Emerging as an artist
A painting by Kristine Pearson is among those on display at Ocala’s City Hall through March 9.
Kristine Pearson of Ocala, who is a member of Rainbow Springs Art in Dunnellon gallery, was named an Emerging Artist by the city of Ocala, which is displaying her painting of the Withlacoochee River in City Hall. [Photo courtesy of the artist]
It was not too long ago that Kristine Pearson, 61, of Ocala, and a member of Rainbow Springs Art in Dunnellon gallery, put down her house painter’s brush and more tightly gripped her smaller brushes so she could focus on her work as an acrylic and watercolor artist.
And it paid off, as she recently was notified that her painting of the Withlacoochee River, painted from a view near the bridge along the Blue Run Trail outside of Dunnellon, won her a place in an emerging artists competition sponsored by the city of Ocala in partnership with Fine Arts For Ocala.
Pearson’s Withlacoochee work is now on display among others in an exhibit at Ocala’s City Hall, at 110 SE Watula Ave., from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. An opening reception and awards ceremony for the artists will be held from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Jan. 13 at City Hall. The exhibit will be on display through March 9.
Pearson and her husband have lived in the Hills of Ocala subdivision between Ocala and Dunnellon since 1988, when they built their house there, and in Ocala since 1986. She was born on an Air Force base in Colorado and spent her early years in the Chicago suburbs, where she studied art for two years at Oak Forest High School. Then, she and her family moved to Broward County in Florida, where she finished school and married.
Kristine Pearson, a member of Rainbow Springs Art in Dunnellon gallery, said she felt she was a true artist after she painted this watercolor of her dog, Rayne. [Photo courtesy of the artist]
Pearson said she likes the detail and realism that acrylics make possible. But she also works with watercolors and, when she painted a watercolor of her dog, Rayne, “that was my first feeling of being an artist,” she noted.
Watercolor allows her to capture portraits and “the softer feelings,” she added.
She said she has recently been exploring more impressionistic work.
Painting, to her, is “another moment in time,” she said. “You cannot dwell on the negative when you’re painting.”
And a bonus, she said, is that art brings her closer to her grandchildren, who love to paint.
Pearson’s work also is on display at Rainbow Springs Art in Dunnellon gallery, at 20826 Walnut St. The gallery is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday and Monday.
To learn more about the gallery, go to rainbowspringsart.com or call (352 763-4048.
For information about the emerging artists exhibit, visit ocalafl.gov/government/city-departments-a-h/growth-management/cultural-arts/public-art/student-emerging-artist-competition
Kristine Pearson’s acrylic of the Withlacoochee River was painted from a scene along the Blue Run Trail outside of Dunnellon. [Photo courtesy of the artist]
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