Jeanne Rosier Smith grew up painting, but first discovered pastel when a box of Nupastels arrived in the mail from an uncle in Massachusetts, 20 years ago.  "You might enjoy these," he said.  Little by little, that box changed her life. She will be at Black River Gallery in Boothbay Harbor Friday,  Sept 29  from 4-6 p.m. doing a demonstration of her creative work.

Jeanne studied art at Georgetown University and later at the DuCret School of Art in New Jersey.  After earning a Ph.D. in English and teaching college English for 10 years, she made the switch to full time professional art in 2005.  She taught workshops in her home studio, nationwide and internationally until 2019 and now teaches through a subscription video academy, EpiphanyFineArt.com.

Jeanne now spends most of her time painting in and around the beautiful New England area where she lives, and along the coastal areas that inspire her work.  Swimming was the only sport she ever claimed to be any good at, and her family vacations were always spent at the ocean.  These two factors combined make seascapes a recurring theme and continuing source of inspiration.  Hours spent riding ocean waves give her familiarity and comfort with the movement of ocean water and an enduring fascination with it.

Smith is a fellow at the St Botolph Club of Boston, a Copley Society Master Artist, and an IAPS Eminent pastelist. She is a signature member of the Pastel Society of America, the American Society of Marine Artists, and the Pastel Painters Society of Cape Cod.  She has served as an educational consultant to the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, and has also given pastel demonstrations and gallery talks at the Museum. She has exhibited at the Massachusetts State House, the Guild of Boston Artists, the National Arts Club and museums around the country.  Her work has garnered top awards, including the Prix de Pastel (Best in Show) from IAPS, The International Association of Pastel Societies, a Grand Prize in International Artist Magazine Seascape Competition, and two Art Spirit Foundation Gold Medals for Excellence in Pastel.  She has placed in the Pastel Journal’s Pastel 100 for the past seven years, including first place in 2017 and 2019.  Her work has been featured in Plein Air magazine, International Artist Magazine, American Art Collector, and The Pastel Journal, and she is a regular contributor to the Pastel Journal.  Her paintings are in collections on six continents. She is represented by Anderson Fine Art of St Simons Island, Georgia, Black River Gallery of Boothbay Harbor, ME, the Copley Society in Boston, MA, Dare Gallery of Charleston SC, Gallery 31 of Orleans MA, Mackinac's Little Gallery of Mackinac Island, MI, Sandpiper Gallery of Sullivan's Island, SC, Susan Powell of Madison CT and Powers Gallery of Acton MA.

“I’ve loved the ocean since childhood and more recently, my work is bringing me even closer,” said Smith.  “Each painting becomes a sort of living meditation on bodysurfing, feeling the ocean lift and move me along through color, light and moving water.  The ebb and flow of the shoreline constantly changes, as light, tides, and weather shift.  A fiery sunset spilling on wet sand, the quiet joy of dawn, the luminous glow of light through a cresting wave, these constant and recurring miracles of nature keep me painting.”

Black River Gallery is located at 16 McKown St. For more information, call the gallery at 207-315-6522 or visit https://blackrivergallery.com.