2015 Annual General Meeting, 6th March 2015

Local artist Phil Creek was welcomed as the new president of the Otter Vale Art Society at its annual general meeting in the Institute on the evening of March 6th.  Phil was trained in fine arts at the Universities of Manchester and Birmingham in the 1970’s and went on to a distinguished career in art education.  He now paints full time, based in his East Devon studio.  In accepting the nomination, Phil emphasised the joy to be had in painting for pleasure, not necessarily to earn a living, and how the urge to create images by your own hand of what you see or feel seems fundamental to the human psyche.

Paul Moody - Is Photography Art? [Yes it is!]

Neil Marshall, the current chairman of OVAS gave a run-down of the society’s activities over the last year, also looking forward to another full programme for 2015 and thanking the outgoing president, Ray Balkwill, for his help and support over the years.  The meeting then enjoyed a presentation by Paul Moody on the theme of “Is Photography Art”.  Paul’s dramatic and imaginative photos, often depicting scenes in Devon, are highly regarded and sought after, so, with examples of his work to impress members of OVAS at the meeting, he had no difficulty in making the case.

A feature of the AGM was, as always, that it is also a social occasion with an informal  competition for the best painting produced by members given a theme, which this year was “Shine”.  Two paintings received an equal number of votes so the award was shared by Maureen Stone for her watercolour coastal scene and Mike Bird for his acrylic of autumn sun in Iceland.

Pictures

1. Maureen Stone and Mike Bird with Neil Marshall, centre, receiving their award.

2. Maureen Stone’s impressionist watercolour coastal scene

3. Mike Bird’s acrylic of autumn sun in Iceland