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Portrait Society of America 2021 Finalist!

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I’m thrilled that my painting “Covid Blues” has been selected as a finalist in the Portrait Society of America’s Members Only Competition in the “Outside the Box” category! This is the second year in a row that I’ve had a painting place as a finalist in this national competition, and it’s the 4th award for “Covid Blues”! The 60 winners in this category can be seen on the Portrait Society’s Facebook page, and it’s an honor to be included with all of these amazing artists! https://www.facebook.com/portraitsociety/posts/272168508268484

Prints of “Covid Blues” are available! https://www.dianerussell.net/portfolio/covid-blues/

Portrait Society of America 2020 Finalist!

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I am thrilled to share that my painting of Trombone Shorty was selected as a Finalist in the Portrait Society of America’s Members Only Competition in the “Outside the Box” category! This is a such a sweet achievement for me, since I have been entering this national competition for the past fifteen years! The 45 winners in this category can be seen on the Portrait Society Facebook Page, and I have to say it is so cool to finally see one of my paintings included with all of these wonderful artists! https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?vanity=portraitsociety&set=a.10158915631467429

Prints of this painting can be found on my Jazz & Blues paintings page: https://www.dianerussell.net/portfolio/trombone-shorty-2/

Portland Open Studios 2020 YouTube video!

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I am pleased to have created my first YouTube video as part of the 2020 Virtual Portland Open Studios! And check out my Instagram live talk from October 17, 2020. I will take you on a tour of my gallery of paintings and drawings, and will have a special selection of small 8×10 original drawings available for sale. I will also be able to answer your questions, so feel free to contact me! My Instagram link is https://www.instagram.com/dianerussellart/. For more information on the virtual tour, visit the Portland Open Studios website, https://portlandopenstudios.com/. (Video editing by Liana Kramer and Motaz Hussein.)

2017 Rose Festival Queen official portrait

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It was an honor to paint the official portrait of the 2017 Rose Festival Queen, Michaela Canete. The portrait was unveiled at the Oregon Society of Artists, where it will be on display for the month of June. It then will join four other portraits of previous Rose Festival queens at the Rose Festival Building on SW Naito Parkway in Portland. Thank you to the Oregon Society of Artists, the Portland Rose Festival, and to Michaela Canete for being such a wonderful model!  KPTV Fox 12 news was there to capture the unveiling, and filmed this short video! http://www.kptv.com/…/36th-annual-rose-festival-art-show-op… Photos of Michaela’s reaction to the portrait courtesy of Liana Kramer.

PDX Art – Portland International Airport

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It is an honor to be a featured artist at Portland International Airport this year!  The exhibit, titled “Portland Soul:  Portraits in Jazz & Blues”, is on display on Concourse E from February through July 2016.  This exhibit features many of my portraits of the Portland blues and Jazz musicians whose music has inspired me to do the work that I do.  As I was putting this show together, I started thinking about all the musicians I have painted and how many more I would still like to paint (or draw).  Some are still with us, and sadly many have passed away in recent years.  It began to dawn on me that my work is becoming a documentary of sorts, which hopefully will evolve into a book as soon as I have enough portraits finished!  To see more about my exhibit, and others at PDX, visit the Port of Portland’s PDX Art Program.

Photo credit:  Dan Kvitka

Judy VanAlstyne Memorial

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JudyVanAlstyne3jpgI am so honored to be part of this wonderful memorial tribute to Judy VanAlstyne, commissioned by the Bill Naito Company in Portland. The memorial was designed by Mary Galluzzo Design and written by Janet Gonrowski. And I was fortunate enough to get to know Judy during my month long process of painting her. Judy served the Bill Naito Co. for 24 years as property manager, and was known and revered for her dedication to Portland’s downtown and Old Town. She was a mentor, a strong supporter of women in business, and she was a key team member responsible for bringing City Target to downtown Portland. So it is only fitting that Judy’s memorial is permanently exhibited in the Galleria Building in Portland.

Liana III

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It’s always a great feeling to start off the New Year with a new portrait painting. This year is especially meaningful to me, because before I started this painting in early December, I hadn’t painted in almost a year. As an artist, that long absence from painting can make one feel very hesitant to bring out the brushes and canvas again. There’s the feeling of being out of practice, and even worse… fear of not being able to paint anything at all! Well, I got out my brushes, relished in the familiar smells of the oil paints as I mixed my palette, and took a deep breath and started to paint. Trusting that all my years of painting experience had not disappeared, I began the process of building my painting. I paint in layers, and for the first time I’ve documented this process in a slideshow. I’m still not quite finished, but it’s mostly there. I’m going to set it aside for awhile, and then see if there’s anything else it needs…

Linda Hornbuckle

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The first musician portrait I painted was in 1998, and my subject was Linda Hornbuckle.  For the painting (which appeared on her CD “Clearly”) I photographed her at Music Millenium, and later in her living room as she sang.  Sadly, Linda passed away last week, after a two year battle with cancer.  I will always remember this beautiful woman and her beautiful voice.  The community will always remember her as the great soul diva of the Northwest. Tonight, I am donating a large print of the painting at “More Love for Linda”, an all-star benefit to help with her medical costs.

To attend, or donate, visit http://www.crystalballroompdx.com/events/130472-More-Love-for-Linda—A-Community-Benefit-for-Linda-Hornbuckle-featuring.  A video tribute featuring Linda singing Amazing Grace, accompanied by the late Janice Scroggins…  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwZoQkdNea0

American Music Project

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This is the fourth year I have been creating original drawings for Thara Memory’s American Music Project’s Benefit Concerts. This one of Bennie Maupin, along with my drawing of Terrell Stafford, auctioned for $2000! I am so pleased to be able to contribute to programs like this that bring essential arts training to our students!