Rebecca skelton

Art is transformative…

The making and viewing of art is transformative. It is a spiritual experience even more than an intellectual one.

I work in painting, drawing and sculpture. In painting, I begin my artwork as an experiment with a particular set of colors, or, for sculpture, elements. The goal is to see what sort of expression I can get from the various combinations and the handling of the colors and material itself. The basic result is that much of my work has been nonobjective although it contained suggested forms.

I consider the goal of abstraction to be the most difficult and the pinnacle of the use of art as an visual language. And although much of my art contains figurative elements, I will always consider myself primarily an abstract artist. (Even without seeing defined form, the natural human instinct is to imagine identifiable images.)

My motto: “Fire knows only the laws of fire,” is a quote from my best friend Katherine back in 1968, (spoken under very odd circumstances, but that is another story.) But the idea has had resonance with me all these years. Applied to painting: From the first searching mark placed on a canvas, the painting begins to define itself more and more narrowly until there is no more to discuss. Paint knows only the laws of paint and the image knows only itself as it struggles to emerge. Each is like a willful child growing into an independent image.

Any element behaves only as its particular state of being allows it to behave. And each piece of art demands its own format. The motto also applies to drawing. (Sculpture also knows the laws of physics.) Even though I work from a model, the drawings are all very different. Certain expressions require the color from paint or the limited palette of traditional drawing, while others require three dimensions, or motion/time or interaction. For this reason, my work is varied. Each new piece cries to be its own event.

Rebecca Skelton’s prize-winning work has been collected, exhibited, and published since 1974. She has taught art classes for University of Tampa, St. Petersburg College, USF St. Petersburg, and Eckerd College as well as for the Morean Arts Center, Creative Clay, Youth Arts Corps, and the Dali Museum. Ms. Skelton has donated art, jewelry, and sculpture to raise money for numerous causes including the Salvador Dali Museum, American Stage, Tampa Aids Network, CASA, Family Resources, Family Services and Bayfront Hospital.

Resume & Exhibition Record

EDUCATION:

M.F.A. Painting, 1977, Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama

B.F.A. Painting, Drawing, Printmaking, 1974, Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama

Additional study: New York Studio School Drawing Marathon, Spring, 2000 and 2004, New York City, New York

TEACHING EXPERIENCE:
1992 – present Instructor, Morean Arts Center, St. Petersburg, FL; Drawing, Painting, Figure Drawing, Expressive Drawing, Art Intro; Florida Teachers Conference painting workshops

2013–2017 Adjunct Professor, USFSP, St. Petersburg, FL; Beginning Painting

2012–2015 Adjunct Professor, St. Petersburg College, Downtown Campus, St. Petersburg, FL; Drawing 1, Design 1

1998 – 2012 Adjunct Professor, University of Tampa, Tampa, FL; Beginning Design, Beginning Drawing, Advanced Drawing, Figure Drawing, Beginning Painting

2007 – 2015 Adjunct Professor, Eckerd College, St. Petersburg, FL; Beginning Graphic Design

2008- 2015 & 1999 – 2001 Adjunct Professor, Eckerd College (PEL); Painting, Drawing, Independent Study-Design, Drawing, Thesis chairman & committees

2010 Adjunct Professor, Hillsborough Community College, Ybor Campus, Tampa, FL; 3-Dimensional Design

2003 Adjunct Professor, University of South Florida, St. Petersburg Campus, St. Petersburg, FL; Beginning Graphic Design

1999 – 2002 St. Petersburg College, Clearwater, Campus; Design 1, Drawing 1, Drawing 2/Figure Drawing

1999 – 2006 Guest artist, Salvador Dali Museum; Surrealist art workshops, Art Games, Recreation Center workshops

1977 Adjunct Professor, Chattahoochee Valley Community College, Phoenix City, AL Art Appreciation

1974 – 1977 Graduate Teaching Assistant, Auburn University Art Department, Auburn, AL; Perspective, Beginning Drawing, Figure Drawing, Anatomy, Art Education

ADVERTISING/DESIGN:

1986-1998 freelance artist, Florida Trend Magazine, St. Petersburg
1986- 1987 freelance artist, Landers and Partners, St. Petersburg, FL
1983 – 1986 Art Director/Production Manager, INNOVA/Koepenick International Advertising Agency, Atlanta, GA
1981 – 1983 Finished Art Supervisor, Cargill, Wilson & Acree Advertising Agency, Atlanta, GA
1980 – 1981 Designer/Illustrator, Body Forum Magazine,
Atlanta, GA
1978 – 1980 Artist, Publications Department, Alabama Cooperative Extension Service, Auburn, AL

AWARDS
2012 Honorable Mention, Morean Arts Center Members Show, St. Petersburg, FL
2011 Honorable Mention, PAVA, Beach Art Center, Indian Rocks Beach, FL
2010 Honorable Mention, Las Damas, Scarfone-Hartley Galleries, Tampa, FL
2005 Best in Show, Florida Artists Group, Boca Raton Museum of Art, Boca Raton, FL
2005 Award of Excellence, Members Show, Morean Arts Center, St. Petersburg, FL

COLLECTIONS
2012 University of Tampa Permanent Collection, Tampa, FL
2010 Woodlawn Elementary School lobby sculpture,
St. Petersburg, FL
1998 State of Florida Permanent Collection, Tallahassee, FL
1977 Auburn University Permanent Collection, Auburn, AL

GRANTS
2012 Kickstarter funding for Dark Drawings project
2000 Pinellas County Artist Resource Fund

SOLO EXHIBITIONS:
“Flow,” solo show Davidson Fine Art, 2015
2006 Transformative Marks, Don Vista Cultural Arts Center,  St. Pete Beach, FL
2005 Rondo, Morean Arts Center, St. Petersburg, FL
2006 Healing Feeling, Unity Church, St. Petersburg, FL
2000 Muse Gallery, Clearwater, FL
2000 ArtsImpact,Tampa Chamber of Commerce, Tampa, FL
1998, 1999, 2001 St. Pete Little Theatre, St. Petersburg, FL
1992 The Arts Center, St. Petersburg, FL

INVITATIONAL EXHIBITIONS:
2016 &2017 Woodfield Fine Art, Figure Book Show

2016 Kahwa Artx5, St. Petersburg, FL

2016 Art Institute of Tampa, Tampa FL

Exquisite Corpse International:

2017 Chihuly Museum, St. Petersburg, FL

2016 & 2015 Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg, FL

2015 Gallery 1356, Clearwater, FL

2016 Directors Choice, Three Artist Show,  Studio@620,
St. Petersburg, FL

2015 Moleskin book show, Tempus Gallery, Tampa, FL,

 2014 Femme Fantasy, Soft Water Studios, St. Petersburg, FL

2014 Trust Birth, Soft Water Studios, St. Petersburg, FL

2013 11th Annual Invited Artist Exhibit, Lewis House,

ASPEC, Eckerd College, St. Petersburg, FL

2013 12 Artists, PAVA, Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater, Florida

2013 Figures, Two-Artist Show, Articles Gallery, St. Petersburg, FL

2013 11th Annual Invited Artist Exhibit, Lewis House, ASPEC, Eckerd College, St. Petersburg, FL

2012 Creature Comforts, Morean Arts Center, St. Petersburg, FL

2012 Thursday Night Live, Elliot Gallery, Eckerd College, St. Petersburg, FL

2012 5×5, Tampa Museum of Art, Tampa, FL

2012 PAVA Members’ Show Leepa-Rattner Museum, Tarpon Springs, FL

2012 2nd Annual Salon, Biggin Gallery, Auburn University, AL

2012 Florida Artist Group, Beach Art Center,
Indian Rocks Beach, FL

2012 Dark Drawings, 2-Artist show, Eckerd College,
Palm Harbor, FL

2011 Social Disruption, C. Emerson Fine Art, St. Petersburg, FL

2011 Return to Sender, TEMPUS PROJECTS, Tampa, FL

2011 Cuban Sandwich Show, HCC Gallery Ybor, Tampa, FL

2011 “Artists Choose Artists,” Artful Living, St. Petersburg, FL

2011 Sketchbook project, Art House Gallery, Brooklyn, NY

2011 Observations on the Feeling of the Beautiful and the Sublime, C. Emerson Fine Art, St. Petersburg, FL

2010 Artx5, Daytona Beach Art League Gallery, Daytona Beach, FL

2010 Gallery 515, Tampa, FL

2009 Figurative Works, Elliot Gallery, Eckerd College,
St. Petersburg, FL

2009 Central Art Show, Studio@620, St. Petersburg, FL

2009 Alternatives to Violence, Studio@620, St. Petersburg, FL

2008-2012 JJ Watts Gallery/A Taste for Wine, St. Petersburg

2008 Circle of the Grey Flamingo, [5]art Gallery, Tampa Fl

2005 Figures & Portraits, Alla Prima Gallery, St. Petersburg, FL

2005 Form Within Space, three artist invitational, Georgia Southern University, Statesboro, GA

2005-2011 Las Damas, Various venues, Tampa, FL

2004 Doorways & Passages, Tampa City Center, Tampa, FL

2003 The Human Condition, The Florida Holocaust Museum,  St. Petersburg, FL

2003 States of Being, Two Artist show, Lake Wales Art Center, Lake Wales, FL

2003 Spring Invitational, Galleries Salt Creek, St. Petersburg

2002-2003 A Body of Work, traveling show,
Morean Arts Center; Eckerd College Elliot Gallery;
Galleries at Salt Creek, St. Petersburg, FL

2002 Artlink, The Florida Holocaust Museum and Florida Craftsmen Gallery, St. Petersburg, FL

2001 The Really Big Show, Tampa Museum of Art, Tampa, FL

1999 The Doll Show, Mahaffy Theater, St. Petersburg, FL

JURIED COMPETITIONS:
2013 Strange Figurations, Limner Gallery, Hudson, NY
2013 12 Artists, PAVA, Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater, FL
2011 Upcycled, Morean Arts Center, St. Petersburg, FL
2010 SHIFT, Tempus Gallery, Tampa, FL
2009 Take Out, Brevard Art Museum, Melbourne, FL
2009 Drawings, [5]art Gallery, Tampa FL
2009 Works on Paper, Studio@620, St. Petersburg, FL
2009 in white space, [5]art Gallery, Tampa FL
2005-2012 Cool Art, St. Petersburg, FL
2004 Motion, Project Creo, The Pier, St. Petersburg, FL
2004 Transparency, Project Creo, The Pier, St. Petersburg, FL
2004 Transitions, Project Creo, The Pier, St. Petersburg, FL
2003 Brave Destiny, Williamsburg Art Center, Brooklyn, NY
2003-2012 Florida Artists Group, LeMoyne Center for the Visual Arts, Tallahassee; Selby Gallery, Ringling College of Art, Sarasota; Cornell Museum of Art, Delray Beach; Sanibel Island Arts Center, Sanibel; Leepa-Rattner Museum, Tarpon Springs; Boca Raton Museum of Fine Art, Boca Raton; St. Augustine; Lake Wales; West Palm Beach; Beach Arts Center,
St. Pete Beach, FL
2001 Figurative Works, Armory Art Center, W. Palm Beach, FL
2001 World Festival of Art on Paper, Ljubljana, Slovenia

PUBLICATIONS
ArtBook Tampa Bay, digital book, 2012, 2013
Tampa Review, literary journal, University of Tampa,
Fall 2009/Winter 2010
Florida Humanities, literary journal, Eckerd College,
Spring 2004
A Body of Work; Tampa Bay Artists Interpret the Figure,
Morean Arts Center, 2002

REVIEWS/PRESS:
Art Taco (online reviewer) Spring/Summer/Fall 2011
St. Petersburg Times, Take Time for Art, July 2009
St. Petersburg Times, Art: Take Out, July 2009
Tampa Tribune, Two shows, Same Building, June 2009
St. Petersburg Times, Diversions, May 2009
Creative Loafing, Creative Band Aid, September 2008
Creative Loafing, Hidden Treasure;

Art at the Top of the Stairs, July 2007
St. Petersburg Times, Art: Inspired by Experience, August 2005
Lake Wales New Chief, States of Being, September 2003
St. Petersburg Times, The Human Condition, July 2003
St. Petersburg Times, Emerging Artists, Salt Creek, September 2001

JURY/JUDGE
2012, 2011 ASCI middle school/high school show, Clearwater, FL (panel of judges)
2009 Citrus County Festival of the Arts, Inverness, FL
2006 MainSail, Pinellas schools (K-12), St. Petersburg, FL
2005 Georgia Southern University Student Show,
Statesboro, GA
2005 Surrealism, Dreams & Fantasy, Pinellas County Middle and High School student show, Dali Museum,
St. Petersburg, FL
2004 Student Show, Muse Gallery, St. Petersburg College, Clearwater, FL
2002-2011 Student Show, Scarfone-Hartley Galleries, University of Tampa, Tampa, FL (panel of jurors)
2003-2005 Hillsborough County High School Art, Scarfone/Hartley Galleries University of Tampa, (panel of judges)
2002 High School and Middle School Students, Dali Museum,
St. Petersburg, FL
2002 Word and Image, Morean Arts Center, St. Petersburg, FL
2002 members’ show, Brandon Art Center, Brandon, FL
1996 Parkwood Recreational Center, High School Students, Clearwater, FL

COMMUNITY/DONATIONS/VOLUNTEER:
2017 Southeastern Guide Dogs, painted dog parade

2013 Breast Cancer body painting benefit, Temple B’Nai Israel
1995-present Monitor, open figure workshop, Morean Arts Center
1992-present Demonstration artist, Morean Arts Center,
St. Petersburg, FL
2010 visiting artist, Woodlawn Elementary School,
St. Petersburg, FL
2008 Family Services Art Auction, St. Petersburg, FL
2006, 2007 Family Resources Art Auctions, Tampa Bay area
2007 Bayfront Hospital Benefit Auction, Salt Creek Art Works
2004 Cirque de Gato/ Humane Society, Matthews Gallery,
Tampa, FL
2004-2011 WMNF; Painted Cowboy Hats and various Art Auctions
2004 Hats & Martinis, 2003 Masks & Martinis, Salvador Dali Museum, St. Petersburg, FL
2004 Stageworks auction, Tampa Fl
2003, 2004 Much Ado About Art, American Stage,
St. Petersburg, FL
2002 Artlink, Creative Clay Cultural Arts Center, St. Petersburg, FL
2001, 2002 Plein Aire St. Petersburg, St. Petersburg, FL
2001 Habitat for Humanity Auction, St. Petersburg, FL
2000 CASA Auction, St. Petersburg, FL
2000 Breast Cancer Benefit Auction, Decor-8,
St. Petersburg, FL
1998- 2000 Guest Artist, Garden Parties, Museum of FineArt, St. Petersburg, FL
1992 – 1996 (Art) Volunteers in the Public Schools Program; St. Petersburg High School & Rivera Middle School, St. Petersburg, FL
1990-1999 Tampa Aids Network Auctions, Tampa, FL
1998-2005 Artist/volunteer art projects, First Night St. Petersburg, FL
1988 Suncoast Chamber’s Super Art Auction, Clearwater, FL