Exhibitions and Awards

The NVPS 3rd Annual Exhibition "Connections" was hung earlier this year at Studio II Gallery. This was a great show and we thank Sandi and Dana for staging it. It's hard to believe how quickly these roll around but the Board will soon be thinking about a theme for the next show. NVPS also mounts 3 shows per year of members work at the Napa City Hall. Contact George Bartolome or Gene Piscia for further information.

Joe Orsini won two awards at the recent Napa County Fair in Calistoga. He acheived first place in the Architectural division with his colorful "Mexican Hotel" and 2nd place in Mountains and Streams for his dramatic "Firefall". Phil Venable was awarded a First Place in the category "Processed by Photographer" at the 2010 Dixon May Fair, and the same photo won Best of Show at the second annual Lightwriters Photography Club contest.  Lanny Johnson and Judith Purdy both won "Honorable Mentions" at the 2010 Napa Valley Mustard Festival Photo contest that was held at the Rubicon Estate. Debbie Ames was awarded a blue ribbon for Artist of the Month from the Napa Valley Art Association. Her photo was hanging in the Napa Library, Coombs Street.

As usual the 2009 Napa Town and Country Fair featured outstanding representation by NVPS photographers in both amateur and professional classes. We are hoping for similar success at the 2010 fair, August 11-15, with the theme "Blue Jeans and Country Dreams".

Member News

Bob McClenahan has an exciting commission shooting images for the Napa Valley Marriott. Check out his work at http://www.napavalleymarriott.com/. Bob has lots more pictures coming including the restaurants, lobby, and food. He will be selling some prints in the hallways. 

Elizabeth Bush is presenting a talk and slide show reflecting an ongoing attraction to Mare Island.  Selected by the Art in the Library Program, Elizabeth is the featured artist at the Napa City/County Library for the month of August.  Her photographs of diverse subjects are on display from Aug 1 – August 31.  There will be a reception August 13, 6:00 – 8:00, with complimentary wine and hors d’oeuvres.  At 6:30 P.M. Elizabeth will speak about her evolution as an artist, and why Mare Island is one of her favorite places to photograph.  Everyone welcome; 580 Coombs St., Napa.  Info:  stephnia.pramukcountyofnapa.org, or 253-4223. Click here for a flyer.

Marissa Carlisle has an ongoing exhibit "Venice Aventura" at EyeWorks, 1st and Main, Napa. This features photographic dye sublimation images on metal / plus pastel paintings.  Come by and visit, Monday-Saturday, 8:30-6:00.

The Napa Valley Museum invited long time NVPS member and graphic artist Jim Cross to be a Guest Curator for a show called "ART & WINE – THE EXPRESSIONS OF AN INDUSTRY". Jim selected all of the items and designed the show, which will run until October 31. Click here for more information. He also sold and installed 7 photographs in the St. Helena Hospital's new Cancer Center and he sold 3 photographs at the Kiwanis' Naked Vine auction. He is represented by "The Scattered Light" photo gallery in St. Helena. Design Journal Americas published by GRAPHIS featured Jim and his work: click here to see a 7-page pdf.

Jess Knubis was commissioned to produce a series of photos for the new Hotel Luca in Yountville. More than 100 framed prints representing seventeen different images are now displayed in the hotel. They present a view of the Napa Valley that draws on the rich history of the area while still being very modern. To read more about this project click here.

NVPS member Vince Goetz was busy with a show in Beijing last fall in an area called the Dashanzi Art Factory, or 798.  "It is literally a square kilometer of galleries, studios, book stores, coffee shops, and restaurants." Immediately after Vince had another show at Gordon Heuther’s Hay Barn.

NVPS volunteers are sharing their digital knowledge and experience with young and eager photographers from 4-H.  Bob McLenahan ran the program with support from Sandi Ogle at Studio II Gallery, and with enthusiastic encouragement from Len Powers, who established the initial contact with 4-H.

John Pitt was selected to have an image in a book published by the Photographic Society of America to mark their 75th anniversary. You can see a thumbnail of his image on their website (bottom right hand corner of the page).

In addition to her day job at Napa Valley College, Betty Malmgren creates photographs for Easy English Time, an educational newspaper with a national circulation that Betty publishes for immigrants learning English as a second language and adult literacy programs.

NVPS members John Mellquist and Amber Lea Starfire have taught classes in various aspects of photoshop. These classes are gone but watch this space for news of any new classes from either of them. Napa Valley College and Solano College offer a wide range of photographic courses ranging from beginner to advanced. Check their websites for full information.

In addition to their NVPS activities, Ann and Mike Baldwin are Joint Presidents of the Berkeley Camera Club, which meets every Tuesday evening throughout the year. Any NVPS member interested in attending a BCC event will be very welcome. A calendar of events and information on the location of the meetings can be found on the BCC website.

Ann Baldwin's art instructional book was the top seller last season for publisher Rockport Press.  The title is Creative Paint Workshop for Mixed-Media Artists: Experimental Techniques for Composition, Layering, Texture, Imagery, and Encaustic.  You can read reviews on Amazon.com.

It's Party Time

Everyone had a great time at the 2009 NVPS Holiday Party at the Napa Yacht Club. Ann Baldwin put together some intimate shots of revellers at the party: click here to view them. Since then we have also held the Memorial Day Picnic at the Yacht Club. Let me know if you have photos as I would like to post them here.

Yahoo Group and Flickr

NVPS now has a Yahoo Group that all members are invited to join. Membership has to be approved by the administrator, who is also the webmaster, and who will usually respond within 24 hours. You can use this group to post technical questions, announce your latest photo exhibition, or communicate with other members on any topic relevant to photography. Bob McClenehan has also created a Flickr group for NVPS. All members are invited to join this group and upload images: http://www.flickr.com/groups/napavalleyphotographicsociety/.