Nancy Partovi: Fine Art in Watercolor: April 2017

Tuesday, April 4, 2017

John Salminen's Inspiring Workshop

In February 2017, I had the wonderful opportunity to take John Salminen's workshop on Painting the Urban Landscape and to meet him and his wife, Kathy. He generously shared his insights on many aspects of art and watercolor painting, as did Kathy, an accomplished artist in her own right. Everyone in the class completed a successful painting on a full-sized sheet of watercolor paper! This is mine (with guidance and new techniques learned from both John and Kathy). Thank you, John and Kathy, for an amazing and inspiring week of instruction.

La Maison à Nice, France, 30" x 22". Based on a photo I took when I was there several years ago.

Artist's Statement

As a participant in the University of California, Berkeley's, Education Abroad Program, I was privileged to study Italian Art and Literature at the University of Padova in Italy for one year. Shortly after my return, I received my Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree with a major in Art/Painting from UC Berkeley. Over the years, I have taken workshops from Cheng-Khee Chee, Arne Westerman, Lian Zhen, and Alvaro Castagnet. In February 2017, I participated in John Salminen's inspiring workshop on Painting the Urban Landscape and am now excited to do more work in this genre. I feel extremely fortunate to have met and studied with each of these master watercolor artists.

I love watercolor and the unpredictable way it moves and mixes on the surface of the paper, creating beautiful and sometimes almost magical passages. I am an elected Signature Member of the California Watercolor Association and paint both in my studio and en plein air. Most of my plein air painting is done with the Jade Fon Plein Air Painters group. My work is regularly on exhibit with the Valley Art Gallery in Walnut Creek, California.