Riverbend Park is launching a new program featuring the work of local artists whose art relates to the park in Great Falls. The first exhibit, "Seasons on the Potomac," presents the art of impressionist Jack Warden of Reston. Forty oil paintings will be on display and for sale in the park's visitor center, 8700 Potomac Hills through November. He will be conducting an eight-week course on beginning oil painting at the park in January. Call 703-759-9018 or 703-759-1627.
The Spirit in Nature Exhibit presents the romantic-realism of artist Frances Vecchi, resident of Great Falls at Riverbend Park off of Jeffery Road, through Jan. 31. Vecchi’s show features landscapes and nature paintings that capture the seasons, local and exotic scenery and the artist’s vision of nature. A portion of the proceeds will benefit the Friends of Riverbend Park. Riverbend Park will host an opening reception for the exhibit on Saturday, Dec. 3 from 1 - 3 p.m. at the Visitor Center. Vecchi will be present. The opening will feature music and light refreshments. Call 703-759-1627.
Seeds: Gail Gorlitzz and Karin Birch. Exhibition runs from Dec. 6-Jan. 14 in the Emerson Gallery at the McLean Project for the Arts. The common ground between Gail Gorlitzz's sculptures and Karin Birch's two-dimensional works lies in a shared organic and additive approach to fashioning artwork. Both artists build from small components, be they beads, stitches or brushstrokes, compiling hundreds of small parts, pieces or gestures into works both complex and harmonious. McLean Project for the Arts is located on the second floor of the McLean Community Center, 1234 Ingleside Ave. Hours are Tuesday-Friday from 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Saturday from 1-5 p.m. For information or to schedule a group tour call 703-790-1953 or visit www.mpaart.org.
Second Nature: Pulp Paintings by Ellen Hill. Exhibition runs from Dec. 6-Jan. 14 in the Atrium Gallery at the McLean Project for the Arts. By building her images from colored paper pulp, Maryland artist Ellen Hill creates two-dimensional works through a layering process that seems almost sculptural. McLean Project for the Arts is located on the second floor of the McLean Community Center, 1234 Ingleside Ave. Hours are Tuesday-Friday from 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Saturday from 1-5 p.m. For information or to schedule a group tour call 703-790-1953 or visit www.mpaart.org.
McLean Art Club Juried Exhibit. An eclectic mix of work by members of the McLean Art Club. Runs from Dec. 6-Jan. 14 in the Ramp Gallery at the McLean Project for the Arts. McLean Project for the Arts is located on the second floor of the McLean Community Center, 1234 Ingleside Ave. Hours are Tuesday-Friday from 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Saturday from 1-5 p.m. For information or to schedule a group tour call 703-790-1953 or visit www.mpaart.org.
Art Classes. The Great Falls Art Center provides weekly classes in drawing, oil painting, pottery, sculpture and art history for children over 6, teenagers, adults and seniors at its Walker Road studio in Great Falls. All teachers are well-trained, experienced, professional art teachers. For a class schedule, call 703-759-3867 or e-mail greatfallsart@yahoo.com. Activities of the GFAC are supported, in part, by the Arts Council of Fairfax County.