Local artists Rick Rowland and John Ingle will exhibit their combined works — Corners & Falls — in the Artists’ Guild of Spartanburg Gallery at Chapman Cultural Center through July 28.
This is a free exhibit showcasing a series of paintings by both artists depicting local corners (such as well known local street corners) and waterfalls in the Upstate and western North Carolina.
The exhibit will be open to the public Monday through Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and on Sundays, 1 to 5 p.m. A free public reception will be on Thursday, July 17, 5 to 9 p.m., during the city’s monthly ArtWalk.
Rowland was born and reared in Greenville and moved to Spartanburg in 1990. Being from the Upstate, he has a deep appreciation of beautiful rivers and mountains, and loves hiking to waterfalls. His life has been spent learning about art and design. He attended the SC Governor’s School in 1983, and majored in Advertising and Design at the Museum School of Art in Greenville in the late ’80s. He spent 15 years working in computer graphics but currently is working full time on his art. As a young artist, Rowland lived within walking distance of Greenville Art Museum and was inspired by the collection of Andrew Wyeth paintings. Since then, he has strived to create realism in his own work. Also, Rowland was influenced by the imagination of surreal artists such as Salvador Dali and René Magritte. Rowland has done several drawings of historical buildings in the Pacolet and Spartanburg areas. In addition, he has painted waterfalls and nature scenes from all over Spartanburg and Greenville counties, as well as Oconee and Tryon. He currently teaches watercolors and pencil drawing at Chapman Cultural Center, as well as private art lessons. He is also available for commissioned paintings and is open to any artistic possibility.
“Viewers will see a collection of realistic style water colors focusing on waterfalls and nature in the Upstate, several detailed pencil drawings showing a bit of the history of Pacolet and surrounding areas in Spartanburg County, as well as a collection of watercolor portraits,” Rowland said.
Ingle’s art career started as a preschooler, when he used charcoal sticks and paper bags. From that point on, he was never without something to draw with. There were several influences that marked his progress. In high school, four teachers wrote recommendations and sent art samples to the Famous Artists’ School of Art. He finished his degree while in the US Navy. Old buildings, bridges, and homes fascinate him, however, recently, he has focused on painting portraits with pastels. “I have found that the pan pastels lend themselves to subtle blending. After using pastels for 14 years, I am now addicted to this medium,” he said. His work has been displayed and sold at various art shows, the Carolina Artist Mountain Guild in Hendersonville, NC, a summer-long exhibit at the Union County Museum in Union, SC, Cannon’s Elementary School, and as member of the Artists’ Guild of Spartanburg at Chapman Cultural Center. He now exhibits at Carolina Foothills Artisan Center in Chesnee and in Landrum. Ingle is also the illustrator of his wife’s three books, Courageous Kate, Fearless Martha and Brave Elizabeth, three heroines of the South Carolina Revolution and designs book covers for publishers.