Ellen Zelano is a professional artist and an adjunct professor at the Corcoran College of Art and Design, where she teaches painting and portraiture. She maintains a studio in Washington, DC, specializing in portraiture and still life. Her technical approach is classican and reflects her admiration of great historical artists such as Velasquez, Vermeer, Caravaggio, Manzù and other contemporary artists. Her study of classical art, ancient and renaissance, provides direction and inspiration in her work. Her personal history, imagination and aesthetics come together on canvas to create a distinctive and articulate painting style inspired by the classics. Her work has been in many juried and invitational exhibits around the metropolitan Washington, DC, area, New York City and New England, and is in many collections around the country and in Europe. Currently, her work is in the La Petite Gallery in Annapolis, MD, and the Berkley Gallery in Warrenton, VA. Contact Ellen. Visit Ellen's website.

Painting and Bas-relief: Danni Dawson & Mike Francis
Arrive June 20, 2010 - depart July 3, 2010

Danni Dawson received her B.A. and M.F.A. degrees from George Washington University and apprenticed with Nelson Shanks. A professional artist and teacher for over 25 years, Danni has exhibited her paintings nationally and internationally, and has received many awards including the Allied Artist Award, the Salmagundi Painting Prize, The Audubon Award and an Award for Painting from The National Academy of Art and Design. Her work has also been featured in American Artist, most recently in the Winter 2007 issue of American Artist Workshop article "Danni Dawson: Helping Still Life Painters Find an Individual Voice.". With over 300 portraits to her credit, Danni Dawson has painted heads of state, dignitaries, and university officials as well as senior members of the military and medical communities. Her portraits and still life paintings are displayed in collections throughout the world. Contact Danni. Visit Danni's website.

Mike Francis studied at the Corcoran School of Art, received his BFA from the Maryland Institute College of Art, and his MFA from George Washington University. Teaching experience includes the Art League School (1978 to present), George Washington University (20 years), George Mason University, Trinity College, Northern Virginia Community College, Prince George’s Community College, and Charles County Community College. In addition, he has taught abroad through the auspices of various institutions in Paris, Brittany, Spain, Greece, Italy, and Ireland. Mike has had twenty solo exhibitions in the last twenty-six years, and participated in hundreds of group efforts. Many of these events were reviewed in various media. He has received several awards, including the Virginia Prize for Painting and the David Lloyd Kresge Award. Contact Mike.Visit Mike's website.

Contemporary Painting and Drawing: Judy Southerland & Genoveva Fernandez
Arrive August 1, 2010 - depart August 14, 2010

Judy Southerland is an artist and adjunct professor in Fine Arts at Washington, DC's Corcoran College of Art and Design where she teaches Painting in a Series, Figure & Content, and Graduate Cross-Media Studio. Solo exhibitions include Borderland, January 8 to February 22, 2010, at the Greater Reston Arts Center, Reston, VA; C;ose to Far Away, Miami University, Middletown, OH, 2008; and In/Out of Place, The Arts Club of Washington, Washington, DC, 2007. Group shows in 2009 include Strictly Painting 7, McLean Project for the Arts, McLean, VA; Crossing Lines, Delaware Center for Contemporary Art, Wilmington, DE; and 20th National Drawing & Print Exhibition, College of Notre Dame, Baltimore, MD. Judy received faculty development awards to support new work in 2007 and 2009, and a Small Projects Frant from the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities in 2007. Contact Judy. Visit Judy's website.

Genoveva Fernandez is an artist and co-founder of the Art Studio in Moscow, Russia, where she taught painting and drawing. She has since moved to Madrid, Spain, and has established the Art Studio there. Her paintings were featured in a group exhibition in Moscow, January 2009. In 2008 her work was in a group exhibition at the Art Play Center for Design and Architecture in Moscow. Also in 2008 a solo exhibition of her paintings was on view at Gala Hispanic Theater in Washington, DC. Genoveva has a graduate degree in the history of art from Madrid's Universidad Autonoma and studied painting for an academic year at the Institute of Fine Arts Surikov in Moscow. Genoveva received a Faculty Award for Excellence from the Corcoran College of Art and Design in Washington, DC, where she studied painting 2005-2007. Contact Genoveva. Visit Genoveva's website.

Painting: Kurt Schwarz
Arrive August 19, 2010 - depart September 1, 2010

Kurt Schwarz is a realist painter specializing in portraiture, still life, and landscape. The exploration of color harmony and spatial concepts are equally important in Schwarz's creations. His skill in capturing the complex nature of his subjects has contributed to his reputation of being one of Loudoun County's finest artists. Kurt Schwarz's career highlights include six solo exhibitions and publication in fine art magazines, including the international publication The American Artist. Schwarz has professored at The George Washington University, and is current faculty to both the Art League School in Alexandria, VA, and the Loudoun Academy of the Arts in Leesburg, VA. Schwarz's work is in collections worldwide—in Europe, Mexico, and across the United States. His posthumous portraits of notable figures in Loudoun County's history may be viewed in the permanent public collection of the Balch Public Library in Leesburg, VA. Under the authority of the United States government in 1999, Schwarz traveled to Havana, Cuba, as an International Artistic Advisor. There, he accompanied the Executive Director of Cross Cultural Services (CCS) to advance U.S. Cultural exchanges and advancement in the arts with the nation of Cuba. Schwarz is a member of The Loudoun Arts Council, which promotes the arts in Loudoun County by advocating for and assisting arts organizations and individual artists. He has been accepting commissions since 1992, and currently resides in Loudoun County with his wife who is a fellow artist. Contact Kurt. Visit Kurt's website.