||| FROM ANDREA COHEN for ORCAS ISLAND LIBRARY |||
The Orcas Island Library will feature the paintings of Avi Shmueli, which will be on exhibit for the month of June.
Originally from Jerusalem, Avi took early classes in drawing and painting but didn’t start painting in earnest until he moved to Olga with his wife, Andrea Reback. Taking weekly classes with Terry Johnson and his group of painters pushed him forward, and the feedback and support of that group keeps him going.
After moving to Orcas Island, Avi found his new environment, “green, remote, very quiet, and often dark and wet. I picked up painting to process the new scenery: the fir, tsuga, red alder and hawthorn trees, the moss, ferns, bracken, elderberry and ocean spray. Working primarily in abstract landscapes, my work consists mostly of rural scenes from the areas I cover on walks with my dog, Ranger.”
Avi begins by taking snapshots, digitally editing them for color and composition, then moving to the canvas. In Avi’s words, “There is a lot of planning and preparation involved, but the plan is mostly about selecting and identifying the inspiring setting, not about the final image, and when all goes well, the final painting is always a surprise.”
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