Museum of Florida Art

From Apr 3rd through May 31st, 2009.  The Museum of Florida Art is currently presenting an exhibition titled Wood, Paper, Paint: Bitner and Bogdanowitsch. This exhibition brings together the paintings of Donne Bitner and the sculpture of Cheryl Bogdanowitsch.  The title refers to the primary mediums used by each artist.  Together they explore a personal fantasy world incorporating portraiture, animal images and mysterious narratives firmly rooted in abstraction. 

Donne Bitner utilizes a variety of painting and drawing techniques combined with textured surfaces to evoke dream-like images.  Cheryl Bogdanowitsch uses tree branches burnished with oil glazes and integrated ceramic faces to produce a collection of dynamic figure studies portraying an unusual psychological point of view.  The synergy of these two artists is compelling with each remaining distinct to their own vision.
 
Bogdanowitsch, an award-winning Winter Park artist, studied both woodworking and sculpture.  Her work is exhibited in museum shows and galleries throughout the United States and can be seen in public collections.  “My environment plays an important part in the making of my art,” says Bogdanowitsch.  “I am influenced by Florida's lakes, trees, and skies. My imagination is stirred by intuitively examining the sticks, branches and roots that I have collected from my neighborhood. These twisted limbs suggest parts of the human anatomy, which I can collage into gesturing wooden figures.”

Bitner, an Orlando based artist, holds a degree in Art and has been a full-time studio artist for the last 15 years. She is currently an instructor at Crealde School of Art and maintains a studio in Winter Park, Florida.  Her work is exhibited in museum shows and art festivals throughout the United States and has appeared in a variety of publications including American Artist Watercolor Magazine, International Artist, and Watercolor Magic.  She is a signature member of both the National Watercolor Society and Florida Watercolor Society, a member of the Watercolor USA Honor Society, and a recipient of a Florida Individual Artist's Fellowship in 2002.  "My new body of work incorporates monotypes, oil pastel, oil stick, charcoal, and acrylic paint,” says Bitner.  “Although subject matter will vary, my intent is to follow the mark – to layer and strip away and finds the hidden texture and meaning of a piece. It's painting by discovery."

Museum of Florida Art
600 N. Woodland Boulevard
DeLand, FL 32720
386.734.4371
www.museumoffloridaart.org