Two La Mesa residents, Robin Erickson and Roz Oserin, won the First and Second-Place awards, respectively, in the San Diego Watercolor Society (SDWS) May Member’s exhibition “Untamed”, an in-gallery show of the SDWS at 2825 Dewey Road in Liberty Station. The paintings were selected for these honors by prominent local artist and juror Mark Smith out of over 215 entries.

Erickson’s first-place painting (pictured above) is titled “Dancer at the Senior Center”. Smith commented, “This artist just nailed it with the complete range of values, and the full range of hard and soft edges. It has a nice variety of colors, and a great composition. The handling of fabric and skin details is especially good. The textures of soft folds or hard and shiny are illustrated with talent and feeling. A rich portrait!”

Of Oserin’s second-place painting (pictured below), titled “Flamenco Fiesta #2”, Smith said, “There is an active line that keeps the eye moving all around the image. I love the color choices, with the beautiful corals and sweet little green accents. The painting has a full value range, too. The spots of color and value are great, and they are exactly where they need to be. I like the simplification of the anatomy, the interesting mid-tones, and the playful shadows.”

Erickson is a California artist who has focused exclusively on watercolor painting.

In the mid-1990s, with no prior art experience, she was persuaded by a co-worker to take an evening art class at the local community college, and the experience turned out to be transformational. She fell in love with watercolor painting, set up a studio at home and began painting every evening. She joined the San Diego Watercolor Society, began showing her work and never looked back. Erickson left her career as a mathematician/analyst for the Naval Research and Development Laboratory, moved to Fallbrook in 2003 to a great new studio, and was at that time able to devote herself full time to painting. Erickson has studied with numerous internationally known painters and holds signature membership in the International Masters Watercolor Alliance (IMWA), American Watercolor Society (AWS), National Watercolor Society (NWS), Watercolor West (WW), and San Diego Watercolor Society (SDWS), among others.

Find more of Erickson’s work at https://robinericksonart.com

Oserin grew up in Pittsburgh, moving to San Diego when she was 21. Although she did not have formal art training, she began painting in 2008. She started with oils, but has added watercolor, acrylic, and mixed media to her palettes.

Today, she is an award-winning artist who has been recognized for her work in watercolors, acrylics, mixed media, and even landscape design. She has operated a framing business in San Diego since 2016 and has also taught various classes and curates exhibitions of her work. She has exhibited in a variety of commercial galleries and is represented by Nainsook Gallery in San Diego.

More of her work can be found at https://www.rozoserinfineart.com/

Paintings can be viewed and purchased directly from the gallery, and are also available to view and purchase on the SDWS website at https://www.sdws.org/galleryart.php?cat=7045.