The Gallery & ASCC News

The Art School of Columbia County is delighted to present year round art exhibits by ASCC members, ASCC teaching-artists, individual artists and juried show participants. In conjunction with the exhibits, we offer art demonstrations and artists’ talks. ASCC also exhibits artwork from community collaborations with other organizations and people that we serve. All exhibits are accompanied by an opening reception where we welcome the greater community into the gallery and studio spaces. The Gallery is open most weekday work hours and on some weekends. To assure visiting hours call or e-mail at

Please consider making a Donation to ASCC for our continued work supporting artists, exhibiting their artwork, and for our “Artist’s Talk and Opening Receptions” which are free and open to everyone.

All gallery opening receptions, artist talks and demonstrations are open to community are free. We gladly accept donations to help us support our efforts with these events.

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Artist, Bob Watkins will bring his years of teaching experience to ASCC this coming late spring. He will be exhibiting his paintings and drawings in the ASCC Gallery, Saturday, April 27 to May 11.

Bob will offer a free Painting Demonstration in the ASCC Gallery on Saturday, April 27 from 3:00 – 4:00 p.m. Please join us for this unique opportunity to see Bob work his magic upon the canvas as he creates a monochromatic landscape, while he covers the expressive properties of line and mass and underpainting.

Immediately following, from 4:00 – 6:00 p.m. there will be a free opening reception for his art exhibit.

Artist Statement: 

Bob Watkins has always been interested in the fine arts. When he was 11 years old, he went to the Metropolitan Museum and was impressed by the Rembrandt portraits, “I felt like the eyes followed me”! This experience remained with him, and became the foundation of his fascination with art. Bob became a potter after studying and attending workshops. He was able to move to the beautiful Berkshires and was a successful potter for 17 years. He painted florals and landscapes on white porcelain, so it was a natural progression to paint with oils on canvas when he was ready to explore other areas of artistic expression. Bob says, “My landscapes are an attempt to capture the effects of fading light. The elusive hours of dawn and twilight, when light is just washing over the landscape, are the most interesting to me. –that intrinsic something that is never definable, but always recognizable when seen. Since we all have an internal sense of landscape, many of my paintings come from memories of things I’ve seen and thought to be interesting. I am fascinated by low light conditions when the landscape dissolves into misty half-seen forms. On any given day, I could be painting from life, my imagination, photo references, or any combination. After my initial inspiration, I rarely refer to my reference. Something internal takes over, and the painting becomes the force which directs me. My still lifes are done from life. Artists have the gift to make people see the underlying beauty and poetry in everyday life, and to make ourselves and others aware of the wonders of being alive. The joy of being an artist is being able to take the time to explore the things that interest us personally and share that vision with others.

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Free Opening Reception Saturday, May 18 from 4:00 – 6:00 p.m., with Artist Talk
On display May 18 – June 21

Gallery open Modays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, Please email  for more hours

Artist’s Statement
“I create deeply personal work that speaks about the soul of America. I have spent a great deal of time on the road. The paintings I make are distilled from that experience. Although there is an aspect of cultural anthropology in my work, I must feel a profound personal connection with my subject. This emotional response is what I try to convey through my paintings. I’m seeking to evoke a certain mood through the limitations of paint”.

Web site: https://www.jeffreyneumann.com

Jeff Neumann spent his childhood in New Mexico, California, and Massachusetts. Although he lives in
Upstate New York, the Southwest continues to inspire his art. He visits as often as he can. He uses his
photos from road trips as references for his oil and watercolor paintings