About Donna Nyzio's Artwork
An Exhibit at the Beaufort Art Center
July 27 - August 12
Opening July 27, Friday, 5-9pm
204 Turner St. Beaufort
"Yea. it IS a painting," Artist Donna Lee Nyzio says this a lot when people see her work for the first time.
"My work is highly realistic, and also fairly large, so when you shrink it down to put in an article, and it looks even more real."
Donna was selected to create the first painting used for first commemorative poster of the Annual Beaufort Pirate Invasion to be held on the 10th and 11th of August. This is the first year that the Pirate Invasion has elected to add an official poster to its piratical event and it won't be the last.
"We have received a fantastic response from our sponsors" says Kevin Carlin owner of the Beaufort Trading Company, "It's incredible," sponsors receive a poster as part of a donor package when they make a donation to the invasion. Viewers will have a chance to see the original painting at the artist's painting exhibit to open on the 27th of July and ending with the pirate invasion on August 11th. All the posters this year are part of a signed limited edition or 425 and can be further personalized by the artist at the show opening, demonstration, or during the pirate invasion from 4-5pm at the Arts Center on Turner St in Beaufort.
The posters are $20.00 and are available at the Beaufort Trading Company, at the painting exhibit starting on the 27th, or during the invasion at numerous locations. The painting depicts a "local pirate" viewing a ship, firing at him, through a spyglass.
Exhibit Dates And Times: Friday the 27th of July thru Sunday the 12th of August (show open 5-8pm Thursdays thru Sundays and Pirate Invasion hours Fri Aug 10th noon-6 and Sat Aug 11 @10am-6pm).
Bio:
Website: www.paintedworld.comDonna now lives in Beaufort NC, originally from Rhode Island and has lived in several states on the eastern seaboard.
Here is what Donna had to say about her work:
I originally came to Beaufort at the request of local pirate horatio sinbad, as part of a small documentary film crew to film the Pepsi Americas Sail. I Spy is my first painting in a few years. I did not have a studio when I first moved here, so I just painted houses, real houses, now that I own a house and have a studio, I can start painting pictures.
It fell to me to do the first pirate invasion painting from just luck.....the decision was made to start something like the seafood festival, where art was used each year for a poster as an addition source of revenue for the event and an extra "goodie" for the sponsors, but there was not enough time to decide on submission requirements, prizes, etc and get that info out to the artists for them to create something in time for distribution. Being an artist (and a pirate) I thought I could help out getting a painting done in a few months. If we tried to get all the info developed, then dispersed etc, the artist would have only had weeks (maybe) to complete a piece.
That is why the painting is done in an old fashion sepia tone.....Color takes alot longer. The painting was also created by removing color using an electric eraser, almost as if the painting were sculpted from the paint.
When the posters were given out to the sponsors, we noticed that they were not in the windows, george of island trader and island outfitters said it was too nice to put out and possibly get damaged. Many sponsors thought the same, so we had to distribute unbsigned, damaged ones for the windows!
Schooling:
Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh PA / learned the photorealism style from Dru Blair (Dru Blair School Of Art) which was in Raleigh, but now located in SC / studied also with artist Paul Mccormick from NY.
I don't usually show, I have a gallery in virginia that represents me, and sometimes I will put a piece in someone else's group show but not often. And often I work on commission, so a lot of my work is "ordered."
This show highlights the pirate invasion piece I Spy. Although I enjoy working in oils there wont be any, the show will have several acrylics and charcoal drawings.
