About Elizabeth Oberman
Elizabeth has enjoyed painting and drawing since childhood. She had her first painting commission as a young teen and won a scholarship to the Pennsylvania Governor’s School of the Arts summer program during high school. She studied fine art, graphic design, and illustration at Millersville University and the University of the Arts, in Philadelphia. Elizabeth lived in Philadelphia for many years where she worked as a freelance illustrator and graphic designer before becoming one of the owners of Skye Learning Solutions where she is the art director. In 2012, Elizabeth entered her first local juried art exhibition, where her painting won the award for Best in Show. Since that time her work has been accepted into many juried shows around the country and has won numerous awards. Her paintings include a variety of subjects, but many portray people and reflect her love of color and light. Elizabeth recently ended her term as VP of the Garden State Watercolor Society. She currently lives in Flemington, NJ with her husband and three sons.
New Brunswick Art Salon 2019 – Watercolor and Mixed Media: “Ephemeral Visions”
Website: www.elioberman.com
Artist Statement
Art has given me lifelong pleasure and I find the medium of watercolor allows me to convey my personality as an artist and observer. I have always enjoyed working from the figure, so when I began exploring watercolor it was natural for me to paint the people and places around me. I tend to work in a more journalistic style, rather than that of a traditional portrait painter and also like painting people as they relate to their environment. I enjoy the challenge of capturing a likeness but am drawn to the character of my subjects and the story they have to tell. When choosing my subjects, I hope to evoke a mood, capture the light, and to cast an impression of the times that we live in.
I use professional grade pigments for my work as I value both the permanency and the color brilliancy I find in them. I am especially fond of the brands that have honey in them as they never quite dry out in my palette. When working I almost never use black and prefer to make more colorful whites, grays and darks from mixtures of color. One of the things I love most about watercolors is the way the pigments run and blend into each other on the paper. I find the act of painting very relaxing for me and it brings me a great sense of accomplishment. I initially began showing my work at the encouragement of my 8 year old son and have continued to do so because I find it is the natural progression of finishing a piece of art. Showing my work has allowed me to tap into the world of art that I enjoy and has allowed me to be part of an encouraging community of fellow artists.
Exhibitions
Selected Juried Exhibitions
- Adirondacks National Exhibition of American Watercolors: 2018 / 2019
- Ellarslie Open Juried Exhibition: 2015 / 2016 / 2017 / 2018 / 2019
- Garden State Watercolor Society Annual Juried Show: 2012 / 2013 / 2014 / 2015 / 2016 / 2017 / 2018 / 2019
- Garden State Watercolor Society Member Show: 2012 / 2013 / 2014 / 2015 / 2016 / 2017 / 2018 / 2019
- Hunterdon Watercolor Society Annual Members Show: 2012 / 2013 / 2014 / 2015
- Monmouth Museum Juried Watercolor Exhibition: 2017
- NJ Watercolor Society Annual Open Exhibition: 2012 / 2013 / 2014 / 2015 / 2016 / 2017 / 2018 / 2019
- NJ Watercolor Society Elected Member Exhibition: 2012 / 2013 / 2014 / 2015 / 2016
- North East Watercolor Society Annual International Open Exhibition: 2016 / 2017
- Pennsylvania Watercolor Society Annual International Juried Exhibition: 2015 / 2016
- Philadelphia Watercolor International Exhibition of Works on Paper: 2014 / 2015 / 2016 / 2017 / 2018 / 2019
- Transparent Watercolor Society of America Annual Juried Exhibition: 2016 / 2017
- Catherine Lorillard Wolfe Annual Juried Exhibition: 2017
Awards
- 2018 Friedlander Award / Adirondacks National Exhibition of American Watercolors
- 2018 Martin Weber Award for Watercolor / Ellarslie Open 35
- 2018 Holbien Award for Watercolor / Garden State Watercolor Society 49th Annual Juried Show
- 2018 Award of Excellence in Non-Water Media / Garden State Watercolor Society Signature Members Show
- 2017 PWCS Award for Use of Color / Philadelphia Watercolor Society 117th International Exhibition
- 2017 The Charles & Lucy McVicker Award / Garden State Watercolor Society 48th Annual Juried Show
- 2017 The Nat & Cole Lewis Memorial Award / New Jersey Watercolor Society 75th Annual Open Exhibition
- 2016 Pat & Richard Morgan Award / North East Watercolor Society 40th International Open Exhibition
- 2016 Merit Award / Garden State Watercolor Society Signature Members Show
- 2016 Von Duyke Award for Transparent Watercolor / Philadelphia Watercolor Society 116th
- 2016 Ringwood Art Institute Award / New Jersey Watercolor Society 74th Annual Open Exhibition
- 2016 Honorable Mention / Philadelphia Watercolor Society Annual Members Show
- 2015 Sonia Weir Memorial Award / New Jersey Watercolor Society 73rd Open Juried Show
- 2015 West Charlton Frame Award / Pennsylvania Watercolor Society 36th International Juried Exhibition
- 2015 Board of Directors’ Award / Philadelphia Watercolor Society 115th Anniversary Exhibition
- 2015 Award of Excellence / New Jersey Watercolor Society Elected Member Exhibition
- 2015 Honorable Mention / Garden State Watercolor Society Signature Members Show
- 2015 Best in Show / Hunterdon Watercolor Society Annual Members Show
- 2014 Roberta Carter Clark Memorial Award / New Jersey Watercolor Society 72nd Open Juried Show
- 2014 Best in Show / Hunterdon Watercolor Society Annual Members Show
- 2014 Award of Excellence / New Jersey Watercolor Society Elected Members Show
- 2014 Award of Excellence / Garden State Watercolor Society Associate Members Show
- 2013 NJAAPL and Joy Greco Awards / Hunterdon Watercolor Society Annual Members Show
- 2013 Best in Show / Garden State Watercolor Society Associate Members Show
- 2012 NJWCS Associate Award / New Jersey Watercolor Society 70th Open Juried Show
- 2012 Best in Show / Hunterdon Watercolor Society Annual Members Show
Memberships
- Garden State Watercolor Society – Signature Member
- New Jersey Watercolor Society – Elected Member
- Pennsylvania Watercolor Society – Signature Member
- Philadelphia Watercolor Society – Signature Member
- Transparent Watercolor Society of America – Associate Member
Education
Millersville University of Pennsylvania, Millersville, PA
University of the Arts, Philadelphia, PA