Students can develop new painting skills with art group

The Bloomington Watercolor Society's savings are so small, treasurer Carol Rhodes has to add up the numbers in her check book to remember if there is $437 or $439 in the club's bank account (it turns out to be $439). \nWith only 25 members, the group, aiming to create a network for artists and enhance skills with watercolors, wants to expand and include students, said president Jacki Frey.\n"An age variation is good for any group," Frey said. \nKeeping with the theme of the evening, secretary Jeanne Iler echoed Frey's thoughts and offered an increase in creativity as reason to seek age differences within the group.\n"I'm sure students could provide us with fresh, new ideas," she said. \nIn an effort to branch out to student artists, the society reduced yearly dues for students to $10 from the normal $25.\nUltimately, the society has a goal of helping students gain experience, as well as exposure to professional artists. The club counts several professionals among its ranks, but students don't need to be advanced painters to join. The club welcomes painters of all abilities, and Frey emphasized the club's main goal is to have fun.\nThe club's current diminutive size does nothing to lessen members' enthusiasm about the organization. Monday night, Bloomington resident Connie Brorson was the center of attention and took charge of teaching a new skill to the group. \nBrorson has been painting for only seven years, but when she talks about her painting, a childlike enthusiasm emerges.\n"I like the creative part of it," Brorson said, explaining that her paintings are rarely realistic. "People call my work 'whimsical,'" she said.\nBrorson is so enthusiastic about watercolors she came up with a group exercise herself and brought her idea to the meeting. Her exercise aimed at encouraging budding artists to be more creative and less focused on creating true-to-life images. \nBelonging to the water color society has several perks, among them the chance for members to display their works with the hope of selling them. The club aims to display members' work at two shows per year, with a show at Monroe Bank on Kirkwood Avenue scheduled for January 2007. \nFrey said that quality watercolors, such as those produced by several of the members, can fetch up to $400 for a single piece, and larger pieces can sell for even more.\nStudents can also focus on improving their painting skills with bi-yearly workshops in which more renowned artists visit Bloomington to teach. Though the workshops are opened to members first, the society allows community members to participate if there is room available. \nStudents or others interested in participating in a workshop or joining the club can contact the society through its Web site at http://www.bloomington.in.us/~bwsart/.