Listening to the 'Master in our midst'

FALLBROOK – "Master in our midst" is the expression used by artists who attended the Fallbrook Art Association's art lecture and demonstration conducted by longtime FAA member, award-winning artist and resident of Rainbow, Jack Whitney Ragland.

After a year of pandemic crisis, it was an invigorating environment at the FAA's monthly meeting held Saturday, March 20, at CrossWay Community Church, which was formerly Baptist Community Church, in Fallbrook.

With style, humor and a solid background as an art educator, Ragland outlined his approach to achieving a successful composition, "Find the sweet spot; emphasize the focal point; change, invent or remove objects; juxtapose shape against shape, color against color, use glazes to soften colors; avoid tangents, the deadly virus."

These are secrets learned from a lifetime of teaching, traveling and working as an artist.

From grade school to associate professor of art at Simpson College, to a sabbatical in Vienna, Austria, Ragland's artistic skills and passion for beauty have garnered him numerous awards and worldwide recognition, including "Who's Who in America," "Who's Who International" and "Who's Who in the World."

His works are in private collections throughout the world, as well as in permanent collections in The Los Angeles County Museum, The Phoenix Museum, The Harry Wood Museum, The Kunst Museum in Switzerland, the Bibliotheque Nationale in Paris and Vienna's Albertina Museum.

FAA is a nonprofit organization serving local artists. In 2018, FAA opened The Gallery, 127 N. Main Ave., in downtown Fallbrook to display and sell members' original paintings, prints, ceramics, sculpture, jewelry and "frameable art" greeting cards.

Membership forms are available at http://www.fallbrookartassn.org.

Submitted by the Fallbrook Art Association.