inspired Michele to reach out beyond traditional boundaries and to challenge herself to more
abstract ways of expression. With a studio at Porter Mill Studios  in Beverly, Michele continues to develop her unique style of landscape painting. She has exhibited her work in numerous galleries and art associations in the Greater Boston area and the North Shore. She is a juried artist member at the Cambridge Art Association, Marblehead Arts Association, Pastel Painters Society of Cape Cod and the Rocky Neck Art Colony. www.michelejkenna.com

Dana Levin, during her high school years, attended both The New World School of the Arts, Miami, FL and Belvoir Terrace, Lenox, MA, a program for gifted young

artists. She received a B.F.A. from the acclaimed School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Dana traveled to Florence, Italy to study at the rigorous Florence Academy of Art and trained in the painting and drawing techniques of the Old Masters, where she subsequently taught for several years. Her private study of realism oil painting has taken her to museums throughout Europe, Britain, Russia, and across the United States. Dana's paintings have received awards and honors from prestigious national and international juried shows and museums. She is a Fellow of the American Artist Professional League and her work is included in

important museum and private collections. Dana accepts commissioned painting requests: portraits, still life, and landscape paintings in the Boston, New Hampshire Connecticut and Rhode Island areas. Dana's oil paintings are highly crafted, subtle questions about existence, death and attachment. www.danalevin.com

Eileen Patten Oliver has been painting in Massachusetts and in Maine, specializing in landscape and seascape, for more than 50 years. Born and raised in

Waltham, MA, she received her early art education under noted Boston painter, Paul Shea. Eileen was chosen to take classes at Mass College of Art while still in high school. Although life circumstances prevented her from continuing formal training, she continued to learn from other painters and learned much as a result of her own endeavors. Eileen had found inspiration in the beauty of the DownEast Maine coast and upon moving to Cape Ann in 2010, she soon discovered the quality of light, natural beauty and architecture unique to the area also offered the painter boundless subject matter. Eileen paints
"not merely to document images of people and places, but to capture the spirit and intensity of that one magic moment with her brush". An artist member of the Newburyport Art Association and a contributing member at the Rockport Art Association, Eileen currently lives and paints in Gloucester, MA with her husband, James Oliver, a Cape Ann native and also an accomplished artist. www.eileenpattenoliver.com

Rae O'Shea Originally from central New Jersey and now residing in Rockport, MA., Rae began a lifelong love of traveling and painting at an early age. She became

a professional painter in 2006. She believes plein air painting to be an essential element in her development as a painter. Using a traditional approach most of her studio paintings are based on studies completed on location. Rae received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Maryland in European History and English Literature. As an artist she is primarily self-taught but has attended workshops with Stapleton Kearns, Scott Christensen, Timothy Thies and Calvin Liang. She is a Signature Member of the American Impressionist Society, The Plein Air Painters of Colorado and the Plein Air Painters of the
Jersey Coast, the Mid-Atlantic Plein Air Painters and the Plein Art Painters of the United Kingdom, and associate member of Oil Painters of America, Landscape Painters of America, the Catherine Lorillard Wolfe Art Club, the Rockport Art Association and the California Art Club. She has participated in numerous plein air events including Paint Annapolis, Wayne Plein Air Festival, and Plein Air Easton. Recent awards include the Tamsin L. Holtzer award for Traditional Landscape at the Catherine Lorillard Wolfe exhibit at the National Arts Club, First Place at the Plein Air Colorado National Show and Honorable Mention for Artistic Excellence and Jurors Top Fifty at Salon International 2011 and 2012. Her work has appeared in numerous art publications and the book "100 Painters of the Mid-Atlantic". Represented by galleries in New Jersey and Pennsylvania she recently had a two month solo show at the Noyes Museum's Seaview Gallery. www.raeosheaart.com.

Terry Del Percio-Piemonte "Sometimes my art expresses an internal secret, an obvious emotion or no meaning at all. I am not always sure which one is which. I

guess the viewer decides. I don't set out to create art about a particular subject or express a particular emotion - I let whatever is coming, arrive and unfold. I suppose that in many ways, my work demonstrates either complexity or simplicity; after all - aren't our collective lives made up of both? When I enter my studio, I don't know what is going to happen. A flurry of emotion usually shows up and for a few minutes leaves me confused, scattered, disorganized and sometimes almost frantic. Once I put a shape, a line, or a color down, I begin to feel calmer and more at ease. I try very hard not to think, but to let my instincts move forward. This isn't always possible, of course. Typically working on at least three pieces at the same time,

I move back and forth among them in each session. Usually these pieces are in different media - mixed media collage, watercolor, and acrylic painting. Other materials such as ink, oil sticks, graphite, charcoal, pencil, and threads find their way into my work. Working with various media keeps me on my toes and pushes me to experiment and change. I change, you change, the world changes, my art changes. Mostly self-taught, I have also studied with Susan Guest-McPhail, Nick Simmons, and Tom Sutherland. I am grateful to the many incredibly talented artists everywhere who inspire me with their fabulous work. www.terrydelpercio.com

Brent Rotsko was born 1954 on the north shore of Boston. His interest in painting maritime subjects began while spending time as a Merchant Marine after graduating from Maine Maritime Academy. His days spent on the ocean and local

waterways as a Merchant Marine gave him a great love and appreciation for the beauty and balance of nature. His first artistic endeavor was carving intricate ship models while spending time at sea. After his mother passed away, inspired by the art she left behind, he picked up her oil paints and began to paint. He fell in love with oil painting! As a self taught artist in search of a more solid training, he sought out workshops, lessons, and demonstrations from local artists whose work he admired, such as Todd Bonita, Donald Jurney, Robin Thornhill, Rosalie Sidoti, and others. Captivated by the smells, sounds, taste, and feel of the sea, Brent
strives to capture depth, dimension, and atmosphere in his paintings, the result being a representation of reality. Brent resides in Merrimac, Massachusetts with his wife Jana. He enjoys the support of his wife and three daughters and two sons-in-law. www.brentrotsko.com

Judy A. Ryan was born in Chicago, Illinois. She received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Painting from the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana and a Master of Fine Arts degree from Boston University. Judy also received training from Robert

Cormier in portrait drawing, life drawing and cast drawing at The Guild of Boston Artists. David P. Curtis has been her mentor for landscape painting. Judy has taught art at many schools and museums including the DeCordova Museum in Lincoln, MA, the Worcester Art Museum, Brookline Arts Center, Newton Center for the Arts, Cambridge Center for Adult Education, Emerson Umbrella for the Arts and Concord Continuing Education. She has taught abroad for "Art in Provence", as well as having conducted her own painting workshops in Provence. Judy, currently teaches at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts where she has worked since 1994. Judy received

the Frances A. Kinnicutt Foreign Travel Award administered through the Worcester Art Museum while teaching at the museum and received an artist support grant administered through the Somerville Arts Council where she worked as a Somerville artist for 10 years. In 1996, Judy joined the historic artist cooperative of Fenway Studios in Boston. She recently served on the Board of the Fenway Alliance in Boston and is currently an officer on the Fenway Studios Board of Directors. After the loss of her husband, artist Arthur Collette, Judy moved to Gloucester in 2013 to further pursue her love of "plein air" landscape painting. www.fenwaystudios.org/artists/judy_ryan.php



Katalin Spang grew up in New York City, a wonderful place to nurture her love of art and  graduated from the High School of Music and Art in 1964. She received a

Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1968 from The Cooper Union and a Master of Arts in Painting from Villa Schifanoia, a graduate school of Art and Music affiliated with an American degree granting college in Florence, Italy. She has taught Fine Arts in the public school systems of Yonkers, NY, Tewksbury, MA and Burlington, MA for a total of thirty one years. She also taught classes in Calligraphy at Middlesex Community College for twelve years. In the summer of 2003 Katalin was the recipient of a grant "Art Renewal for Teachers" (ART) from the Philanthropic Institute of Boston. The grant enabled her to travel to Tuscany where she photographed and painted the landscape, en plein air. "My joy is to paint the
landscape, en plein air, wherever I travel. Often the paintings done on location received finishing touches in the studio, and sometimes sketches and photos on location lead to larger studio paintings." Katalin works in oil, watercolor and pastel. "Painting for me is a spiritual experience. It is a careful distillation of my interpretation, in a visual language, of the beauty I find around me." Katalin is an associate member of the Rockport Art Association, the New England Watercolor Society and a member of the Concord Art Association, the Reading Art Association and the Newton Watercolor Society. www.katalinspang.com



Gary Tucker "I feel fortunate to be at this place and time-my life has been an artistic one, drawing then painting from an early age. Fortunate to have the support

of family and friends, teachers and students, and the fellowship of other artists. I did graduate from the Museum School though I don't rate it as a positive experience for a teenager and from there helped to establish an atelier styled art community in Boston, Kaji Aso Studio Institute for the Arts, where I continue to teach and serve as Gallery Director. Success in the form of awards and sales has come as of late, but they only validate partially this artistic life - I feel the "art spirit" surge in me when I am painting, struggling

and creating. In my approach and aesthetics I feel commonality with Turner, the Impressionists, and the Chinese and Japanese Zen brush painters in that I am captivated by nature and through my artwork attempt to capture a sense of the moment. Through the media of watercolor and my process of painting I find power through brushwork, and subtlety through transparency. Watercolor differs from other media in that there is a performance aspect to it. The fine pieces come out in one sitting and very often like a classic performance, something happens, a fusion of mind and subject, an improvisation that cannot be duplicated". www.garytuckerartist.com/gallery/