About the Artist
Betty Atkinson is an Alaskan artist working from her studio in Anchorage. Ms. Atkinson says of her work, “I have been drawing and painting all my life. I have spent many years studying, practicing, and producing art. It is my passion. Along with the Great Masters, I have been influenced by the early California Impressionists. I paint the Alaskan landscape because it is so compelling. Its vastness and mystery, its monumental shapes and bold colors are a constant inspiration. Many of my paintings are done on location (en plein air). Some are completed in the studio from sketches, notes and photographs. Many pieces are a combination of reality and imagination. Painting is a way of life for me.”
She received her training from the University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa; Banff School of Fine Arts, Alberta, Canada; the University of Alaska, Anchorage; and during an European Art Study Tour.
Ms. Atkinson is a member of the Alaska Watercolor Society, the Alaska Artists Guild, the Plein Air Painters of Alaska, and she is a signature member of the International Society of Acrylic Painters (ISAP)*. She exhibits through these organizations and through juried exhibitions and frequent solo and group shows.
She is represented by the Stephan Fine Arts in Anchorage, Alaska and she exhibits in group shows at the Artique Gallery, Anchorage, Alaska and at the Bardarson Studio, Seward Alaska.
Thoughts on a Search For the Perfect Studio
My search for the perfect place to paint has taken me in many directions. When my children were small (in the '50s), I would go to the basement late at night, tack canvas to a post and put my stuff on a folding chair, and paint till I could not keep my eyes open any longer. In our next home, I had a small space in the furnace room. There I actually had an easel and a workbench. The next move gave me a garage to turn into a studio. It afforded lot of space, but was cold in the winter. When my children finally left home, I moved to a condo, and converted a bedroom to a studio. It was warm and cozy, but allowed little space for storage. I then moved to a larger condo with space for a small studio and a large area for storage and display. However, after all that, I have decided that the best studio has no walls at all. So, for the last several years I have traveled, sometimes alone and sometimes with fellow artists, searching for sites to paint “en plein aire”. In conclusion, I propose that a search for the perfect studio is never over, but is part of the process of making art.
Awards and Recognition
She has been receiving awards for her work since 1989. Her awards include Best of Show, 25th All Alaska Juried Watercolor Exhibit, Honorable Mention, 26th All Alaska Juried Exhibition. Her watercolor titled “Glacier II” was accepted in the juried show “Celebrate Northwest Women Artists.” Her acrylic painting, “Farm Off Loop Road” was chosen to hang in the Tri-State Plus exhibit in Texas. Her painting “Polychrome Pass” was chosen to be included in “The Arts For The Parks” Exhibition in Jackson, Wyoming. Her acrylic painting “Quiet Cove” was accepted in the ISAP Juried competition in Covington, Louisiana. Her work titled “Betty as Tap Dancer” was accepted in the “No Big Heads” juried exhibit at the University of Alaska, Anchorage. Her work was included in ISAP International Exhibit at The Westminster Gallery in London, England.
Her work has been awarded Honorable Mention in the 28th AKWC Society Juried Exhibition and Second Place Award in the 29th AKWC Society Juried Exhibition. Most recently her work was included in “Wild Salmon on Parade 2004” project. She was the featured artist for the publication “Alaska Women Speak” 2004. Her painting “Good Bye Caboose” was chosen for the annual Alaska Railroad Print. Two of her paintings were selected to hang in the 2006 All Alaska Juried Art Exhibition at the Anchorage Museum of History and Art.
Most recently her painting “Fishing Bird Creek” won the Juror’s Choice Award in the “Best People in the Park” category of the Chugach State Park Art Competition and her painting “Skiing Powerline Pass” won the Artist peer award in the same competition.
Betty was honored as the featured artist for the annual Anchorage Museum Gala 2007 on April 21, 2007.
Her acrylic painting titled “View from Placer River” was accepted in the Tenth Annual International Exhibition of the International Society of Acrylic Painters held in San Luis Obispo Art Center, California, May-June, 2007.
Her painting “Sunset Shadows” will be shown in the 33rd Annual Alaska Watercolor Society Juried Exhibition, October 7th – November 18th at the Anchorage Museum of History and Art.
* Formerly the “National Acrylic Painters Association”.