Gallery II

March 2023

Cathy Raef-Dunnigan

The DPAL is excited to present the art of Cathy Raef-Dunnigan for the month of March.

Cathy grew up in a neighborhood of Chicago with her interest in art beginning as a child, watching her grandfather sketching at the kitchen table and being in awe of the paintings he created. She has sketched, drawn and painted ever since.

Cathy studied drawing at the American Academy of Art in Chicago.  When she retired from a successful marketing career six years ago, she joined the DuPage Art League where she took classes in color theory, acrylic and oil painting.  She also attended palette knife painting workshops.  In addition, she studied color pencil with Beechtree Studio in Geneva, IL.  She was an active participant in  the Plein Aire and Front Street Salon groups and helped to curate Gallery I exhibits at the DuPage Art League.

She moved to Minnesota last summer and wasted no time in becoming an active member of her town’s Art Lab, sharing her expertise by teaching color pencil workshops.

She and her husband are avid travelers and photographers.  The photos serve as references for much of her work.  Cathy is accomplished in four media; acrylic, oil, color pencil and graphite.  Her choice is based on the subject matter along with, when and where she will be working.

Outside of art fairs, Cathy’s work has been displayed at the Kavanagh Gallery in St. Charles, the Hopkins Art Center in Minnesota and in the DuPage Art League, where she has earned numerous awards for her stunning art.  Cathy’s color pencil window series was recently featured in Color Pencil Magazine.  Her art is owned by lucky collectors in Illinois, Minnesota, Missouri, Wisconsin, California and New Mexico.

Cathy says nothing compares to the connections she makes with those who recognize and want to own a scene she has drawn or painted.  You will find her talking art and travel at Art Fairs in Illinois and Minnesota each summer.

Keep up with Cathy at facebook.com/ArtbyCARD or at instagram.com/Art_by_CARD

 

This beautiful collection of her work will run the month of March in Gallery II. Artist reception March 5, 2:00pm – 4:00pm, 2023.

 

February 2023

Children’s Exhibit

Children are born creators. The DPAL is excited to begin its 2023 Gallery II season by encouraging and nurturing this natural act by showcasing young, artistic talent. Bring your children to see the exhibit and perhaps they too, will want to sign up for a class with the art league’s exceptional teachers who help inspire children in their journey into the world of art! Come and enjoy the Children’s Exhibit for the entire month of February.

October 2022

Plein Air Painters

The DuPage Art League, Gallery II, will showcase our Plein Air Painters, the group of artists promoting the tradition of painting the landscape directly from life. Using observation to gather information, the artists create visually and emotionally stunning pieces. Each Friday morning from May through October, they gather at different venues around the area to capture their own impressions of the landscape. Not only do they enhance their skills, but they do so enjoying the time spent with other artists.

If you think you might be interested in participating in this fun painting experience, leave your name and contact information with one of our wonderful front desk volunteers. Your information will be added to next year’s mailing list for the Plein Air schedule. All levels and mediums are
invited and welcomed. The only criteria is to have fun! Come see this unique show which runs the month of October.

Artists reception: October 9th 2:00 – 4:00

September 2022

“Art for the Joy of It” by artist Linn Eldred

Linn grew up in Lemont, Illinois raising her family in Lockport, currently residing in Bolingbrook. Art and Natural Science were foremost in her activities, and she spent time either drawing pictures or leading neighborhood kids on a hike in a neighboring wood.

The Morton Arboretum always held a special place in her heart, making it difficult to decide which season she liked best; spring daffodils, vibrant, green summers, the colored leaves of fall, or the winter snow. Nature art objects are what she enjoys most when creating, for to her, there is no equal for variety of shapes and colors.

With talent in many mediums, her favorites are acrylic, watercolor, pen and ink and colored pencil. Drawing and painting are meditative to Linn, and “time seems to stand still” when she works on a piece.

Schooling began at the Art Institute of Chicago as a teen. A BS in Ed in Physical Science and Fine Art were obtained from Northern Illinois University. A MS in Ed degree in Strategic Human Resource Development from the University of Illinois followed. Later, she also obtained a Bachelor’s and Master’s certificate in Art from the Morton Arboretum.

A career highlight was to have been chosen as the 2013 featured artist in Spring’s Nature Artist Guild Show. She has exhibited at many libraries, hospitals, private art shows and studios. She is a published artist in “Seeding the Snow”, “Wordeater”, and the “Nature Artists Quarterly”
periodicals. Several of her pieces are in private collections and she continues to earn well deserved awards for her art.

The DPAL is honored to showcase this fine artist in the month of September.

 

May 2022

Meet “Nature’s Beauty” artist, Marge Hall

While many of us know Marge Hall from her years of teaching at the DuPage Art League, her bio may fill in a few things you didn’t know about her. Enjoy!

Marge Hall was born and raised in Chicago Illinois. She lives in Winfield and has four sons and ten grandchildren. She graduated from Southern Illinois Vocational Technical Institute with a degree in Commercial Art. After working as a package designer she came to the DPAL and took classes with two abstract instructors. While that was enjoyable, her passion went back to realistic painting. In 1971 the League asked if she would consider teaching and her classes have been full ever since. She has also taught at the Oak Brook Art League and the College of DuPage and has done many demos. Wheaton Library was her most recent program. 

A workshop in 1992 led her to her enlarged flower series of over 350 paintings. She creates an almost three-dimensional effect by layering the oil paint and enhancing the colors and values. It can take 30 to 60 hours to create a painting in this manner. She has won numerous awards at Galleries and Art Fairs but feels helping her students find their own style is her biggest reward. Two quotes relate to Marge, “Find a job you love, and you’ll never work a day in your life.” and “Take time to smell the roses.”

March 2022 – Annette Lieber

The DuPage Art League Gallery II presents “Passage Thru
Time,” an exhibit by artist Annette Perone Lieber. While
embracing contemporary techniques, she likes to discover the
intricate in all objects, especially those of the hidden
microscopic world.

February 2022 – Don Purney

February’s Gallery II Exhibit at the DuPage Art League features pastels by Don Purney. While in grade school, he went through hundreds of sketchpads, desktops, textbook covers and paint by number sets, but it wasn’t until college that he took his first art class. His years in the Navy and then as an air traffic controller took priority until he retired and signed up for a pastel painting class at the DuPage Art League. Don remarks that he’s been having a ball ever since, painting whatever strikes him as interesting! In his words, he does it FOR THE FUN OF IT!

October 2021 – Plein Air Painters

This month we feature some of the works of our Plein Air Painters. Each Friday morning starting in May, a group of painters meet and paint their surroundings. Join us next year!

September 2021 – Diana Mitchell 

Diana Mitchell’s subjects vary but are primarily landscapes, often from rural areas. Barns, which are fast disappearing from the Midwest, become the focal point of many of her paintings. Other landscape themes result from plein air painting or from her travels. She seeks to convey a mood, a glimpse of rural America, or an immersion in nature.

August 2021 – Children’s Classes

Gallery II welcomes the DPAL Children’s Exhibit.
Plan to be amazed and delighted at the talent of our young, local-area artists. From the wide array of classes offered at the league, they work in acrylics, watercolor, colored pencil, mixed media and cartoon drawing. Bring your kids to see the exhibit, too—they might want to try a class themselves. Classes are for ages 6 to 16.
Our current list of inspiring instructors and classes includes:
Amazing Acrylics: Margaret Bucholz
Drawing: Cherie Matousek
Colored Pencil: Margaret Bucholz
Watercolor: Margaret Bucholz
Mixed Media: Cherie Matousek
Art Party: Carolyn Abramofsky
Storytelling and Cartoon Drawing: Charles Welch

July 2021 – Sue Thomas

The July Gallery II exhibit, “When Tumblers Click,” features the pastel art of Sue Thomas. The catchy title refers to her many years of R.V. travels where, against all odds, the many things that could and did go wrong in her R.V., would fall into place just in time. She attributes her good fortune to a guardian angel traveling with her! Those road trips that used to be saved in slide show format are now remembered in her pastel art.
Sue graduated from Western Illinois University in 1978 with a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Art. This parlayed into a career in Graphic Art. Most of Sue’s career was in the printing industry where she wore many different hats over the years. She was a silkscreener, keyline department supervisor, production artist and color proofer. She worked with Graphic Artists to make prototypes of their designs, cutting Rubylith overlays, making negatives using a camera so large she would have to climb a ladder. Her experience included airbrushing, embossing, construction and many other important skills. Most impressive was her ability to mix every color in a PMS book by eye. Incredible! When Sue retired from this hard but rewarding work, she soon got back to her Fine Art roots. Enrolling in a variety of classes and mediums at the DuPage Art League, she found herself drawn, especially to soft pastels. Sue has won many awards in the art league’s monthly exhibits.

May 2021 – Best of the Best

April 2021 Exhibit-  by Eve Sofferman

 

Our April Gallery II Exhibitor, Eve Sofferman, talks about her love of art.

I have always enjoyed drawing and painting. I have tried various media, but since discovering oil pastels in classes with George Shipperley, I have worked exclusively in that medium. I love creating visions of sunset and ocean scenes. My favorite subjects are Door County harbors and Sarasota ocean scenes. 

I am originally from St. Louis Missouri where I attended Washington University School of Fine Arts. I have studied at the DuPage Art League in Wheaton as well as the Fine Line Creative Arts Center in St. Charles, Il. I am a member of the Yellow House Artists, a group of artists who work in oil pastels and oil sticks, and promote that medium and participate in gallery shows. I am a member of the DuPage Art League as well as the Wayne Art League.

My art has been exhibited at the DuPage Art League, The Fine Line Arts Center, Art in Your Eye art fair in Batavia, Bartlett Public Library, Peck Farm Gallery, the Geneva History Museum, Norris Gallery in St. Charles, the Elmhurst Art Museum, Mayslake Mansion in Oakbrook, and the Palette and Chisel in Chicago.

Contact Information: 630-372-3385

msoffer1@comcast.net

March 2021 Exhibit-  by Chris Hughes

The DuPage Art League is featuring Christopher Hughes as the Gallery II artist for the month of March. Chris likes to paint with acrylics, oils and pastels. He was a fine art major at Utah State University before changing to a business major at Boston University. His experience living abroad and traveling brings inspiration to his work. Some of his paintings have traveled to special exhibits in China and Russia as part of a fine arts cultural program. Chris has earned recognition and awards in competitions in Texas and Illinois including Best of the Best nominations here at the Art League. He is part of a weekly art critique group and serves as co-leader responsible for organizing and mailing newsletters for Artist-Show n Tell.

Website:  www.hughespaintings.com
Email:   chris@hughespaintings.com