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‘Back in Town’ features Young, Mayer

By Staff | Nov 13, 2009

“First Frost” by Joe Mayer

Two artists and former Shepherdstown residents, Robin Young and Joe Mayer, return to town for a joint exhibition of their paintings at the Entler Hotel in Shepherdstown. The exhibit entitled Back in Town celebrates 20 years since they first collaborated in a joint exhibition at the Entler in 1990. The show opens with a reception Friday, November 13 and continues through Saturday and Sunday.

Both Young and Mayer were residence of Shepherdstown during the 1990’s and early 2000s.. They both, independently established their painting careers in the community, painting local scenes and people, both operating studio galleries and both teaching classes and workshops to hundreds of area students.

Young is enthusiastic about being Back in Town, “For me, this exhibit is a celebration of 20 years of painting since Joe and I first exhibited together at the Entler. Joe was my first watercolor painting teacher and that exhibit was my first big showing. It will be fun to return, 20 years later and again share our work with the community.”

Young will show her latest paintings, a series of watercolors painted on Clayboard, a surface not usually used for watercolor. Young explains, “I just have to break the rules! This smooth board holds the pigment on top of the surface which allows the color to stay vibrant. It also allows the paint to move, mix and make shapes like only watercolor can. It does the work!” Many of her paintings that will be exhibited include animals.

Her travels to Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks inspired her to begin painting wildlife. She also will be showing her series entitled ‘Heart of the Horse” which were painted to express the beauty and sensitivity of horses. “Some of my paintings feature race horses on and off the track, some winners and some what they call ‘losers’a term meaning they don’t make money. But each is beautiful and has a powerful will to run and to win. My interest is to portray that.” For two years Young has gathered material for her paintings by photographing both race days and early morning prep on the backside at Oaklawn Race Track near my home in Hot Springs, Arkansas. Additional work can be seen on her website: www.robinyoungstudio.com

From 1995 until 1999 Joe Mayer was the cartoonist for the Shepherdstown Chronicle while he owned and operated Joe Mayer Studios and Gallery at 109 Princess St. in Shepherdstown. A dozen of the original colored drawings for the cartoons depicting life in Shepherdstown will be exhibited at the Entler along with a series of collages titled “Living The Creative Life” and several landscape watercolors done while he was living here.

Joe is the winner of the Bronze Medal and Richeson Award in the Mid Atlantic watercolor competition in 2005 and 2006 and received the Troika Award in the national Plein Air competition in 2005 and 2007. His work has been exhibited at the Baltimore Museum of Art and the Corcoran Gallery in Washington. He is presently represented by the Canyon Road Contemporary Gallery in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Joe founded the Friday Morning Artists in Shepherdstown and Easton, Md., Joe and his wife Ann Sharp live in Easton, Maryland where they are co directors of the Tidewater Center for The Arts.

The Opening Reception for Back in Town is Friday, Nov. 13, from 5 to 8 p.m. and is open to the public. Saturday hours are 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Sunday Noon to 6 p.m. The Entler Hotel is located at 129 E. German St. in Shepherdstown.