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Michael Farrar Featured at the Arts Depot |
Opening on August 18, 2005 in
Abingdon Arts Depot's juried Spotlight
Gallery is "Nurd is the Word" an exhibition of quirky nurds presented
in
watercolors and pencil drawings by Clifton Forge, VA artist Michael
Farrar. This show continues through October 1st. A meet-the-artist opening
reception and open house will be at the Arts Depot on Sunday, August 28th
from 2 - 4 pm. This event is free and open to the public.
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"Tango" graphite drawing by Michael Farrar Farrar's figurative work creates a society of curious and memorable characters he affectionately calls "nurds." Their foibles and missteps provide us with an amusing, ironic and sometimes poignant view of our world. Whether created as oil on paper or canvas, intaglio prints ink or graphite drawings, Farrar's ingenious nurds offer a way to explore life by stepping outside our own reality. When not creating an alternative world, He paints abstract watercolors. While his academic training suggested that watercolor was a polite controlled medium, his watercolors are anything but. Filled with power and rhythm, they demonstrate the fluid nature of a challenging medium. Farrar concentrates on color and shape as he builds layers of transparent and opaque paint that seem to sneak or charge across the paper. Whether they sooth or energize these are images to be explored and enjoyed time and again. He takes his art very seriously, but still works humor (sometimes darkly) into it. He thinks art should be fun, and maybe even enlightening. "People and people interacting with each other and their environments are my main sources of inspiration. They fascinate me and challenge me to do different techniques and to use different media", says Farrar. Michael Farrar has lived in Clifton Forge (Alleghany County, VA) for
46 years. As a kid he watched Jon Nagy on TV, began doing paint by numbers
paintings, and sold his first painting at the age of nine. Spurred on
by this, he continued his artistic training studying art in high school
and then earned a B.S. in Art Education from Concord College in Athens,
WV. |
Now, in addition to doing art full time in his studio, he also teaches classes through the Arts and Craft Center in Clifton Forge. He is a member of the Louisiana Watercolor Society, the Southern Watercolor Society, the Alabama Watercolor Society, the National Watercolor Society, and a Signature member of the Virginia Watercolor Society. He also is a member of the Market Gallery in Roanoke, VA. Farrar regularly exhibits at galleries, fine arts festivals, and juried competitions across the country. He has won numerous awards, including juried show first place awards in the Corolla, NC Whalehead Art Show, and the Huntington Beach, SC Atalaya Art Show. His collection of awards continues to grow, evidence of the utstanding nature of his work.
"Welcome to Balance II", a watercolor by Michael Farrar Farrar's work in represented in numerous galleries from Washington D.C. to South Carolina. Both corporate and private collectors in the artist's native Virginia, numerous states, and even Norway, confirm that his work is also pleasing on a long-term personal level. The Arts Depot is a non-profit
volunteer organization that is dedicated to promoting the arts in the
community and features the region’s artists. The Arts Depot is
located in thehistoric Depot Square area of downtown |
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