It’s the start of the new academic year at Grossmont College, and the Hyde Gallery’s first exhibit for the fall semester will take you in by the intricacy and detail of the art. “If You Lived Here” features pencil and ink drawings as well as etchings and will run through September 14.
The exhibit shows 25 artists, all members of West Coast Drawing. The organization highlights the importance of drawing.
It’s the start of the new academic year at Grossmont College, and the Hyde Gallery’s first exhibit for the fall semester will take you in by the intricacy and detail of the art. “If You Lived Here” features pencil and ink drawings as well as etchings and will run through September 14.
The exhibit shows 25 artists, all members of West Coast Drawing. The organization highlights the importance of drawing.
Susan Osborn, president of West Coast Drawing, said she was proud of the artists in West Coast Drawing.
On the evening of the exhibit’s reception on August 29, Osborn was surprised by being presented the Platinum Pencil award by Clayton Llewellyn, also a member of West Coast Drawing.
The award is given to people who support the art of drawing, Osborn explained later. “I guess it was my turn to receive it,” she said, laughing.
Osborn’s own work, an untitled pencil and oil pastel drawing of flowers and plants in a backyard garden, is also a show-stopper.
“I love the shapes and colors in my neighborhood. When I walk, I take photographs and then collage them into a composition. The collage becomes a diagram for a drawing. A collage of the elements,” Osborn explains of her work.
“I am proud for West Coast Drawing to be represented here at Hyde Gallery,” Osborn said. “It is an opportunity we have to educate art students and show them what can be done with drawing. The group was formed fourteen years ago because drawing at the time was not considered an end in itself.”
Perhaps one of the best examples at the exhibit of drawing being an art unto itself is the work of Ted Washington. Many of the visitors to Hyde Gallery’s reception went immediately to his large drawing of a woman’s face.
The drawing is of his beloved Aunt Theda, was of his beloved Aunt Theda, who inspired and encouraged Washington. She was also the first one in her family to graduate from college.
“It looks like 3-D,” exclaimed Ruth Ann Turner, who was admiring Washington’s technique.
“I draw in the shadows and shading with a special kind of stipple pens and let the light speak for itself,” Washington explained. “I think of a drawing much the same way as photography, which I also do.”
Alex Decosta, director of Hyde Gallery, was all smiles at the reception. “This is a fabulous show to begin the school year with because it showcases a wide variety materials and concepts from artists in various stages of their careers,” he said.
“Also this exhibit’s theme, life in Southern California, which I let the artists interpret as they saw fit, is very conceptual ambiguous. Having a show concept that isn’t too self-indulgent or esoteric will make the artwork on display more accessible to students, at least to those who have yet to be initiated in “art speak.” Decosta said.
Decosta hopes to show students how it is possible to live, work, and still be able to produce artwork in their spare time.
“These types of artist collectives are also symbiotic; they’re mutually beneficial as members of these groups are incentivized to promote their fellow artists,” Decosta said.
Hyde Gallery is located at Grossmont Community College, 8800 Grossmont College Drive. Call for the hours at 619-644-7299.
