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Artists focus on creative realism

A nonprofit organization has been showing, sharing, inspiring and teaching for half a century.

By JONNELLE MARTE
Published July 7, 2006

For decades, artists in Tampa have had a place to share work, ideas and inspiration.

Their secret: Tampa Realistic Artists, a 50-year-old nonprofit organization that offers classes, competitions and workshops at the historic Old Hyde Park Art Center in South Tampa.

Members have an exhibit this month at the Kotler Art Gallery in John F. Germany Public Library, 900 N Ashley Drive.

They hope it will bring new faces to the art center.

"I want more visibility with Tampa Realistic Artists within the city," said Kathy Durdin, president of the group and one of seven artists whose work will be on display. "I'm trying to get our name out, trying to get people to know that we have art here."

The library will host a reception for the exhibit at the Kotler gallery on July 13 from 5:30 to 7 p.m.

Library officials hope it will bring exposure to the art center.

"I just think they're a great organization and their artists are just highly professional," said Lynda Jennings, the gallery's curator and coordinator. "My goal is to get them known."

Local artists started TRA in 1956 as an art school and gallery. In 1968, the group moved to its current building at 705 Swann Ave., formerly the Hyde Park Grammar School.

They burned the mortgage when they bought the building in 1982, a moment captured in a framed photo that hangs on the wall.

The center has a different exhibit every month and offers monthly competitions. All of the artists who will be displayed in the library are South Tampa residents and past contest winners.

Some said that TRA has changed a bit over the years by bringing in younger artists and embracing a more abstract style.

"I think in the very beginning they were more focused on realistic art and now we've gotten to be not so rigid," said Margaret Hylton, a member for 28 years. Some of her paintings share a theme of nature: zebras, dogs, flowers and toucans.

"We're getting newer, younger people involved," said Dee Lobo, who will display some of her favorite portraits.

The organization's new face is reflected in the exhibit. Some pieces resemble photographs, while others have an ethereal tone.

The paintings capture people engaged in ordinary activities - skiing, talking and playing chess. They portray kids playing outside, breathtaking architecture, and natural landscapes. One painting is a collage of all three.

The artists themselves are diverse, coming from the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom and all parts of the United States: Oregon, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts.

They range in age, some, generations apart. But one thing unites them: Most have been painting for as long as they can remember.

Jack Plimmer, a retired chemist, paints the architecture of buildings he saw when his job took him around the world. A church in England. A castle in Germany.

Frank Bolock said he likes to throw a little bit of fantasy in his work. One of his favorite paintings, sold long ago, features Einstein, Jesus and Socrates sipping lattes.

Roy Streeter uses paint to capture some of the places and things that made impressions on him during his travels to Mexico, China and other countries.

Tatyana Hankinson will be showing paintings of landscapes in Tampa and Sarasota. She said she is glad she joined TRA when she came to Tampa four years ago.

"It's actually helped a lot," said Hankinson. "I've met so many people and every show, every person, gives me inspiration."

Jonnelle Marte can be reached at jmarte@sptimes.com or 813-226-3404.

[Last modified July 6, 2006, 12:30:33]