about the artist
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Welcome to My Website!Please Also View Recent Work at:
Painting at Taos Junction, May 2009
EVENTS and SHOWS
California Art Club, Paint Long Beach, March 2010 Riverside Art Project PAAR Exhibition March 6-May6, 2010 PAAR (Plein Air Painters, Riverside) Paint-Out, March 2010 California Art Club "The Ring" Paint Out, December, 2009 High Desert Painters in New Mexico October 1-10, 2009 Solo Charity Show for Childrens Hosptial, Los Angeles, September 2009 South St. Art Gallery Workshops Show, Easton, Md., June 5-30 (2 paintings) Idyllwild, CA 8th Annual Paint-Out, June 12-14 High Desert Painters in Taos, May 2009 Painting in England, May-June 2008 Workshop with Camille Przewodek, Easton, MD, July 2008 Idyllwild, CA, 7th annual Plein Air Art Festival and Paint-Out Sponsored by the Idyllwild Art Alliance, September 6-7, 2008 Workshop with Ann Templeton, Ghost Ranch, New Mexico, October 2008 Painting with High Desert Painters in Taos, NM, fall 2008 HIGH DESERT PAINTERS GROUP SHOW, November 1 - December 31, 2008
L to R (rear) Judy Howells (CA), Nita Harper(CA), Coni Grant(CO) L to R (seated) Ann Templeton (TX), Janis Loverin (NM), Jana VanWyk (NC) not pictured: Nelson Hubley, Nova Scotia
Wild Heart Gallerie 2008 Juried Show, "Labor, the Land, and the Love of Country" opening November 15 in Carmel Valley, CA
RECENT AWARDS The Painting "Parking Lot" won second place in PAAR 2010 Quick Draw
The painting "Rice Pickers" was accepted into a Juried Exhibition, Wild Heart Gallerie, Carmel Valley, CA The Painting "Four Corners" Won Judge's "Honorable Mention" and Second Place "People's Choice Award" at the 2008 Idyllwild Plein Air Festival
Artist Statement For me, any subject can be a painting, no matter how simple. Light and color hold the interest for me, far more than the subject itself. Each painting is a new challenge to portray the essence of the emotion that motivated me to put paint on canvas. Painting en plein air adds the additional challenge of rapidly changing light, forcing me to paint quickly, focus on contrasting shapes, spaces, and light patterns and to not get stuck in unnecessary detail. Less really is more! Biography Nita grew up on the North Shore of Chicago. Her grandfather was a professional artist who inspired her by illustrating stories as he told them to her. She went through countless boxes of crayons and watercolor paint sets in her childhood. At age 13, she received her first set of oil paints, and loved the smooth texture and ease with which the paint could be manipulated. In high school she took as many studio art classes as were allowed in the four years. At both Stephens College and the University of Arizona, she majored in studio art, focusing primarily on painting in oils. After marrying, Nita and her husband Mike raised four children while moving across the country from Chicago, to Miami, to Houston, and finally to Los Angeles. With young children and various part-time careers, it was difficult to maintain a studio. She completed only a few oil paintings a year. She began to experiment with acrylics for the easy clean-up and quick drying. She also enjoyed needlepoint and began painting her own needlepoint canvases. As the children grew older, she went back to oils and began doing small commissioned house portraits. In 2003 the Harpers moved from Houston to Los Angeles. The outdoor lifestyle, so different from living cooped up in air conditioning for fifteen years in Texas, eventually compelled Nita to try painting en plein air. The light outdoors has given her new passion for painting. If you ask her, she will tell you there simply are not enough daylight hours to fulfill her desire for painting! Art Education Stephens College, Columbia MO University of Arizona Glassell School of Art, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (MFAH) MFAH (Docent) LACMA (Los Angeles County Museum of Art Docent Training) Plein Air Instruction: Frank Serrano Camille Przewodek Ann Templeton Sunny Apinchapong-Yang
Memberships Oil Painters of America American Impressionist Society Plein Air Painters of New Mexico High Desert Painters California Art Club
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