F.A.A. member Misuk Goltz was the featured speaker at our September meeting on Tuesday the 1st, at which she demonstrated her methods and skills in watercolor portraiture. Misuk is originally from South Korea. She studied psychology and art history as well as art therapy and mental health counseling at Wright State University. She worked as an outpatient psychiatric counselor at Good Samaritan Hospital until her retirement in 2007. After retirement, she began painting and watercolor became her passion after a class with Nita Leland in 2008. She has also studied with a number of internationally known artists in recent years. Misuk enjoys painting a variety of subjects, but she is best known and most inspired when her subject is a portrait of an individual. Each person is intriguing and unique; capturing the subject’s attitude and mood at the moment of the portrait is her goal. She enjoys understanding her subject to create a story in her painting.
Misuk loves teaching and the unique learning environment in the current group setting of her fellow artists. She has taught at the Hithergreen Center, Sinclair Community College, and at F.A.A., in addition to other regional locations. She was awarded signature status in the Ohio Watercolor Society in 2010, and her work as juried into the National Watercolor Society in 2013. She has also won numerous awards in various juried shows since 2008. She intends to relocate to California at the end of the year to be closer to her family. Her website can be found by googling “misuk’s gallery”.
During her presentation, Misuk talked about learning calligraphy from her grandfather, and that she discovered similarities between calligraphy and watercolor. Her advice to artists is to “paint what attracts you; choose a reference you love”. She originally started working in pastels, but switched to watercolor. She began painting portraits by using family members as subjects. She creates movement in her portraits by the posture of her subjects, striving to create diagonal lines within her painting. She suggested using value studies as a beginning step, then proceeding to a color study before starting the actual painting. In her work, she will sketch onto tracing paper, then transfer a tracing to watercolor paper. She also discussed her preferred materials, techniques, and brush types; stressing simplicity in the approach to the work.
Misuk Goltz at F.A.A., September 1, 2015.
Misuk discussing her work in portraiture for F.A.A members and guests.
Misuk smiling for the members.
Two examples of Misuk’s watercolors. She pointed out to the audience that not all her paintings are portraits.
An outstanding example of a portrait by Misuk, of her art instructor Nita Leland.
Misuk displayed these two value studies of a portrait subject as she discussed her approach to executing a portrait.
Misuk discusses her subject, a young girl she met at a wedding. She obtained permission to photograph and paint the child from her parents. She used this child as an example of finding a connection to the subject of a portrait during the course of her presentation to the F.A.A.
These are two completed portraits of the same child as done by Misuk. The left portrait was executed by her during her demonstration on Tuesday, September 1, 2015 at the F.A.A Meeting.
One of Misuk’s portraits, of a Haitian girl.