The 11th annual Plein Air West Reading Art Competition, which puts Berks County on canvas, achieved record-breaking sales with the addition of local artists and prizes.
Over 50 artists in two categories (Juried and Open) started the week with blank canvases. Artists were required to create on location outdoors from direct observation anywhere in Berks County. By the end of the week over 185 canvases hung in the Olympian Ballroom in West Reading for the Awards Recognition by nationally renowned and award winning St. Louis artist Lon Brauer.
It was a record breaking year. The PAWR event, run by Art Plus Gallery, had the highest amount of artists, prize money, and sales to date, with over 30 paintings selling for over $20,000. Art Plus Gallery has a “Meet the Artists Of Plein Air West Reading” extended art exhibition that runs through today.
Juried category awards:
“Corn Ribbons” by Jim Laurino of Litchfield, Conn., was awarded Best in Show at the Plein Air West Reading art competition. (Courtesy of Plein Air West Reading)
Best in Show: “Corn Ribbons” by Jim Laurino, $1,000, sponsored by the Berks Art Alliance
Second place: “Your Backyard and My Backyard” by Nanci Charpentier, $700, sponsored by Art Plus Gallery
Erin Pryor Gill of Bethlehem works on her third-place-winning pastel painting, “Perennial Garden, Reading Arboretum,” during the Quick Draw event at the Reading Public Museum on June 15. (Courtesy of Plein Air West Reading)
Third place: “Perennial Garden, Reading Arboretum” by Erin Pryor Gill, $400, sponsored by Art Plus Gallery
Honorable mention: “Geometry of an Afternoon” by Rachel Van Wylen Poserina, $200, sponsored by Art Plus Gallery
Honorable mention: “Simply Bold” by Valentina Yannotti, $200, sponsored by Art Plus Gallery
Artists’ choice award: Lea Doise, $100 Blick Art Materials gift card
People’s choice award: Tarryl Gabel, $100 Blick Art Materials gift card
Best West Reading award: “West Reading Drug Store” by Aaron Thompson, $1,000, sponsored by the West Reading Community Revitalization Foundation,
Berks Waterways award: “Far From the Bayou” by Sabrina Schmidt, $500, sponsored by the Schuylkill River Greenways Organization
Garden Arty award: “Wild and Delicate” by Lea Doise, $500, sonsored by Linda and Jim Elliott
Remembering Reading award: “Morning Light” by Marilyn Rose, $500, sponsored by Shelby Davis Hutchison and Sherry Davis
Light of the World award: “Morning Walk On The Farm” by Patsy Cooner, $500, sponsored by Jesse and Jared Prentiss
The Bridges of Berks County award: “Bridge of Cool Waters” by Robert Seabourne, U.Go Anywhere Plein Air Pochade Box Kit, sponsored by New Wave Fine Art Products
America 250 award: “Jammin’ At The Stone House” by Cindy Harris, $500, sponsored by the Berks Historical Society
Open category awards:
First place: “The Value of Farmland” by Kelsey Showalter, $300 and a U.Go Anywhere Plein Air Pochade Box Kit, sponsored by New Wave Fine Art Products
Second place: “Bridge Glow” by Joanne McIlvaine, $200
Third place: “Under the Catalpa Tree” by Marie Jones, $100
Honorable mention: “Wash Day at Kutz Farm” by Amanda D’Agostino, $100
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Yocum Institute for Arts Education, 3000 Penn Ave., West Lawn, will present “20th Century Man,” a compelling solo exhibition celebrating the life, artistic vision, and enduring legacy of acclaimed modern artist Dolya Goutman. The exhibition will be on display in Yocum’s Holleran Gallery from Thursday through July 25, with an opening reception on July 12 from 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM.
Born in Eastern Europe and later working internationally, Goutman’s artistic career spanned continents, cultures, and decades of creative exploration. Through a diverse collection of representational, figurative, and abstract works, “20th Century Man” offers visitors an intimate look at the artist’s expressive use of color, movement, and emotion. The exhibition reflects both the personal experiences and broader historical influences that shaped Goutman’s remarkable body of work.
“Dolya Goutman’s work captures the complexity and humanity of the 20th century through a deeply personal artistic lens,” said Nadia Pochan, visual art director of Yocum Institute for Arts Education. “We are honored to share this collection with our community and celebrate an artist whose work continues to resonate across generations.”
Guests attending the opening reception will have the opportunity to view the exhibition, engage in conversation with fellow art enthusiasts, and celebrate the legacy of an influential 20th-century artist in a welcoming gallery setting.
Admission to both the reception and the exhibition is free..
For more information, visit Yocum Institute for Arts Education, call 610-376-1576, or visit yocuminstitute.org.
Exhibits
“Butterfly Odyssey” is a high-energy, immersive role-play journey in rainforest conservation that explores the sustainable business of butterfly farming while creating a fun environment for families to learn. The interactive exhibition will be on display through Aug. 30 in the Reading Public Museum’s temporary exhibition galleries.
“Butterfly Odyssey” at the Reading Public Museum invites visitors to become a butterfly on an immersive rainforest adventure, exploring the challenges of survival in the wild while discovering how sustainable butterfly farming helps protect tropical ecosystems and support local communities. (Courtesy of the Reading Public Museum)
In the exhibit, visitors can become a butterfly and see if they are one of the lucky 2% of caterpillars that make it to adulthood in the wild. Can you survive the spider’s web, hairy plant trap, and predators’ wheel?
Then experience a more sheltered life as a farmed butterfly. Collect eggs of different butterfly species at the host plant and egg hunt; feed each caterpillar the correct leaves at the bean bag toss; and undergo metamorphosis first-hand as you turn into a chrysalis along with the hungry caterpillars.
After caterpillars pupate, it’s time to get busy. Race against the clock and fill orders to send butterfly chrysalids around the world in time for them to hatch and take flight. Along your journey, uncover other sustainable rainforest enterprises that impact your daily life, like fair trade crafts, organic farming, and farmer-owned coffee cooperatives.
Butterfly farming not only protects native butterfly populations, it also allows farmers to raise butterflies for a profit without damaging rainforests. Learning about unique sustainable practices like butterfly farming at Butterfly Odyssey is the first step toward balancing resources for a healthy planet.
Regardless of where you live, you rely on products and services provided by tropical rainforests. In addition to providing familiar products like bananas, chocolate, and coffee, we can all take a deep breath and thank the rainforest.
Almost one-quarter of the world’s oxygen is produced there. Not only do we rely on rainforests to meet our needs, nearly half of all Earth’s animal species can be found in rainforests and rely directly on them for survival.
Managing the needs of people and planet is a delicate balancing act. Rainforests around the world are under threat due to over-harvesting and habitat destruction, but sustainable practices provide a blueprint for using resources today in a way that ensures they will be available for generations to come.
The Reading Public Museum, 500 Museum Road, is a dynamic center of lifelong learning that collects, preserves, and interprets objects of art, science, and civilization to engage, educate, and enlighten current and future generations from our diverse communities. It is supported in part by grants from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts.
Admission per day is $14 adults (18-64), $8 children/seniors/college students (with ID); and free to members and children 3 and under. Currently enrolled Reading School District students and up to five accompanying guests receive free regular museum admission and free admission to public Neag Planetarium shows with proof of enrollment. The Museum is open daily 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Visit online at www.readingpublicmuseum.org.