About the Artist:

Pat began drawing and painting as a child and continued on in to college, majoring in Fine Arts at Mary Washington College at the University of Virginia. Later, at Marymount College, New York, she received a B.A. Degree in Psychology and Education. She then went on to teach elementary school and to work with special education children. During the early years of marriage and children, Pat stayed home, finding time to draw and paint watercolors. She especially enjoyed doing pencil sketches of children.

After earning a Masters Degree at the University of Houston-Clear Lake, Pat returned to work as a special education counselor, retiring after 23 years as an educator.

Recently, Pat has devoted herself to watercolors with a special interest in portraits. Her work won many awards in Texas, including Best of Show Awards in Galveston, Texas City and The National Society of Artists shows in the Houston area.

Since moving to St. Simons Island in 2003, Pat has joined the Glynn Art Association, where her work has won several awards in the Coastal Juried Springs Shows. Currently, her work an be seen at The Art Shoppe in Redfern Village on St. Simons Island and at Art Downtown/Gallery 209 in Brunswick.

Limited edition gicleé prints are available for all original paintings. Pat accepts commissioned work. She especially enjoys painting people and animals.

Artist's Statement:

My greatest pleasure is to create a "portrait" in watercolors - one that achieves the realism and the emotion that I am striving for. The painting may be a detailed study of a magnolia or a portrait of a child.

I paint what I see -
..sadness in one's eyes
...joy in a smile
...wisdom etched in a face
...intensity in a deep brow

Nature provides me many subjects - flowers, plants, fish, birds - to name a few.

People are the best subjects of all!

- Pat Rusk

ABOUT GICLEE PRINTS:

A giclee (zhee-CLAY), from a French word meaning "spray", is an individually produced, high-resolution, high-fidelity, high tech reproduction from digital scans of existing artwork using ink-jet printing. The process was invented in the early 1990's. Giclees can be printed on any number of media, from canvas to watercolor paper to vinyl to transparent acetates. Giclees are superior to traditional lithography in nearly every way. Colors are brighter, last longer and are so high-resolution that they are virtually continuous-tone rather than tiny dots. The gamut of colors is far beyond that of lithography and details are crisper. Giclees are able to be produced in limited quantities and each may bear the original signature of the artist which assists in verifying the authenticity of the work.

Giclee prints are available for all paintings in this exhibition. These are limited edition, hand-signed and numbered by the artist. They may be produced in various sizes smaller than the original if desired.